The Feminist Issue by YU FreePress

NEWS (3-7)

FEATURES (8-14)

COMMENTS (15-18)

U of Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Weapon 4 Passport Bodies 8 Vari Hall and Abelism 15 Diesel Trains in Toronto 4 Stolen Parts 9 Historicizing Haiti 15 Olympic Torch Sparks Action 5 Mother(land) & Diaspora 10 Graduate Funding Cuts 17 Haiti: No Intervention! 6 Femme Shark Manifesto 12 Fighting Prorogation 18

Winter Issue 3, 2010

Your Alternative News Magazine at York

ARTS & CULTURE (19-22) Feminist Comedy 19 On Generative Process 20 Avatar Critque 21 Zaynab Entered the Mosque 22

Volume 2, Issue 3

The Feminist Issue

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

Editorial The Feminist Issue I can remember when I first wrote “Women, Race and Class” in 1981...everyone started calling me a feminist. My response was, “Who, me? I’m not a feminist! I’m a revolutionary Black woman who identifies with working class peoples struggles all over the world! How could I be a feminist!?” -Angela Davis, Feb. 3, 2010, York University The York community was very lucky to have recently hosted a lecture by Angela Davis, who has been one of the most influential and inspiring anti-racist feminist activists and writers for decades. While there are many stimulating parts of her lecture, her thoughts on the complexities, contradictions, and possibilities for feminism are particularly relevant to the YU Free Press as we enthusiastically present to you our third Issue this school year: The Feminist Issue! It is worth noting that we ourselves at the YUFP have had many conversations and debates regarding what exactly to call this Issue. Davis’s initial reservations with being called a ‘feminist,’, exemplified in the quote above, speaks to the ways in which feminism has time and time again been named by middle-upper class, heterosexual, able-bodied white women as a type of politics only relevant to themselves. Feminism has historically and continually been stolen from marginalized women and trans people with critical and strong voices, causing many revolutionaries, both in and out of the spotlight, to be wary of feminism. As such, we at the YUFP recognize the importance of considering how we are utilizing and mobilizing the concept of feminism, and for whom. Davis goes on to explain how her attitudes toward feminism changed throughout time, as the category of feminism has changed and been reclaimed by the marginalized

voices so often excluded. She tells a story of how she worked to change the name of the department in UC Santa Cruz from ‘Women’s Studies’ to ‘Feminist Studies’: “Because we argued it wasn’t only about studying women! It’s not only about studying gender!...This assumption that feminism is only about gender has been a result of a kind of yearning for simplicity, that has racialized feminism as white... [But] I can’t imagine a feminism that is not anti-racist.” It is in this spirit that the YUFP approaches our Feminist Issue. We acknowledge that feminism has histories, methodologies, and politics that are complex, contradictory, and often exclusionary. However, we also assert that critical feminisms hold the possibility to re-write oppressive histories, tell stories that are often forgotten and ignored, and listen to voices that are repeatedly silenced and rendered irrelevant. Critical feminisms create languages and methods to seriously engage with hierarchies of race, class, sexuality, ability, as well as gender. They open spaces to mobilize against statebased violence and contemporary practices of colonialism, slavery, and genocide. It is with these considerations that we have chosen to give space and voice to the narratives of feminism featured in this Issue. We recognize that different kinds of feminisms, including antiracist feminism, are continually contested and re-organized. In order to challenge the ways in which dominant anti-racism is often heterosexist, homophobic, and transphobic, we feature pieces by Leah Lakshmi PiepznaSamarasinha and Lauren Pragg with Shaunga Tagore to center the experiences of queer women and trans people of colour, as well as Indigenous Two-Spirit people. Furthermore, we include ‘Law Enforcement Violence against Native Women, Native Trans

People and Two Spirit People’ by the ‘Incite! Women of Color against Violence’ collective to assert that although it is a violence not often spoken of even in racialized communities, Indigenous queer women and Two Spirit people are among the most brutally attacked by police/military forces and colonial state-based violence. The articles we feature for our Feminist Issue interestingly focus on the body as a prime target of sexist, racist, ableist, nationalist violence. Nidhi Punyarthi examines the passport as a device of racist, heterosexist, and homophobic nationalism used to regulate and violate bodies rendered non-citizen; Laura J. Kwak explores histories of slavery that have produced Black women’s bodies and reproduction property of the slave master, as well as the implications of this history. Similarly, poetry by Jorge Antonio Vallejos and poetry/photography by Shaunga Tagore compel us to ask a number of questions about bodies: What kinds of bodies are often (un)noticed and (de)valued when violated? What kinds of bodies are worth mourning for, and which do we let disappear? How do we force sexist, heterosexist, and racist judgements upon racialized women’s bodies that have physical impacts on their freedom and empowerment? How do we employ these judgements in our classrooms, within our collective/community organizing, during our casual, brief interactions with others, in our most intimate relationships? We have also published a number of articles that do not fall under our theme of feminism, but are nonetheless important to cover. Signiﬁcantly, we have featured a number of solidarity statements addressing the current situation in Haiti in our News and Comments Sections: statements from the Kapit-Bisig Centre, Magkaisa Centre and Kalayaan Centre, and Adoptees of Colour all take different approaches in linking

the consequences of the earthquake to larger issues of foreign colonial invasion that have historical precedent. Further, Canova Kutuk and Daniel Tseguay

contribute similar historical interpretations of Haiti’s current moment, and connect how such contextualized understandings should inform bottom-up relief efforts in the region that empower local inhabitants as opposed to continuing centuriesold colonial legacies. Our News and Comments Sections also zero in on a number of stories relevant to our campus and beyond. For example, in our News Section ﬁnd Canadian-HART’s statement of the recent arrest of a YorkU student in Indonesia while advocating for the rights and freedom of Tamil refugees. In our Comments Section, readers can look forward to examining Jen Rinaldi and Chelsea Flook’s argumentative piece which analyzes ‘Vari Hall Renovations from a Disability Studies Perspective’ as well as Jordy Cumming’s questioning as to why, and to why extent ‘Is York University Ditching Guaranteed Student Funding?’ Our Arts Section also features articles with feminist themes. Ellie Gordan-Moershel promotes feminist comedy as an alternative to the sexist comedy of the mainstream. In a photo essay entitled ‘My City?’, Laurence Parent presents the ways in which she has been excluded from the Montréal subway, and how this exclusion undermines her citizenship status. In addition, Annalee Newitz calls attention to

Angela Davis the racists themes found in sciencefiction films in her article `When Will White People Stop Making Movies Like Avatar?’ We would also like to note that many of our submissions for this issue are creative works, and it is no coincidence that this is the case for our Feminist Issue. Poetry, photography, music, and other types of art have historically and contemporarily been a strong force to mobilize critical feminist activism and politics. The YUFP insists that creative art is just as political and significant as other expressions and types of journalism. The YUFP would also like to introduce our newest Editorial Collective member, Madison Trusolino, who has taken on the Arts & Culture section of our newspaper - welcome! Near the end of her talk, Angela Davis states: “...the kind of feminism I’m talking about has the capacity to embrace more and more complexity in response to historical circumstances. I think that is what renders feminism so exciting, this is what renders it so radical.” On that note, the YUFP welcomes you to our Feminist Issue!

COVER IMAGE

Now Accepting Submissions

By Angela Sterrit

The YU Free Press is now accepting submissions for our next issue, “Welcome to York: A York U ‘Knowledge’ Production”. For our 4th and ﬁnal issue this school year, we want to shed light on some of the politics concerning York, particularly those regarding the administration, the recent attack on student space for activism, the neoliberalization and corporatization of universities and the effects on knowledge production, etc. We want this issue to serve as a space for the critical assessment of York University’s administration, not only in terms of its affairs on campus, but also with respect to much broader international affairs, to show how these dynamics are deteriorating the quality of education, and the overall university experience. We hope that this issue will be a production by those at the grassroots.

Stolen Sisters

Submissions will be accepted until March 5th 2010.

CORRECTIONS

You are welcome to write on any social justice issue outside of our theme. We have a list of possible topics available on our Website at www.yufreepress.org. (Look at the link: YUFP Updates)

1. A contributor’s name was misspelled: it should have read Raji Choudhury, not Chowdury.

You can also send us letters to the editor(s), campus & community events, photos (w/ proper credit), and drawings or designs. Please submit all articles, photos, community event notices, art and general inquires to info@yufreepress.org.

Vol. 2, Issue 2 Angela Sterritt is a visual artist and printmaker who belongs to the Gitxsan Nation of the Gitanmaax band and is also of Irish descent. Considered a visual-journalist, she chronicles the history, dreams, struggles and realities of her people back home and in the city.

2. The following page headings had the wrong page number associated with them: -All Eyes on Us, page 5 not page 6 -Sri Lankan Sexual Violence, page 12 not page 7 -Drop Fees, page 10 not page 8 -Alt. Rememberance Day, page 16 not page 15 -York & Fair Trade, page 16 not page 18

Suggested word counts: News: 50 to 750 words/ Features: max 2000 words/ Comments: max 1200 words/ Arts: max 1500 words If you have not submitted to the YU Free Press before, but would like to, this is your chance. The YU Free Press has experienced tremendous success since its inception, and it is due to the support and dedication of our writers, volunteers, allies, and readers. For that, we sincerely thank you for making us what we are today! The YUFP Editorial Collective

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

News Proposed Vari Hall Renovations Worse than a Waste: York Community Members Oppose Misplacement of Priorities, Resources Committee to Defend Student Space The York University administration’s plan to renovate Vari Hall rotunda is an outrageous attempt to eliminate space for independent student cultural and political assembly. This scheme entails misallocation of scarce resources, exclusion of student governments’ recommendations, and neglect of concerns about campus accessibility. A committee of students, faculty and staff is organizing to respond to this negligence and to defend student space. The administration pleads poverty when asked to address actual campus priorities. Sexual assaults persist on campus but we have yet to see increased shuttle service or improved lighting. Student tuition and user fees rise uncontrollably as researchers and staff await further budget cuts. York researchers still lack access to the University of Toronto’s academic libraries; following U of T’s fall 2009 decision to block external library users, other university administrations (e.g. McMaster and Ryerson) negotiated and allocated resources to restore faculty and graduate student access. The list goes on. In this context, why should we funnel resources into a misguided renovation project? Vice-President Students Rob Tifﬁn has now admitted that the renovation initiative is intended “to quell protests”. Administrators regularly leverage the rotunda’s central design ﬂaw--the proximity of classrooms to the rotunda’s acoustics--to suppress student activity. In past years, administrators have issued blanket prohibitions on use of Vari Hall for independent organized student activities

of any kind. The community has continually rejected these prohibitions, so the administration is now trying to impose them through architecture. When the York Federation of Students (YFS) and Graduate Students Association (GSA) recommend reasonable solutions to the ro-

and Community 2009 report (which the administration uses to justify the renovation) is peppered with safeguards for free expression and assembly. For example, “universities are and should be sites of scholarly, intellectual and political engagement, places in which provocative questions can be asked which intentionally seek to disturb the status quo and which need to be raised free of intimidation and harassment”. The report adds, “Our primary focus is on promoting more speech and expression, rather than less”. We will hold the administration accountable to these principles and to the promised opportunity for debate of the proposed designs.

The proposed renovations of Vari Hall are culturally, politically, and socially harmful for our campus. Unless fundamentally changed, in Theonlysilentbob meaningful consultation with students, they should not proceed. The Committee to tunda noise, such as soundprooﬁng the class- Defend Student Space calls on fellow comrooms, their contributions are ignored. Other munity organizations and individuals to eximportant stakeholders are similarly over- press outrage in response to the process and looked. The proposed renovation designs substance of the renovation initiative, and fail to honour the 2005 Accessibility for to join us in ensuring that better options are Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) and pursued. were not put together in consultation with people with disabilities. One plan involves Send a letter to the York University Adminstairways, another incorporates an elevated istration! platform, and all three plans will clutter an already busy rotunda. All three features will http://www.yfs.ca/studentspace inadvertently obstruct the way for people Contact the Committee to Defend Student with mobility and visual impairments. Space at defendstudentspace@gmail.com or The Task Force on Student Life, Learning ﬁnd the group on Facebook.

York U Student Arrives Home After Being Detained in Indonesia more than 11 Hours Canadian HART Canadian student, Jessica Chandrashekar, University of Toronto Alumni and PhD student from York University arrives home after being detained in Indonesia for supporting Tamil refugees marooned on a boat of the coast of Indonesia at the behest of the Australian government. Friends and family of Jessica welcomed her home on Saturday Jan. 30, at Pearson International Airport. Jessica will be speaking to the media about her conﬁnement. During her three days of detention her pass-

port was conﬁscated and she was asked to sign a document that was in Bahasa Indonesia. Jessica was warned against speaking out to the media. She was in Indonesia meeting with senior ofﬁcials of the Indonesian foreign ministry to arrange humanitarian supplies for the 254 Tamil boat refugees.

“I am really looking forward to being back home in Canada. I can’t believe I was arrested for doing humanitarian work. But what is worse is the treatment of these refugees who are stuck without food, water or safety on a boat.” said Jessica Chandrashekar in a statement. The asylum seekers, who have been living on a boat for over 100 days, are under threat of deportation back to Sri Lanka. One asylum seeker has died from having been denied medical care. Another person is in need of immediate medical attention for injuries sustained during the war. There are 31 children on the boat and one pregnant woman.

All of the asylum seekers are suffering from lack of food and medicine and the denial of medical attention. The Australia-bound boat was intercepted by the Indonesian Navy upon Australia’s request. Australia, as a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention, has a responsibility to protect these refugees. Human rights advocates around the world are condemning Australia and Indonesia for stalling the refugee boat for the past four months. Experts on the war in Sri Lanka, and international refugee agreements, who are also familiar with family members of the some of the refugees, will be available for interviews. For more information contact Canadian Humanitarian Appeal for the Relief of Tamils (HART) at (647) 836-6858. Through community outreach and media campaigns, Canadian HART seeks to raise awareness about the human rights abuses against the Tamil minority population in Sri Lanka. Working in collaboration with labour unions, student groups, faith-based organizations and community organizations, Canadian HART aims to draw Canadian and international attention to the situation of Tamils in Sri Lanka and to push for an international presence and monitoring of the humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka.

The YU Free Press is a free alternative monthly newspaper at York University. Our principal objectives are to challenge the mainstream corporate media model and provide a fundamental space for critical analysis at York University and wider community.

ADDRESS York University 4700 Keele Street Toronto, Canada EMAIL info@yufreepress.org WEBSITE http://www.yufreepress.org EDITORIAL COLLECTIVE Victoria Barnett Raji Choudhury Troy Dixon Zubaira Hussaini Nathan Nun Jen Rinaldi Shaunga Tagore Carmen Teeple Hopkins Madison Trusolino

COPY EDITORS Hammam Farah Canova Kutuk Stefan Lazov Daniel Pillai Jamie M.A. Smith

CONTRIBUTORS Ali Abbas, Jeremy Appel, Jordy Cummings, Chelsea Flook, Elizabeth Goldstein, Ellie Gordon-Moershel, Joseph Hickey, Matthew Karas, Shailagh Keaney, Leon Kuhn, Canova Kutuk, Laura J. Kwak, Leah Lakshmi, Piepzna-Samarasinha, Ashley McEachern, Annalee Newitz, Karol Orzechowski, Laurence Parent, Lauren Pragg, Nidhi Punyarthi, Jen Rinaldi, Shaunga Tagore, Carmen Teeple Hopkins, Madison Trusolino, Daniel Tseguay, Jorge Antonio Vallejos, Jesse Zimmerman

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The YU Free Press Collective The opinions expressed in the YU Free Press are not necessarily those of the editors or publishers. Individual editors are not responsible for the views and opinions expressed herein. Images used by YUFP under various creative commons, shared, and open media licenses do not necessarily entail the endorsement of YUFP or the viewpoints expressed in its articles by the respective creators of such images. Only current members of the Editorial Collective can represent the YU FreePress.

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News

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

University of Ottawa’s Newest Weapon in the Fight against Freedom of Expression Joseph Hickey A full-time graduate student in Physics at the University of Ottawa (U of O), Joseph Hickey, has called on Mr. Vern White, Chief of Police, to keep the Ottawa Police out of campus politics. The University of Ottawa issued a no trespassing notice to the U of O campus to Hickey for his alleged participation in a freedom of expression event that resulted in the painting of the message “These Walls Belong to Students” in the outdoor poster-display areas of the university library walls. Having

he was no longer a registered student. However, Hickey is still a full-time graduate student at the U of O, since Master’s students are registered at all times in the Master’s thesis program. “As a registered full-time graduate student with course, research, and Teaching Assistant obligations, I have the right to be on campus every day, without discrimination or interference” said Hickey. Both the teaching assistant union (CUPE Local 2626) and the graduate student association

of Physics, and being threatened with the loss of his employment, local student media began to cover the story with headlines such as “Battle to stay on campus leads to arrest: Student arrested for trespassing while making an appointment.” The no trespassing notice was ﬁnally revoked without condition on Jan. 11, and Hickey began his TA job two days later. However, the letter in which the trespass notice was revoked assigned guilt to the student rather than presuming innocence, and afﬁrmed

Dear TWB community, The Toronto Women’s Bookstore is in crisis and we need your help! Independent businesses and bookstores have been closing their doors this year, and after 36 years it is possible that we will have to do the same if we are not able to raise enough money to survive. TWB is one of the only remaining non-profit feminist bookstores in North America, but despite all of the events, courses, workshops, community resources and additional services we offer, the fact that we are a store means that we do not receive any outside funding and rely entirely on sales and the support of our customers to stay in business. Over the past few years, our sales have not been enough to sustain us and this is why we are coming to you, our community, for help. If every one of you donated $10 we would raise enough to keep going for 3 months, $20 each would keep us in business for 6 months, and $30 each would be enough for us to keep our doors open, hopefully for good. All donations will go directly towards covering the bookstore’s costs, and are a part of a larger plan of action and structural change to make the business sustainable in the current economy. In the past, when feminist bookstores were closing down all across North America, the support of the community is what kept TWB alive. You are the reason that we are still here today, and we believe that with your help we can once again work together to save this organization where so many of us as readers, writers, feminists, artists, and activists have found a home. You can make donations over the phone, on our website www. womensbookstore.com (paypal link available soon), or in person at the store. As a non-profit store we are not eligible for charitable status and cannot offer tax receipts, but we are hoping to be able to offer tax receipts for donations over $100 in collaboration with a nonprofit charity who shares our mandate. We will have that information available on our website and in store as soon as possible.

Joseph Hickey Morisset Library, University of Ottawa: Hickey was accused of having painted this statement at a Freedom of Expression event. already contacted U of O President Allan Rock several times to ask that he revoke the no trespassing notice, Hickey went to make an appointment with President Rock at his ofﬁce on Friday Dec. 11, 2009, where he was arrested by the Ottawa Police and served with a trespassing ticket. When asking Constable De Los Santos of the Ottawa Police to verify Hickey’s registration at the university, the student learned that the University’s Protection Services had given De Los Santos false information about Hickey’s registration status. The university made a claim that since Hickey’s exam in one course was completed

(GSAÉD) wrote to President Rock, insisting that the no trespassing notice be rescinded immediately, and protesting the discrimination and interference Hickey had been made to suffer. Three days later on Dec. 14, 2009, Mr. Hickey was removed from the Department of Physics Christmas party by university police without any explanation other than the Chairman of Physics Béla Joós saying “sorry, Joe,” and a university police ofﬁcer’s private comment “you are disturbing people by being here.” After having his Teaching Assistant contract withheld by the department

the university’s right to use trespass against students in the future as it sees ﬁt. Hickey has commenced a grievance with the TA Union over discrimination, harassment, improper discipline, and violation of academic freedom. He will be disputing the Trespass Ticket that he received when arrested at the President’s ofﬁce. The trial will take place on March 1. The misuse of trespass as a political tool dates back to the campuses of the 1960’s, including its use in the Berkeley Free Speech Movement to remove outspoken students from their university. In his letter to Police Chief White, Hickey urges him not

You can also help by spreading the word to your friends and community, contacting us if you know of any funding we might be eligible for, promoting this fundraising drive in your paper or on your blog, website or radio show, organizing your own save the bookstore fundraisers or just passing the hat at your parties, giving a TWB donation as a gift, and of course, coming in and bringing all your friends to the store for some shopping! Thank you all for your support, The Toronto Women’s Bookstore Board, Staff & Volunteers to let the Ottawa Police repeat the errors of the past. “Let us keep the police for authentic criminal and safety matters, not campus politics. I also ask that Ottawa Police ofﬁcers be informed about student rights before making any more arrests of this type on university campuses,” stressed Hickey. In using these newly rediscovered powers to trespass and forcefully remove registered students from

campus, the University of Ottawa runs the risk of resuscitating their most potent counter-measure: direct student action in deﬁance of the absurdity embodied by the university administration. Ottawa Free Speech Movement? That has a nice ring to it. For more information, please contact: Joseph Hickey at jhick059@gmail.com

Diesel Fueled Trains set to run Through Western Toronto: Community Concerns and Resistance Jesse Zimmerman Currently, there are plans to create a train route through Western Toronto that would connect Union Station in downtown Toronto to Lester B. Pearson International Airport in the far Western point of the city. The proposed route bisects various neighbourhoods, starting from the downtown areas of City Place, Fort York, Brockton Village and Parkdale, Roncesvalles, up to the Junction, Harwood, and through the North-West regions of Weston, Humber Heights and Kingsview Village. The main purpose of this project is to allow the ﬂow of imports and exports, and to ensure the market runs smoothly. The train route will be good for business, but will have severe consequences for the residents of the areas it runs through. The company behind this is Metrolinx, a public authority that serves the Greater Toronto Area and

the Hamilton region. The Ontario provincial government created the organization and is responsible for running the train route project. This expansion consists of two projects; the Georgetown South Service Expansion (GSSE) and the Union-Pearson Rail Link (UPRL). The GSSE is an expansion of the service from Union to the Georgetown Corridor, while the UPRL is the greater extension to connect Pearson Airport to Union Station. Construction is slated to start in 2010 and be completed by 2014.

A grassroots group known as the Clean Train Coalition formed in the spring of 2009. This organization notes numerous concerns regarding the proposed railway. Their concerns include the bisection of communities and the noise that the trains will produce. More importantly, it has been revealed that Metrolinx and the Government of Ontario plan to use

diesel-fueled trains in this project. The Clean Train Coalition’s number one priority is the health and environmental impact of diesel being pumped into the air. It is estimated at this point that nearly 400-450 trains a day will run along the rail. The Clean Train Coalition demands the use of electriﬁcation as it will run quieter and be less of a burden on both the environment and the well-being of residents. The Clean Train Coalition is cochaired by community activist Mike Sullivan. When asked why Metrolinx and the provincial government insist on diesel fuel he responded: “We suspect it is again related to the Air Link. Metrolinx could electrify the corridor within the time frames allotted. But SNC Lavalin may not want to run electric trains and may already have purchased diesel.” During the summer of 2009, Dr. David McKeown, Toronto’s Medical Ofﬁcer of Health, publicly stated his concerns about this project: “What we know about

air pollution in Toronto is that any proposal now should pass a very stringent test before it goes forward. This proposal has not passed that test in my view. The study, conducted by Metrolinx itself, indicates clearly that there will be impacts on air quality as well as health risks for those that live close to the line.”

corridor, making various stops throughout the city’s West End. At each stop there were speeches, performances and new contingents of demonstrators joining. By the end of the demonstration about 1,000 people had gathered. Various political representatives attended, some notable ones including NDP MP Olivia Chow, former ParkdaleHigh Park MP Peggy Nash, MPP McKeown has mentioned an Cheri DiNovo and others, as well as Gerrard “The train route will be good for business, Kennedy, current but will have severe consequences for the the Liberal residents of the areas it runs through.” MP for Parkdaleincrease in severity for those who High Park who received some suffer from respiratory ailments as heckling after insisting the minister well as a possible risk of increased of Environment in McGuinty’s leukemia occurring in children government was a good minister. who live near the line. A few city councilors were also present. The demonstration On Sept. 26, 2009, a community received a fair amount of media response came in the form of a coverage and brought to light the vast Human Train Protest, headed coalition’s concerns. by the Clean Train Coalition and other community, social justice and Despite this demonstration and environmental groups. The human the growing mobilization that has train moved along the proposed

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News

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

Torch Sparks Action Nationwide: A Review of the 2010 Torch Trajectory Shailagh Keaney On Oct. 30, 2009, the Olympic Torch was ignited in Canada and set out on its 106-day relay. A “unique moment in Canadian history” when people can “feel the Olympic Spirit and reach for gold,” according to major Olympic-backer Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), the cross-country tour has aimed to build hype for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. But the torch was not the only thing to be sparked and hype was not the only thing to be built in the months leading up to the Games. The trajectory of the Torch Relay, set to ﬁnish on Feb. 12 in Vancouver, will have brought the torch to 1,000 communities throughout the part of Turtle Island now known as Canada. The relay events feature ﬂashy setups, local artists and promotional trucks for Coca-Cola and RBC, two of the relay’s major sponsors. Police have accompanied the Torch throughout, with a resulting $4 million security budget.

Torch Relay festival. At one point, the protest jammed the street and forced the torch to be extinguished and re-routed. In the week before the event, at least 25 people were visited by Integrated Security Unit and asked questions about the torch, according to an article on anarchistnews.org. From there, the torch traveled north across the Yukon and the Northwest Territories, bypassed the Alberta tar sands, circled up to the northern tip of Nunavut and back down again to the Atlantic Provinces where it would once again meet opposition. It saw dissidents with banners in Halifax, followed by more in Quebec City. Five days later, residents of Kahnawake saw to it that the RCMP would not enter their territory; local Mohawk Peacekeepers accompanied the torch instead.

Montreal’s sizeable opposition came next, with 200 people blocking the stage set up for the occasion and delaying the fanfare for almost an hour. “We are here today to express our solidarity and our resistance with people in British Colombia and all across Turtle Island who are resisting these disgusting Olympics that are being built on stolen Native land, which are causing displacement all over downtown Va n c o u v e r [and] all over the interior of socalled British Columbia,” announced demonstrator Aaron Lakoff karol o / decipherimages.com through a megaphone. Police in riot gear eventually True to form, many people have arrived on the scene and heavybeen swept up in Olympic hype handedly shoved the demonstration and have waited in crowds and out of the way. on roadsides with children in tow, anxious for an Olympic moment Five days later a small but of their own. Hidden beneath the respectable troupe leafleted in relay’s messages of inspiration, Peterborough, and in downtown however, is a harsher reality that Toronto, a demonstration of over demonstrators coast-to-coast have 250 people arrived to stand in attempted to display in nearly 20 opposition to the torch. Speakers cities so far. and a march were followed up with a banner reading “No Olympics People have greeted the torch on Stolen Native Land” in the along its route with their own Anishinaabemowin language, messages, including the theft of which was unfurled over the Indigenous land, corporate profit Torch Relay’s stage. Two people grabbing, ecological destruction, were arrested, both charged with militarization and migrant mischief and one with assault. Ian exploitation, all directly associated Robertson, a journalist working for with the Olympics. Some have also The Toronto Sun, was shoved to the used the relay to bring forward ground by a police officer during issues of sovereignty, lack of the relay, suffering a concussion. justice for hundreds of missing Constable Mandy Edwards, and murdered Native women, and spokeswoman for the Vancouver opposition to the seal hunt. 2010 Integrated Security Unit, described the situation as being As the Torch Relay has moved from handled in an “appropriate community to community, it has manner,” and explained to the been a magnet for opposition to the Canadian Press that Robertson was Olympics and has simultaneously shoved only after already being stirred assertions of sovereignty in told twice that he was getting too First Nations communities along close to the torch bearer. its route. “This is an Olympic Torch Relay. At the Torch Relay kickoff event in It’s a feel-good event. It’s the last Victoria, 400 people held a zombie place where you would find heavymarch and took part in an anti- handed, police-state, goon tactics,”

Robertson Press.

told The

Canadian

After Toronto, at the scheduled stop in Six Nations, in anticipation of the torch, the Onkwehonwe were engaging their own struggle for sovereignty. The Canada-imposed band council had agreed to host the torch, despite opposition from community members. “In 2009, there was a town meeting where 90 per cent of the people in attendance opposed the torch,” Lindsey Bomberry of the Onondaga nation explained to The Dominion. A declaration from the Onkwehonwe of the Grand River read, “This land is not conquered. We are not Canadian... We hereby affirm our peaceful opposition to the entry and progression of the 2010 Olympic torch into and through our territory.” People created a blockade to stop the flame from going over the Grand River or down Highway 54 into the heart of the Six Nations territory. As a result, the torch was rerouted and festivities were held at another location on the Six Nations territory. “This was very significant,” says Melissa Elliott, a founding member of Young Onkwehonwe United (YOU), and member of the Tuscarora Nation. “Six Nations was the first community to have the torch rerouted. [The demonstration at Six Nations] was held entirely by Onkewonkwe people, and so it had our issues at the forefront: issues like sovereignty, like our territory and our land.” “The Olympics is not just about sport. It is political, and it is colonial and it is imperial, and the torch carries this symbolism. When we heard that it was coming through our community, there was strong opposition since we have already been facing what the torch stands for,” adds Bomberry. The following day, people in Oneida succeeded in repelling the Torch Relay entirely using a blockade and a pledge to keep the torch from entering Oneida. Two days later was Christmas Eve, and London folks served a holiday meal “to anyone who thought free food was a better deal than an overpriced flame,” according to an article posted on no2010.com. Around 40 people joined in. In Kitchener, over 150 people marched with banners denouncing colonialism on Turtle Island. Banners were draped from RBC buildings, where “the government of Canada and the RBC were publicly shamed for their role in the ongoing genocide of Indigenous people and their support for the criminal developments of Alberta’s tar sands,” according to an article on peaceculture.org. According to Alex Hundert of Anti-War At Laurier (AW@L), the RCMP intervened in the demonstration as it was winding down, formed a “hard line,” and pushed some demonstrators in the process. “There were people who were voicing the perspective that if the police were violating the family-friendly protest, then it was time to take the gloves off and all bets were off,” he says. “And it was in response to that that the local police called the RCMP off.” Then came Guelph, where a small

demonstration of 20 to 30 people made headlines when a torch-bearer was knocked over during a skirmish with police. Witnesses say she tripped over a police ofﬁcer’s leg. Two protesters were charged with assault, but the charges were later dropped.

There was leafleting in Sudbury and then Nairn Centre, where an attempt at a highway blockade and banner drop opposing the Olympics was thwarted by police. A group made up primarily of Indigenous people karol o / decipherimages.com arrived and were stopped almost All images are from the Toronto ‘Block the Torch’ rally, i m m e d i a t e l y . Dec. 17, 2009. Police attempted to intervene multiple “People were times, but protesters were successful in blocking the arrested before torch for nearly two hours. everybody was out of the van,” says Hundert, who was The final stop will be in Vancouver nearby. on Feb. 12, in the midst of the NO2010 Convergence, where Some days later in Roseau River people are anticipating a festival First Nations, Manitoba, people involving days of actions and held signs and photographs showing protests against police brutality some of the over 500 missing and and calling for justice for missing murdered women in Canada as the and murdered women. torch went by. Former head of the Assembly of First Nations Phil Over the past four months, the Fontaine criticized the event for torch has been moving from North to South to East to West and back, “tarnishing the image of Canada.” draping the Canadian flag and “The fact that there is a list of over littering miniature Coca-Cola 500 murdered and missing Native bottles all across the country. women is what tarnishes the image of Canada,” Chief Terrence Nelson, This, however, will not be the one of the organizers of the event, only legacy of the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. rebuked.

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“As the Torch Relay has moved from community to community, it has been a magnet for opposition to the Olympics and has simultaneously stirred assertions of sovereignty in First Nations communities along its route.”

In Winnipeg people dressed as Olympic rings each representing a particular issue: homelessness and the criminalization of the poor, massive police spending and the outlawing of dissent, environmental destruction, missing and murdered women, and the theft of Native land. Upon taking the street, demonstrators were pushed out by Winnipeg police. The torch was extinguished and transported forward in a truck.

“I think the Torch Relay is a major step where various forms of anticolonial and anti-capital resistance that were rooted in very different places and different issues along those common themes had come together physically in several places,” explains Hundert. “One of the things that is going to be really interesting to see is the way momentum does get carried into Toronto and the G20.”

Later was Saskatoon and then Calgary, where over 500 brochures were handed out. Teri, who helped to organize the leaﬂeting, told The Dominion two people were ticketed for littering--apparently for a brochure that a police ofﬁcer dropped.

This article was originally published in The Dominion.

Shailagh Keaney is a writer based in occupied Atikameksheng Anishnawbek territory.

karol o / decipherimages.com

News

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

Message of Solidarity to the Courageous People of Haiti National Statement Kapit-Bisig Centre, Magkaisa Centre, & Kalayaan Centre The mass and democratic organizations of Filipino Canadian workers, women and youth of the Kapit-Bisig Centre, Magkaisa Centre and Kalayaan Centre extend our warmest feelings of solidarity and support to the Haitian people and their families who have been affected by the recent earthquake that devastated the entire nation on Jan. 12, 2010. The 7.3 magnitude earthquake that killed more than 100,000 Haitians and has injured and rendered thousands homeless, has left the entire nation grappling with the

loss of their loved ones as they pick-up the pieces in the process of rebuilding a nation. While we witness the tremendous damage that is unraveling as a result of this calamity, we also witness the longterm impact of the devastation brought upon to a nation that has been battered by years of U.S. imperialist domination. The ongoing implementation of the antipeople and neo-liberal economic policies perpetuated by the United States continues to target Haiti, leaving it to be “poorest country in the western hemisphere.”

As a community that shares similar struggles with the Haitian people against imperialism, the forced migration of Filipinos is also a result of the intensifying U.S. intervention in the socio-political and economic affairs of the Philippines. As such, progressive Filipino-Canadians heighten the ﬁght to expose and oppose imperialism in all its forms and its attacks on Third World peoples and nations. While international aid pours into Haiti for relief, recovery and rehabilitation, we express genuine international solidarity with the Haitian people in their struggle for democratization as

a step towards the rebuilding of Haiti as a nation and as a people. We oppose and are critical of the immediate deployment of over 10,000 U.S. military troops as part of the U.S. ‘relief efforts’. Such is a clear attempt of the U.S. to further expand military intervention and control towards the re-colonization of Haiti. As we continue to learn about the ongoing struggles that Haitians face, we also learn of the long history of resistance of its people against slavery, colonialism and imperialism. In the spirit of international solidarity, we extend our unconditional support to the

people of Haiti, particularly to the Haitian community in Canada. We support their efforts to reunite with members of their family in Canada and vow to continue to raise the Canadian people’s awareness about the root causes of people’s common struggles all over the world. Long live international solidarity! Victory to the people of Haiti! For more contact:

information

please

ukpc-on@magkaisacentre.org pwc-on@magkaisacentre.org siklab-on@magkaisacentre.org

Haiti Needs Emergency Relief, not Military Intervention! Canada Haiti Action Network (CHAN) and allies We, the undersigned, are outraged by the scandalous delays in distributing essential aid to victims of the earthquake in Haiti. Since the U.S. Air Force seized unilateral control of the airport in Port-auPrince, it has privileged military over civilian humanitarian ﬂights. As a result, untold numbers of people have died needlessly in the rubble of Port-au-Prince, Léogane and other abandoned towns. If aid continues to be withheld, many more preventable deaths will follow. We demand that US commanders immediately restore

executive control of the relief effort to Haiti’s leaders, and to help rather than replace the local ofﬁcials they claim to support. We note that obsessive foreign concerns with ‘security’ and ‘looting’ are largely refuted by actual levels of patience and solidarity on the streets of Portau-Prince. The decision to avoid what US commanders have called ‘another Somalia-type situation’ by prioritizing security and military control is likely to succeed only in provoking the very kinds of unrest they condemn. In keeping with a longstanding pattern, U.S. and U.N. ofﬁcials continue to treat the Haitian people and their representatives with wholly misplaced fear and suspicion. We call on the de facto rulers of Haiti to facilitate, as the reconstruction begins, the r e n e w a l of popular

Diesel Trains CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4 since followed in the soon-to-be affected communities this past Oct. 5, 2009, John Gerretsen, Ontario’s Environment Minister, officially approved the project. Some environmental conditions were attached to the project, such as the regulation that the diesel trains use Tier 4 diesel trains. The Clean Train Coalition is not satisfied with this and pledges to continue to fight for electrification. When asked what long-term effects we can expect from this project, Sullivan explains, “Massive increases in pollution--in particular Nitrous Oxide and Particulate Matter (soot). Particulates also are the aggregating point for a whole range of carcinogens--they aren’t just unburnt carbon molecules. Some particulates stop at the mucous membranes, but most of them will be much smaller and can get into the lungs. Some are small enough to get through the blood barrier and into the blood. Nitrous Oxide and Particulates also are directly responsible for smog, which makes breathing difficult,

particularly for asthmatics and the elderly, and anyone with cardiovascular or respiratory issues.” “Massive increases in noise and vibration, Metrolinx has proposed some noise barrier walls in some places, but admit they can`t mitigate the noise above the second ﬂoor of apartments by the tracks, so those residents will have to suffer. They also pulled a fast one and decided to measure the increases in noise against an imaginary ‘no build’ scenario in which the number of trains doubles. So the real increases in noise is not reﬂected in their studies. Same for vibration.” The struggle against this plan will continue. Alongside environmental concerns and the health of the residents there are also classist undertones. Most of the communities that are set to be bisected by this railway are working-class and generally lowincome communities. “If this were Forest Hill, Rosedale, or the Bridle Path, these trains would be electric yesterday. But because the communities are primarily lower income, recent

participation in the determination of collective priorities and decisions. We demand that they do everything possible to strengthen the capacity of the Haitian people to respond to this crisis. We demand, consequently, that they allow Haiti’s most popular and most inspiring political leader, JeanBertrand Aristide (whose party won 90% of the parliamentary seats in the country’s last round of democratic elections), to return immediately and safely from the unconstitutional exile to which he has been conﬁned since the U.S., Canada, and France helped depose him in 2004. If reconstruction proceeds under the supervision of foreign troops and international development agencies it will not serve the interests of the vast majority of Haiti’s population. Neoliberal forms of international ‘aid’ have already directly contributed to the systematic impoverishment of Haiti’s people and the undermining of their government, and in both 1991 and 2004 the US intervened to overthrow the elected government and attack its supporters, with devastating effect. This is why we urgently call on the countries that dominate Haiti and the region to respect Haitian sovereignty and to initiate an immediate reorientation of international aid, away from immigrant populations, there are those who believe the project will be rammed through anyway,” explains Sullivan. “The number of times people have been told ‘you chose to live by the tracks, there are going to be trains’ is legion. People chose to live by tracks with a certain kind of acceptable level of noise vibration and pollution. To tell those folks to accept an eightfold increase and then blame the residents is classist and shocking.” “Metrolinx should be held to account for the high-handed, arrogant and deliberately misleading process they have run,” says Sullivan. “The number of deliberate half-truths and misleading statements is neither honest, nor transparent. Other agencies have had massive shakeups because they spent unwisely. This one is an embarrassment to the government.” The Clean Train Coalition encourages residents to write, phone, e-mail and visit their MPs, MPPs and City Councilors in protest against these plans. Not only are the neighbourhoods directly alongside the railway affected, but nearly everywhere in Toronto will be susceptible to the long-term

neo-liberal adjustment, s w e a t s h o p exploitation and non-governmental charity, and towards systematic

massive sums extorted by the French government from 1825 through to 1947 as

Haiti’s Coat of Arms. investment in Haiti’s own people and government. We demand a much greater international role for Haiti’s genuine allies and supporters, including Cuba, South Africa, Venezuela, the Bahamas and other members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). We demand that all reconstruction aid take the form of grants not loans. We demand that Haiti’s remaining foreign debt be immediately forgiven, and that the money that foreign governments still owe to Haiti--notably the consequences as wind will move toxic carcinogens throughout the Greater Toronto Area. For more information visit the

compensation for the slaves and property France lost when Haiti won its independence--be paid in full and at once. Above all, we demand that the reconstruction of Haiti be pursued under the guidance of one overarching objective: the political and economic empowerment of the Haitian people. To sign-on to this petition/ letter, please go to http://www. thepetitionsite.com/1/relief-notmilitarization-for-haiti website http://www.cleantrain. ca/ (sign the petition if you are concerned about this) or e-mail info@cleantrain.ca.

News

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

The Crisis in Honduras Lingers Seven months ago, Manuel Zelaya (nicknamed Mel) was ousted from “We need to understand that in Honduras and the people of his Honduras people are not part of country have been on the streets ever this election…they are protesting since, demanding his reinstatement everywhere and… at this moment, and participation in the country’s the repression is strong against political processes. They called the resistance” – Member of the on the international community to denounce the coup and the elections. National Front Against the Coup “These are fraudulent elections” one man shouts. The coup regime has framed the elections as a way out of the political crisis that has deﬁned Honduras for months. Mel and the National Resistance Front Against the Coup asked fellow Hondurans to abstain from voting on Nov. 29, 2009, in order to denounce the election and the systematic human rights violations linked to the de facto regime. Various political candidates decided against running in this election and many people were not willing to vote. David de Soto One young Honduran woman, with coupThis message was relayed from a supporting parents, declared that she resistance ﬁghter in Honduras to a would stay in her pajamas and lock crowded room of people on Bloor herself in her room all day to avoid St. W. on Nov. 30, 2009. Everyone being dragged to the polling stations. gathered in solidarity to condemn the Many others were doing the same. elections in Honduras. The man on the phone paints a picture of the situation Around 6:00 pm on the day of the in Honduras and the people gathered elections, a man at the meeting in promise to check in periodically in Toronto received a call from his wife in Honduras; according to case of any emergencies.

Ashley McEachern

her, the regime was extended the voting period by an hour and the polls remained barren. “You cannot force people to vote”, said a friend. Another speculated that “the village is winning”. We leaned toward a cell phone and listened as our friend in Honduras sadly explained how seven of his comrades had been arrested, how the streets were blocked, and how the protesters were repressed by teargas and threats of attack by the military. The official voter turnout numbers were released just hours after the election. Coup supporters proudly declared a 62% turnout rate at the elections. However, investigative journalists from the Real News have since uncovered that in fact, fewer than 50% of voters participated in the election. The six month coup in Honduras exacerbated poverty and violence in the nation. Schools and hospitals were closed down, funding for many social assistance programs was cancelled, and repression was rampant. For the resistance fighters, who are somehow not yet exhausted after months of mobilization, their resistance comes at a cost. Since June 28, 2009, over twenty deaths been recorded and more are rumored to have occurred on Election Day. Human rights abuses, torture, rape and repression have been the harsh realities for these activists during the past few months. Local reports suggest that the repression is ongoing even after the elections. On Dec. 6, 2009, five deaths were

U.S. Campaign for the Academic & Cultural Boycott of Israel Right of Return Coalition While there are many Israeli and multinational companies that beneﬁt from apartheid, we put together this list to highlight ten speciﬁc companies to target. Many of these produce goods in such a way that directly harms Palestinians by exploiting labor, developing technology for military operations, or supplying equipment for illegal settlements. Many are also the targets of boycotts for other reasons, like harming the environment and labor violations. 1. AHAVA This brand’s cosmetics are produced using salt, minerals, and mud from the Dead Sea, in particular, natural resources that are excavated from the occupied West Bank. The products themselves are manufactured in the illegal Israeli settlement Mitzpe Shalem. 2. Delta Galil Industries Israel’s largest textiles manufacturer provides clothing and underwear for such popular brands as Gap, J-Crew, J.C. Penny, Calvin Klein, Playtex, Victoria’s Secret (see #10) and many others. Its founder and chairman Dov Lautman is a close associate of former Israeli President Ehud Barak. 3. Motorola Motorola components are also used in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or ‘drones’) and in communications and surveillance systems used in settlements, checkpoints, and along the 490 mile apartheid wall. See ‘Hang up the Motorola’ campaign.

locally. Trader Joe’s also sells Israeli Cous Cous and Pastures of Eden feta cheese that are made in Israel. 6. Estee Lauder Chairman Ronald Lauder is also the chairman of the Jewish National Fund, a quasi-governmental organization that was established in 1901 to acquire Palestinian land and is connected to the continued building of illegal settlements. Estee Lauder’s popular brands include Clinique, MAC, Origins, Bumble & Bumble, Aveda, fragrance lines for top designers. 7. Intel Intel employs thousands of Israelis and has exports from Israel totaling over $1 billion per year. They are one of Israel’s oldest foreign supporters, having established their ﬁrst development center outside of the US in 1974 in Haifa 8. Sabra This brand of hummus, baba ghanoush and other foods is co-owned by Israel’s second-largest food company The Strauss Group and Pepsico. On the “Corporate Responsibility” section of its website, The Strauss Group boasts of its relationship to the Israeli Army, offering food products and political support. 9. Sara Lee Sara Lee holds a 30% stake in Delta Galil (see #2) and is the world’s largest clothing manufacturer, which owns or is afﬁliated with such brands as Hanes, Playtex, Champion, Leggs, Sara Lee Bakery, Ball Park hotdogs, Wonderbra, and many others. Similar to L’Oreal (see #4)

4. L’Oreal / The Body Shop This company is known for its investments and manufacturing activities in Israel, including production in Migdal Haemek, the “Silicon Valley” of Israel built on the land of Palestinian village Al-Mujaydil, which was ethnically cleansed in 1948.

10. Victoria’s Secret Most of Victoria’s Secret’s bras are produced by Delta Galil (see #2), and much of the cotton is also grown in Israel on conﬁscated Palestinian land. Victoria’s Secret has also been the target of labor rights’ groups for sourcing products from companies with labor violations.

5. Dorot Garlic and Herbs These frozen herbs that are sold at Trader Joe’s are shipped halfway around the world when they could easily be purchased

Remember, it’s also important to let these companies and the stores that sell them know that we will not support them as long as they support Israeli apartheid!

Ashley McEachern This is a typical street scene in Honduras - “Get out coup supporters and long live Mel.” recorded; on Dec. 28, 2009, a journalist was brutally tortured; and on Jan. 6, 2010, a Garifuna radio station was burned down, reportedly for its opposition to the coup.

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is now also able to evade charges against him. Thousands of Zelaya supporters saw him off as he and his family left the airport shouting that “we’ll be back”.

“Today, resistance ﬁghters declare that they will not be silenced. Well aware that they face a regime capable of arresting, torturing and ‘disappearing’ more resistance leaders, they take the risk, knowing that if they do not act now, they will face this repression for years to come.”

Jan. 27, 2010, was the ofﬁcial transfer of power to Pepe Lobo, the Presidential candidate elected in the November elections. One of Lobos ﬁrst action plans as President was to dismiss all charges laid against all of those involved in the June 2009 coup that shook democracy in Honduras. He then facilitated the exile of Zelaya from the Brazilian embassy in the Honduran capital to the Dominican Republic. Zelaya

The future of Honduras has been unpredictable since June. Today, resistance ﬁghters declare that they will not be silenced. Well aware that they face a regime capable of arresting, torturing and ‘disappearing’ more resistance leaders, they take the risk, knowing that if they do not act now, they will face this repression for years to come. “This is a struggle for justice”, they announce, ready to continue ﬁghting for peace.

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

Features

On ‘Women,’ ‘Queers,’ and Passport-Bodies Nidhi Punyarthi

here is a reason why the three concepts ‘women,’ ‘queers,’ and ‘passport-bodies’ should be explored together in the feminist issue of the YU Free Press. One of my goals with this discussion is to query popular understandings of the ‘women’s movement,’ and these three concepts enable me to do just that. Putting ‘Feminism’ in Context

concluded that her physical lips did not match the lips of the person in the passport photo. In response to her pleas, she received only insults and curt expressions of disbelief. She was also held in a Kenyan jail for eight days, and the ‘passport with the different lips’ was voided indeﬁnitely. This state act effectively wrested Suaad’s citizenship away from her and rendered her stateless. Authorities did not believe that she had a young son waiting for her in Toronto. It was not until a DNA test was conducted

various moments in this story, Suaad’s body and personhood were violated, degraded, and rendered non-existent. The determination about what her lips should look like, the humiliation she endured in places like the Commission’s ofﬁce and the prison, the distrustful interrogations, the disrespectful dismissal of her claims, the very characterization of her person as a fraud, the failure to process her case quicker, and the ﬁnal invasion into

verification of passports. In these operations, the passport is taken as a representation of the migrant’s body. If the travelling body does not match up to the body in the passport (or the passport-body), it is a non-citizen-non-body, and this is what the abuse of discretion in Suaad’s case amounted to. The passport-body is the preferred tool to distinguish between citizenbodies and non-citizen-nonbodies. Violent Homophobia and the Defacing of Identity Documents: The Claimant in S.Z.R. (Re) The violence referred to in this case took place in Argentina. The government of Canada recognized the gravity of this violence as a form of persecution, sufficient to give the fleeing individual r e f u g e e

Some people (or many, depending on where you look) still seem to think of the ‘women’s movement’ as a project that promotes women and, in so doing, removes power from the clutches of men. While many of us at this university are familiar with more sophisticated representations of the women’s movement, beliefs like this still persist in many circles of thought, activism, and organizing. While disparities of power and control concern many feminist thinkers, feminist theories are advanced after having carefully studied and advocated for an understanding of how the myriad of power relations in society, such as race, class, citizenship status, sexuality, family status, and ability, all play a role in shaping women’s everyday experiences. If we are to have a serious conversation on issues affecting ‘women,’ we need to then turn our attention to factors such as normative gender role expectations, the violability of certain individuals’ bodies, and violations of bodies and livelihoods sanctioned by the state and the law. I illustrate the operation of all of these factors using something that is seemingly innocuous to many Canadians (or some, depending on where you look): the passport. I also use the term ‘passport-bodies’ as it is particularly relevant in the two cases that I profile below. The physicality of the documents and the bodies of individuals associated with these documents are inextricably linked. The Forcible Stripping Away of Canadian Citizenship: Suaad Hagi Mohamud Suaad Hagi Mohamud needs no introduction. In fact, no introduction will serve to reclaim and reinstate her identity and dignity, both of which were violently taken from her by airport officials and the Canadian state. A Canadian citizen, Suaad was detained in Nairobi because an official from the Canadian High Commission

protection Canada.

that Suaad’s idetity was conﬁrmed. Legally trained individuals argue that Suaad’s unfortunate circumstances were just a matter of procedure, and that the stance taken by the ofﬁcials was a necessary step in regulating fraudulent migration. Furthermore, the costs of Suaad’s detention, review, and testing are claimed to be ‘reasonable’ within this argument, when balanced against the need to ‘maintain the integrity of the immigration system.’ It is also not surprising that the DNA test was a more reliable indicator of Suaad’s credibility than her own assertions: these are rules of evidentiary analysis and are enshrined in statute and case law.

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her body by means of a DNA test are all worrisome. The violability of her body was identiﬁed at the moment of attempting to match her passport to her person, and the chain of abuses ensued. This bodily violability extended to the stripping away of her citizenship, akin to the violence of stripping away her clothing.

I chose to ﬂag this case for its illustrative and comparative value in relation to Suaad’s case above. The point to note here is the treatment of the identity document. The passport-body itself is violated here in order to restrict and deter the mobility of the non-citizennon-body.

“The citizen has a desired body, and the regulation of this citizen-body takes place through various ofﬁcial sanctions and leeways granted by the law. These...include the ability to reject non-citizen-non-bodies through the veriﬁcation of passports.”

Those who are legally trained and more critical of the negative impacts of laws in the day-to-day lives of marginalized individuals would argue that the ofﬁcials violated the rule of law and engaged in an unreasonable exercise of discretion. I argue that feminist questioning allows us to go further and appraise the harms visited upon Suaad by these laws and procedures. At

The clothing-citizenship connection returns in the second scenario of the homosexual refugee claimant from Argentina, discussed further below. Suaad’s case illustrates that citizenship is more than just paperwork and identiﬁcation documents. There is a bodily aspect to citizenship. The citizen has a desired body, and the regulation of this citizen-body takes place through various ofﬁcial sanctions and leeways granted by the law. These sanctions and leeways include the ability to reject noncitizen-non-bodies through the

The document in question is not a passport per se; it is a national identity document. I nevertheless ﬁnd it useful to call it a passport-body for the purpose of my analysis, because this same national identity document is an important component of the evaluation and processing in migration. It performs a similar function when crossing borders: that of indicating identiﬁcation with and appurtenance to a state of citizenship. In this case, the claimant’s homosexuality was discovered

while he was in the army. He was subsequently forced to kneel while other soldiers urinated on him. He was accused of being a disgrace to the men of the nation and stripped of his uniform. He was then stripped of his citizenship as well, through the destruction and defacing of his citizenship papers. His national identity book was marked with the initials D.A.F. (Deficiencia de Aptitude Física, or ‘Physical Deficiency’). In addition, chewing gum was shaped and stuck between the pages of the book such that, when removed, the resulting marks and tears were intended to symbolize a vagina. Marking the passport-body in this manner was really a continuation of marking the claimant’s noncitizen-non-body through further homophobic violence and torture. The permanent damage to his national identity document was intended to erase his homosexual body from the body of the nation. The document was made unfit for use within the nation so that he would be forced to migrate. He would also be forced to stay in limbo: migration would not be easy for him as the incompleteness and damage of his documents would inevitably lead to humiliating questioning and to doubts about the genuineness of the document for the purposes of migration. Just like Suaad, the claimant’s identity as citizen was stripped away by state actors. After the claimant’s queer identity was discovered, his body was also seen as inherently violable. The violation of his queer body was accomplished and continued past state borders by violating and deforming his passport-body. Conclusion: Why ‘Women,’ ‘Queer,’ and ‘Passport-Bodies’ Matter to Feminists Taken together, the cases of Suaad Hagi Mohamud and the refugee claimant from Argentina are especially illuminative for the purposes of a feminist study of border-policing and the compulsory association of citizenship with a certain type of body (white) and bodily experience (heterosexual sex). The selective conferral of citizenship on desirable citizen-bodies and the violent removal of citizenship from undesirable non-citizen-nonbodies show us just how pervasive power relations are. Identifying a feminist project that only caters to the category of ‘women’ proves to be inadequate, as feminist inquiry must account for the treatment of all bodies according to racialized and sexualized systems of power. A more promising version of the ‘women’s movement’ necessarily engages with the impact of bordercrossings and the policing of bodies that are non-white, seen as partaking in non-heterosexual and/or procreative sex or, in other words, those which are marked as non-human by nationalist, oppressive narratives.

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

FEATURES

Stolen Parts Shaunga Tagore “you must not know ‘bout me, you must not know ‘bout me” -Beyonce i am just a silent brooding metal skull you can’t see through. but if you could, inside you’d only ﬁnd angry irrational jupiter storms i choose to arbitrarily unleash on poor unfortunate souls who are draped in golden white, the sun’s halo shining upon them, and do not deserve to be exposed to my hostile alien darkness. and besides, i am just hateful and unforgiving. i’m mean and would never understand if you tried to explain. i read too much into things, i never listen, i am controlling, exhausting, an intense ball and chain. i whine for more than i deserve, i nag and expect too much in return, i never understand others’ stress or pain – i’m always overreacting to my own. it’s overwhelming and overbearing when i lecture about things that don’t exist, that never happened, but i do this because i am just a crazy psycho bitch who is out of control and getting worse. when my eyes widen and darken and i verbal-vomit a bunch of nonsense, nobody needs to be burdened by it, or by me. i ruin the peace, vibe and ﬂow of our crew, of our fam’, of our anti-racist liberatory community, ‘cuz my constant know-it-all ranting wrecks our home... my loud self-righteous mouth wrecks our home... my long angry emails wreck our home. but i do this because i am just a homewrecker and a whore. i destroy happy marriages and long-term relationships by being all over and all up in someone else’s business. i’m a desperate stalker and seductress, brainwashing poor unsuspecting men who couldn’t know any better. but it’s because i am just a slut experimenting with my wild exotic sexuality (just like those girls you knew in college), instead of keeping it straight and restrained, like a good little indian girl should. i’m just going through a phase, i’m just asking for attention because I AM JUST a manipulative dirty little brown girl, i’m a troublemaker playing a game, i’m a tattle-tale, because i cry rape and lie about violence she’s doing it again, not again, not again, manipulative dirty little brown girl don’t you dare do it again shrinking smaller and darker in a corner cowering in front of a giant getting bigger closer towering dirt growing above my lips between my eyebrows under my arms and between my legs don’t you dare tell don’t you dare complain don’t play the game but all i do is play this game. it’s just Who I Am – these words that hang in the northern air like chains and contain my (disem)body in a cage. that’s all you need to know ‘bout me.

Photos assisted by Laura J. Kwak

FEATURES

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

Mother(land) and Diaspora: Body Memory and Belonging in Toni Morrison’s Beloved Laura J. Kwak

t is easy to take for granted the ways in which we understand history and social organizations. These understandings may come naturally to many, but are infused with dominant, hegemonic, oppressive discourses and structures, and have tenaciously covered over legacies and histories that potentially threaten their own power. Critical, anti-colonial feminisms shed light on the ways in which contemporary societies have dominantly asserted a particular worldview while purposefully and actively neglecting others. How easily do we forget legacies of slavery and colonialism and fix these as projects of the past? How have these legacies manifested themselves in contemporary global societies, both ideologically and materially? In other words, how have our bodies inherited the marks of colonialism and slavery and how have these inheritances affected sociopolitical and economic relations today? Throughout this article I focus on the stories and traumatically lived experiences of slavery for Black women, particularly by examining the film based on Toni Morrison’s novel, Beloved. While there are numerous ways Beloved can be deciphered, I discuss the film in relation to body memory, as well as how the characters in the film challenge how we might understand history and social relations.

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reproducing slave bodies, the discourse and system of slavery worked to dehumanize Black people in America, and transform their bodies into objects of property. However, Morrison’s story provides important insight into the ways that kinship between Black mothers and their children tell stories of Black women’s complex humanity during times of slavery: the relationship between Sethe and her daughters is a signiﬁcant bond, but also one which causes considerable grief, due to the ways in which Sethe’s reproduction reinstates her role as property by transmitting the unfreedom of slavery to her children. Where is the agency for Black people in America during times of slavery? Rupturing the Master’s possession, entitlement, and even gaze, by a means of reclaiming the body--our bodies that we posses, and our children’s bodies as ours, not theirs--is a way Sethe resists and renegotiates her current social relations. How she does this is by claiming the lives of her children. But she is not ‘crazy’ as she might quickly be assumed to be. We can read this scene in Morrison’s story as one of antinormative resistance. It challenges our own ways of understanding social relations if we do not share Sethe’s experience with the history of slavery. Displacement and

When Beloved returns to the mother who claimed her life, to the sister she never grew up with, Beloved sees the mark on Sethe’s body and she expresses a desire to possess the mark herself.

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Sethe immediately tells Beloved to hush, for she knows what

To explore this metaphor of displacement, migration, and national belonging, it is necessary to understand the control of Black women’s bodies as significant to the proliferation of slavery through property and production relations. Critical postcolonial feminist theories insist that the possession of land and bodies through colonization and slavery was justified through a perception of colonized people as material and inhuman possessions. More specifically, they argue that slavery maintained itself through the control of Black women’s reproduction: children of Black women were understood as property of their slave masters from the moment of their conception, and as such, Black women’s bodies have been marked as objects of their colonizers’ possession; subject to social regulation rather than their own will and desires. By controlling Black women’s reproduction as a means of

processes of dehumanization have produced her as an object, but Morrison rewrites this history and tells us a different story of Black women’s responses to slavery’s economic and reproductive control over their bodies. When her slave owners ﬁnd out what Sethe has done, they are utterly shocked because they did not expect Sethe to exercise agency and her awareness of property relations. Their reaction is to call her an “animal,” and this reaction exposes their own particular worldview, as unable to know why she would do such a thing. In this situation they need to name her as “animal” and not possibly a mother for reclaiming her children. These white slave owners could not fathom the fact that a Black slave woman was able to not only understand property laws and relations but also able to crack those contracts the way she did. Slavery has been written on Sethe’s body; she has been permanently and literally branded on her back in marks and scars that take the shape of a tree, invoking images of Chokecherry trees from which slaves were hung. But what grows from Sethe’s tree? Denver was in her belly and as such slavery has also been written on her body.

in a sense, acted as a catalyst for Denver to realize the mother she knew is gone, but that she herself continues to live. That Denver saw, touched, spoke to, struggled with, and loved the ghost of Beloved (the ghost of her histories, the ghost of her possibilities) was what opened space for her to mourn for what she had lost/would never ﬁnd.

“…children of Black women were understood as property of their slave masters from the moment of their conception, and as such, Black women’s bodies have been marked as objects of their colonizers’ possession; subject to social regulation rather than their own will and desires.”

the mark represents, and knows Beloved possesses the marks herself, even without any physical evidence. While the markings may not be visible on Beloved’s body, she is still marked by the same words, phrases, ideas, judgments, conclusions, and gazes that have marked her mother’s body with physical violence. Bodies branded with slavery’s ideological, emotional, historical violence are also branded with the physicality of its violence; Sethe understands this connection and witnesses it upon Beloved’s body. Does Beloved’s desire to wear her mother’s marks speak to the ways in which those who come from displaced and colonized histories desire the markings of our mother(land)? Are these empty desires if we are not aware the histories and traumas that come along with these marks? Beloved asks Sethe: “Why do you hurt me? Why did you leave me?” These are questions that Diasporic subjects deal with. Beloved’s body can be read as one that is struggling with the history of her displacement: she feels homeless, unaware of home, with dusty memories of her mother(land); she is fractured and rootless. When we are ﬁrst introduced to her, she is barely decipherable as human. Sethe responds, “I

“In order to know ourselves, we try to return, but we can never get back that which we never had, that which we never were. Beloved can never be who she was supposed to be: her mother’s daughter.”

The main characters I look at are Sethe, her daughters Beloved and Denver, as well as her mother-in-law Baby Suggs. Particularly, I look at Sethe’s body as a site of Motherland and the bodies of her children as a generation that has inherited her traumas; speciﬁcally, I argue that the character Beloved embodies Diaspora.

sent you were you were safe, I sent you and now you’re back.” This intimate exchange between mother and daughter emphasizes many Diasporic subjects’ desires to return to a Motherland from which they were literally torn, in order to ‘ﬁnd’ who they are, to ‘ﬁnd’ any ‘root’ of where they’ve

been. It is a question many people who are connected to histories of displacement and migration ask: is it possible to piece together a fractured Diasporic identity that causes amnesia and root-lessness and separation from that which we call Mother? Beloved is angered frequently; she says, “she doesn’t love me the way I love her” when she speaks of Sethe. She is confused and angry because although she has come to her mother, her “home,” she continues to have questions and feel/be fractured because her questions cannot be answered. Beloved’s anger resonates with those of us who are similarly fractured from our roots, as we might feel anger with a mother who doesn’t or no longer recognizes us. In order to know ourselves, we try to return, but we can never get back that which we never had, that which we never were. Beloved can never be who she was supposed to be: her mother’s daughter. At the end of the ﬁlm, Beloved is gone; her ghost has left and she is now a memory. Afterward, Denver vocalizes this loss: “I think I lost my mama.” This is a signiﬁcant moment that speaks to Denver’s inheritance of her mother’s body memory, of the traumas and histories of slavery that had literally been haunting their home. The presence of Beloved,

Sethe arrives at her motherin-law’s home and Baby Suggs urgently asks to see the children; the survival of the children indicates the possibility of survival out of trauma. Baby Suggs is another maternal ﬁgure that embodies both an elderly spirit and (through her name “Baby”) a kind of youthful energy. There are frequent clips of Baby Suggs asking the women to weep: she is asking them to grieve. Grieving through weeping, sex, laughing are expressions of humanity. She is asking them to reclaim their humanity through this grief. Is this mourning part of the struggle of what it means to decolonize? Can this struggle be witnessed at a national/global as well as intimate level? Sethe is marked (literally) with a tree on her back; can we read this as symbolic of growth from trauma? It seems then that these questions might be a primary task of postcolonial theorists and writers, in order to critically look back at history and interrogate how/which narratives are currently prescribing our social realities. Toni Morrison rewrites histories to rupture the ways in which we might understand our social realities according to knowledges that call Sethe, and others in similar social positions, an “animal.” But signiﬁcantly, Morrison also does this re-writing as a way of revisiting historical traumas that are both individual and collective: opening space for grief to breathe, and charting maps for decolonization that seriously take into account the physical and spiritual marks of violence racialized women carry with them on their bodies.

Wikimedia Commons Through her writing, novelist, essayist, and activist Toni Morrison challenges colonial perceptions of history, current social realities/relations, and Black women’s agency.

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WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

Is Access to Information Access to Freedom?:

A Discussion of Reproduction, Abortion, and Disability Jen Rinaldi

any recent technological developments in the medical sphere have been pursued for the purpose of furthering women’s reproductive autonomy--at least on paper. Specifically, current strides in genetic research, especially the Human Genome Project, have aimed to avoid or eliminate markers of disease and disability by processes of identification. This research has led to the development of prenatal screening: practices such as ultrasounds and amniocentesis, whereby pregnant women are tested in order to determine whether the fetuses they are carrying have impairments. At first glance, it would appear that such technologies provide women greater access to information that could significantly affect their reproductive decision-making during pregnancy. I would like to interject, however, that these technologies might actually impact women negatively as long as disability continues to be represented in reductionist ways and our community fails to be inclusive. As I argue below, the promotion of prenatal screening proves to be problematic for disabled persons and women alike.

Reproductive Technology Granted, past technological developments have certainly led to increases in women’s reproductive freedom, and the inadequate provision of technological resources has

a fetus that is impaired might weigh significantly on a woman’s decision to commit to a pregnancy. The conditions that can be identified prior to birth include intellectual impairments (Down Syndrome), physical impairments (spina bifida), and impairments that produce a combination of physical pain, mental deterioration, and death (Huntington’s Disease manifests these symptoms later in a person’s life, and Tay-Sachs during infancy and early childhood). Arguably, prospective parents would want to

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of the picture missing. Why do we test for disability and disease? To better inform, and thus better prepare, prospective parents? Often, when physicians or counsellors are delivering their diagnosis of impairment, the assumed logical follow-up is termination of the pregnancy. Disability rights activists as well as scholars who study disability have in recent years objected to the practice of identifying disability and eliminating that disability

are fuelling ableism by promoting the assumption that the quality-oflife for someone with a disability is so low that non-existence is preferable. Implications for Women Whether or not these scholars and activists can reconcile their position with a pro-abortion stance, is questionable. However, is it really the case that prenatal screening technologies facilitate reproductive freedom? It is difﬁcult for me to conclude that a woman carrying a fetus with a genetic impairment makes her choices about her pregnancy freely when she has to look forward to raising a disabled child in a community that treats d i s a b i l i t y - - m e d i c a l l y, physically, socially, ideologically--as something best avoided.

“..while medical technology has been touted as a way of informing women’s reproductive decisions, the information offered is mischaracterized, for it involves the presentation of disability in medical language only, with pieces of the picture missing.”

know information like this when deciding whether they will carry pregnancies to term. Such logic suggests that technology providing this information is useful, even important, when it comes to reproductive decision-making.

Disability through the Medical Lens Consider, though, that screening processes can only identify genetic markers. This means that testing cannot determine the range and symptoms of the disability. Disability

via abortions. According to them, the assumption that diagnosis implies abortion, and the tendency to follow up diagnosis with abortion, reﬂect biases regarding disabled people’s quality-of-life. This critique is meant to address how the medical sphere tends to target characteristics found in the disability community as reasons for abortion, and doing so reﬂects prejudice. Similar arguments have been made in the case of sex selection: prenatal screening technologies can be used to

Such a prospective mother would no doubt consider what life would be like for a disabled person facing signiﬁcant physical and social barriers. Accommodations and medical care can be costly, and are not always covered by health plans. Even when there are options for services and resources not offered at the expense of disabled individuals or their

In addition, there is a stigma associated with disability, as well as an onus on pregnant women to exercise their ability, perhaps even their responsibility, to terminate a pregnancy should they know they are bringing someone into their community whose contributions would not be valued, or whose life would be considered tragic. Pregnant women over 35 years of age are heavily encouraged to submit to prenatal screening because they are ‘at higher risk’ of giving birth to a child with Down Syndrome. In general, pregnant women assume ultrasounds are a necessary part of their experience of pregnancy because the tests have become routine. Patients could refuse ultrasounds, but they are expected--by their spouses, by their families, by their physicians-to make use of this technology, for the sake of fetal health (even though it is arguable whether we can really maintain fetal health with these technologies, for identiﬁable impairments cannot be corrected in utero). Even beyond the expectation to submit to medical routines, pregnant women in a modern Western world, which is rife with talk show advice and ‘What to Expect When Y o u ’ r e

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often impacted women negatively. When oral contraception was introduced to the North American public in the 1960s, women came to have far more control over their fertility and, as a result, more control over whether they could pursue education and employment. Further, when abortion services are criminalized or even just inaccessible (which Dr. Henry Morgentaler has addressed in Canadian legal cases throughout the 1980s and 90s), women are often pressured to either carry unwanted pregnancies to term or ﬁnd underground services, which can be largely unsafe, unsanitary, and staffed with unskilled medical practitioners. Ideally, prenatal genetic screening technology has been designed with a similar purpose: if genetic impairments could be diagnosed prior to birth, women would be more informed and better equipped when making reproductive decisions. Whether or not she is carrying or could potentially carry

categories are tricky because they tend to cover vast ranges. In the case of Down Syndrome, for instance, the intellectual impairment might range from difﬁculty keeping up in school to the inability to carry out basic functions; the disability might also result in thyroid issues, deafness, or congenital heart defects--all very different conditions to live with. When a fetus is diagnosed with Down Syndrome, none of these factors can be determined until after birth and sometimes well past childhood. Further, disability should not be understood as that which entirely constitutes one’s identity. Prenatal testing can reveal nothing about characteristics or dispositions, nor can it predict the experiences that a person born with a disability might have involving family, romance, employment, friendship, education, and so forth. Therefore, while medical technology has been touted as a way of informing women’s reproductive decisions, the information offered is mischaracterized, for it involves the presentation of disability in medical language only, with pieces

determine the sex of the fetus, and there are cases of pregnancies being terminated when the fetus is determined to be female. While not objecting to abortion in itself, academics and activists interested in disability tend to object instead to the promotion of genetic research and testing, arguing that the investment of

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parents, these services and resources are not often easy to access due to the complicated, ad-hoc ways in which institutions meant to address disability are built. Superﬁcially, women might seem to be free to decide whether to carry through with or terminate a pregnancy. However, their decision-making might be different if we lived in a context that was more inclusive, and that did not discriminate against or disregard the needs of disabled people. As long as accommodations are understood to be burdens rather

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Expecting’ anthologies, are told to engage in strict regimens of self-discipline lest they are the cause of genetic impairments: no caffeine, not a drop of alcohol, no asparagus on Tuesdays, and the list goes on. I respect women’s reproductive autonomy, and I do not object to women terminating pregnancies because of a diagnosis of disability. I even understand that choice, for living with a disability and raising a disabled child are not always easy. Perhaps, though, in order to ensure women more freedom to make decisions about their bodies and pregnancies, even and especially when the fetuses they are carrying are genetically impaired, we need to invest our resources and energies into changing the structures of our community to be more inclusive and less discriminatory. These changes would not only put less pressure on women to terminate their pregnancies for disability-related reasons, but also would warrant communities built with respect and value for the lives of disabled peoples.

“It is difﬁcult for me to conclude that a woman carrying a fetus with a genetic impairment makes her choices about her pregnancy freely when she has to look forward to raising a disabled child in a community that treats disability--medically, physically, socially, ideologically--as something best avoided.”

resources into these endeavours is not for the purpose of ensuring that disability is accommodated or even cured, but rather that disability is prevented via the termination of the pregnancy. Their concern is that those involved in the development of these kinds of reproductive technologies-physicians, researchers, those investing the capital, legislators--

than entitlements, and indeed, as long as disabled people are treated as burdens or economic drains insofar as the accommodations they require for functioning in our social context come at a ﬁnancial cost, we can likely expect women will continue this trend of terminating pregnancies on the grounds of impairment.

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Original Femme Shark Manifesto dimepieces and trophy wives.

Femme Sharks like to eat though!

We might be your girl,

Femme Sharks recognize that femmes come in all kinds of sizes, and each kind is luscious.

But we’re our own femmes.

We work toward loving our curvy, fat, skinny, supersize, thick, disabled, black, and brown ﬁneass bodies every day. We realize that loving ourselves in a racist/ sexist/homo/transphobic/ableist/ classist

We recognize that femmes are leaders of our communities.

system is an everyday act of war against that system.

Femmes are welders, afterschool teachers, abortion clinic workers, strippers, writers, factory workers, moms, revolutionaries dedicated to taking the system the hell down so we can be free!

emme Sharks don’t eat our own,

Femme Sharks don’t think anorexia is cute. We think eating a big-ass meal is sexy. We say screw “height weight proportionate please” in craigslist women seeking women ads and in life.

We have big mouths and we know how to use them. Don’t fuck with us! Ask us if we want to fuck though!

Femme Sharks will reclaim the power and dignity of femaleness by any means necessary. We’re girls blown up, turned inside out and remixed.

Femme Sharks are over white queers’ obliviousness to queer of color, Two-Spirit and trans of color lives. We know that we are a center of the universe. We’re over white femmes and butches who think that femme only comes in the color of Barbie. We’re over butches and boys and other femmes telling us what we need to do, wear or be in order to be “really femme.”

Femme Sharks recognize that femmes, butches, genderqueer, and trans people have been in communities of color since forever. That before colonization we were seen as sacred and we were some of the ﬁrst folks most violently attacked when our lands were invaded and colonized. Femme Sharks won’t rest until we reclaim our positions as beloved family within our communities.

Femme Sharks aren’t just

Fuck that!

We hold it down, calm your tears, organize the rally, visit you in jail, get childcare hooked up, loan you twenty dollars.

Femmes are leaders in taking care of business/defending our queer and trans of color communities.

and how to make it so that no one will have to survive sexual violence ever again. We believe in the total destruction of the system as we know it,

When Zapatista women hooked up,

And we believe in making our own ways to ﬁght and resist on the daily.

Not this time.

When our cousins were making out in the women’s section of the Masjid,

A Femme Shark is any girl

When our Grandmas and queer Aunties snuck out at night,

Who is tough, hungry, ﬁghts for herself and her fam,

Didn’t get married til late—or at all,

and is working on becoming the kind of girl

has a best girlfriend,

who ﬁnds God in herself

and stood up for her,

and loves her ﬁercely.

We’re not just a pretty face. Femmes goddamn well know how to strap it on, change the oil in the car and put up shelves. We can do any goddamn thing we want! That’s why we’re Femme Sharks! Femme is not the same thing as being our moms.

Femmes are beautiful and strong when we bottom,

Our bottoming and topping are both gifts to be met with respect.

We were the transwomen who fought back at the Compton Cafeteria.

When we take our lover’s ﬁst all the way inside, ask for what we want, be the best dirty girl, or make our lovers ﬂip, we’re a fucking miracle.

act crazy on the bus to get assholes to move away, and know how to break someone’s legs.

We are ﬁguring out how to heal,

We are not going to be left out of “The Struggle.”

We used our stilettos as weapons at Stonewall.

We walk each other home,

Femme Sharks were there when Frida Kahlo hooked up with her girlfriends...

We are survivors who are more than what we survived.

Women who could’ve been us or our loves.

and we’re hot as hell when we top.

We’re the girls who stare down assholes staring at our lovers and friends on the subway.

We believe in building our queer/ trans people of color communities strong.

When Joan Nestle, Chrystos, Jewelle Gomez, Alexis De Veux, Sylvia Rivera, Dorothy Allison, Minnie Bruce Pratt, and Amber Hollibaugh made queer femme history,

Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

to make something much mo betta...

Femme Sharks were there.

Femme Sharks are in the bodies of countless sex workers, neighbords, and ladies waiting for the bus and in the lineup at Century 21.

We’re your best girlfriend and your worst nightmare!

Love and Rage

At Riis Beach, Funkasia, Lovergirl NYC, Butta, Mango, Manhattan’s Desilicious, and Bibi!

The Femme Sharks!

Femme Sharks live on the Rez, in Captetown, Newark, Oakland, the South Side, New Orleans, Colombo, Juarez, and Brooklyn Suburbia, the farm and little small towns.

Femme Sharks are on patrol!

We’re in foster care, the psych ward, juvie, and about to be evicted.

Join the movement! Shark Shark it up!

For more information, email thefemmesharks@gmail.com Re-printed from: http:// queerfatfemme.com

In the words of Jill Scott, “You gotta do right by me. It’s mandatory baby.”

We share what we know.

Femme Sharks stand up for the New Jersey Four and every other queer and trans person of color in the prison industrial complex for defending our lives. We believe in self-defence and self-determination. We believe that we have a right to defend ourselves and our communities against any kind of attack—

Femme Sharks shop at Ross, Foxy Lady, Value Village, The HM $5 rack, Torrid, and The Dollar Store, and know how to shoplift. We concoct brilliant strategies to look ﬁne on ten dollars or less. We’re only “invisible” if you don’t know how to look for us.

We take care of each other,

from assholes on the street,

recognize that femmes are each others’ wealth.

to racist white club owners who want three pieces of ID,

Hos before bros, always!

to folks who insist that we’re straight. To people who take our land.

Femme solidarity and love for each other is a revolutionary force. We believe in girls loving girls, respecting each other’s brilliance, not ﬁghting over bois or butches,

We remember our dead— Sakia Gunn, Gwen Araujo, and many other queer and trans people of color who died because of racist, homo/transphobic violence. Not as a political statement but as women we loved in real life.

not trying to be the Alpha Femme. We’re anti-drama, and believe in the power of communities that heal hurt, apologize, listen to each other, and make things right.

Anti-racist feminist writers like Audre Lorde have challenged, with equal intensity, dominant queer politics and feminisms for their racism, as well as dominant anti-racism for its heterosexism and homophobia. The writers featured in this section similarly assert that these challenges need to be taken seriously in our present-day.

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WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

Shane, It Isn’t Fair Jorge Antonio Vallejos

y brown brother and I walk East on Danforth Street. A white face and red letters dominate the landscape. “MISSING” is written in red across white sheets of paper plastered on light poles, newspaper boxes, store front windows, billboards, building entrances, and after several blocks, our minds. $5000 is promised to the person who ﬁnds Shane Fair, a nineteenyear old university student with several privileges:

not added to Metro PDs murdered and missing persons web page.

male skin physical academic…

It isn’t fair that Neil Stonechild’s killers were suspended with pay.

The sun beats hard on us just like the system that favours a select few over many others. Our murdered and missing sisters aren’t on the news, in the papers, or on posters in our country’s biggest city. People of colour and Canada’s undesireables aren’t given that much space. It’s sad that someone gone missing reminds us of where we are in society. A white face paired with red letters on white paper brings the feeling of walking the gauntlet of white power and the social ills that come with it. Shane it isn’t fair that you’ve gone missing. It isn’t fair that your mother’s tears ﬂow as I write. It isn’t fair that you’re all over the news while the media ignores missing people of colour. It isn’t fair that your skin and gender have been deemed superior since 1492. It isn’t fair that 500 missing and murdered Aboriginal women have been reduced to being a number. It isn’t fair that only small groups of people know about, care, and honour Trans Remembrance Day.

It isn’t fair that Carolynn Connoly’s killers roam free. It isn’t fair that judge Debra Paulseth got a pat on the back for handing Katelynn Sampson over to her killers.

It isn’t fair that no cops have ever been questioned or charged for torturing people, and worse, at Cherry Beach. It isn’t fair that your privilege voids assumptions about your disappearance, whereas a young black male gone missing would be assumed related to the drug trade.

Carmen Teeple Hopkins The Walk4Justice movement arrives in Ottawa in Sept. 2008 to raise awareness and demand justice for the many missing and/or murdered Indigenous women and children that continually go unnoticed by state-based institutions and mainstream media/audiences. Support causes like the Walk4Justice Campaign by supporting the '5th Annual Rally for our Missing Sisters' Rally: Sunday Feb. 14, Bay and College, 2pm.

It isn’t fair that two white boys found dead in a jeep made front cover of Canada’s three major papers for a week straight because of their parent’s wealth and inﬂuence. It isn’t fair that everyone knows about, remembers, and mourns Jane Creba and NOT also Helen Betty Osborne Daleen Kay Bosse Chantal Dunn Reena Virk Stephine Beck… May 2009

It isn’t fair that sex workers are

A Call to My Sisters Lauren Pragg with Shaunga Tagore do you see me? no, seriously...stop, breathe, reﬂect. do you see me? you, the woman of colour. the critical, ‘radical’, anti-racist, feminist woman of colour. disrupting gazes, reclaiming spaces, and breaking apart the supremacy of whiteness. most of my heroes come from among you. but am i among you? perhaps. though at what cost? at what cost to mySelf? when i’m alone i’m not queer. (hell, i’m not even brown) but when i’m with you, in supposedly ‘safe,’

supportive spaces, you rapidly and forcibly push me to remember i don’t matter as much as you. is this how i should deﬁne mySelf? how i should know my truths? where am i in your defense of antiracist thought? how do you make yourself believe that you can know what i’ve experienced? or do you even care to try? do you know what it’s like to sever yourSelf into pieces that are less than? fragments of yourSelf that you’re told don’t matter. even in spaces of ‘resistance’. what is browness that is queer? what is queerness that is

brown? can you tell me? can you try? i’ve had to choose one and hate the other. i’ve had to perfect one to deny the other. i’ve had to question and punish mySelf when my journey looks different from yours.

so do me a favour k? think about me next time you think about yourSelf. talk about me next time you talk struggle. don’t pity me ‘cause i’ve made the connections on my own...‘cause i understand now how these pieces ﬁt. ask yourself why i’m still a piece you won’t let ﬁt among you. just please don’t congratulate your ‘radical’ heterowonderment while choosing not to see me. and please, don’t summon Lorde’s name while forgetting it begins with Zami.

“there is no such thing as a singleissue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives” -audre lorde “this division of our communities and allegiances is a typically colonial strategy. it not only breaks up our movements and the force of our resistances, but breaks those bodies that are marginalized on multiple fronts, making them disappear.”

~ ~ ~

now don’t get the wrong idea, this isn’t a contest to count and compare oppressions. they’re all unique, and complex. but they’re all entangled, and related. right? ask yourself again what you claim to know. the Revolution’s going nowhere while i’m invisible.

-proma tagore

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WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

Law Enforcement and Violence against Native Women, Native Trans People, and Two Spirit People Incite! Women of Colour against Violence Collective

ative peoples’ experiences are often completely erased from mainstream discussions of law enforcement violence. Since the arrival of the ﬁrst colonists on this continent, Native women and Native Two Spirit, transgender, and gender nonconforming people have been subjected to untold violence at the hands of U.S. military forces, as well as local, state, and federal law enforcement. The movement of Native peoples across the borders of Canada and Mexico has been severely restricted, often by force, separating families and communities. Integral to the imposition of colonial society and enforced assimilation, the notion of ‘policing’ was forced onto sovereign nations and cultures that had previously resolved disputes within communities.

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Gender-speciﬁc forms of law enforcement and military violence against Native women and gender nonconforming people have included: •

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Mutilation – U.S. military soldiers would cut off the breasts and vulvas of Native women after massacring entire communities. Rape and sexual assault rape and sexual violence have been integral weapons of genocide and colonialism in the

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Americas. Reproductive trauma and disease - resulting from U.S. military testing and operations on or near Native lands. Forcible removal of children - often by law enforcement and military officers, from families and communities to Indian Residential schools, where Native children were subjected to verbal, emotional, physical, sexual, cultural and spiritual abuse and neglect. Enforcement of the gender binary - Native societies are not necessarily structured through binary gender systems. Rather, some of these societies had multiple genders and people did not fit rigidly into particular gender categories. Thus, it is not surprising that the first people targeted for destruction in Native communities were those that did not neatly fit into Western gender categories. Use of law enforcement to prevent women and Two Spirit and gender nonconforming Native people from accessing and practicing traditional

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healing and spirituality. Failure to protect Native women from sexual violence at the hands of non-Natives.

Many of these violations and their after-effects continue today. According to Amnesty International, “There have been complaints of brutality and discriminatory treatment of Native Americans both in urban areas and on reservations. Complaints include indiscriminate brutal treatment of [N]ative people, including elders and children, during mass police sweeps of tribal areas following speciﬁc incidents, and failure to respond to crimes committed against Native Americans on reservations.”

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Additionally, Native women and Native Two Spirit, transgender, and gender nonconforming people are subjected to gender-specific forms of law enforcement violence, such as racial proﬁling, physical abuse, sexual harassment and abuse, and abusive responses or failures to respond to reports of violence.

Physical Abuse Native women experience considerable physical abuse at the hands of law enforcement ofﬁcers. For instance, in July 2005, in St. Paul, Minnesota police arrived at the home of a Native American woman, asking for her husband. She asked whether they had a warrant, and when they said they did not, she refused them entry, explaining she was not dressed. The police pushed the door in, knocked her

In 2003, a Native American transgender woman reported that two LAPD officers pulled her over at 4 a.m. and told her they were going to take her to jail for ‘prostitution.’ The officers then handcuffed her, put her in the patrol car and drove her to an alley. One of the officers pulled her out of the car and hit her across the face, saying, “you fucking whore, you fucking faggot.” The officer threw her down on the back of the patrol car, ripped off her miniskirt and underwear and raped her. Although she contacted 911 immediately after the rape, the responding paramedics did not believe her.

Failure to Respond and Abusive Responses to Violence April Mora, a 17-year-old lesbian of African American and Native American heritage, was attacked because of her gender expression and perceived sexual orientation in March

“...in light of the U.S. government’s continuing role as the perpetrator of genocide against Native peoples, especially Native women, calling on law enforcement for protection from violence is often not seen as an option.”

Racial Proﬁling “What are you? Latina? Oh, you’re Native? Good, we can do anything we want to you then…” - LAPD ofﬁcer to Native transgender woman

Native women have reported widespread racial profiling by law enforcement officers. For instance, at an Oct. 2003 Amnesty International hearing in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Geneva Horse Chief reported frequent traffic stops of cars with tribal license plates, during which no citations would be written. Native women are also profiled as drug users, alcohol abusers, and as bad mothers. For example, Native children are removed from their families at alarming rates by law enforcement agencies, who are often acting on stereotypes of Native women as unfit mothers.

Artwork by Cristy C. Road www.croadcore.org

to bend over and expose their genital areas to ofﬁcers, often while being subjected by sexualized and racist verbal abuse. Native women organized and were successful in obtaining changes to the jail search policy and access to Native people detained in the jail.

Furthermore, the American Friends Service Committee reports that Native women in small communities in Maine were routinely proﬁled as prescription drug abusers and forced to undergo visual body cavity searches as a matter of policy, while similarly situated white women were not. These searches required the women

down, and injured her 12-year-old daughter. They screamed and swore at her and would not let her call an ambulance. One of the officers threatened her by saying “I will call downtown and get a welfare worker. I guarantee you will never receive another benefit in your life.” Police eventually called an ambulance, and the woman spent four hours in the hospital being treated for injuries to her neck, back, shoulder and arm. She was never charged with a crime. In yet another example, in Jan. 2003, a police car pulled into the parking lot of a public housing project in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and police officers dragged two American Indians, a man and a woman, out of the squad car. The officers physically abused them both, and left them outside in the parking lot in subzero weather.

Sexual Harassment and Abuse Lori Penner, a Native woman living in Oklahoma, testified that during an Aug. 2003 raid by officers who claimed to be searching for drugs: “[M]y door was broken down. I had eight people come into my home. They pointed their guns at us. They told us to get on the floor...My fifteen year-old daughter was jerked out of the shower naked, made to stand in front of three police officers... My daughter was handcuffed... We were all searched...My house was ransacked...No drugs were found...No one was taken to jail. The police laughed. They ridiculed us...they cussed...One officer told my daughter she cleaned up very nicely, she looked very good for her age. It was all because we are Indian.”

2002. Four men jumped out of a car and slashed her with razor blades, carving ‘dyke’ into her forearm and ‘R.I.P.’ onto her stomach. According to Ms. Mora, the police did not respond appropriately: “They just think that I did it to myself...I think they’re saying that because I choose to look like this, I deserve it or something. It’s as if I want to look like a guy, I should get beat up like a guy.” Mora’s girlfriend’s mother reported, “One police officer was so rude...when they first pulled up, they were asking my daughter if [she and Mora] had been fighting... They asked April how many drugs they were on. They tore my room up searching for the blade and a bloody shirt. They said they were looking for a razor blade and that the wounds looked self- inflicted.” Mora stated, “I’m black and Indian, but I look Chicano. I think if we were white, the cops and people would treat us differently.” Because of all too pervasive stories like April’s, and in light of the U.S. government’s continuing role as the perpetrator of genocide against Native peoples, especially Native women, calling on law enforcement for protection from violence is often not seen as an option. This is due to mistrust of law enforcement officials, as well as the ongoing government failure to take action to protect reservation-based Native women from violence at the hands of non-Indians. For more information, check out Maze of Injustice: The Failure to Protect Indigenous Womean from Violence at: http://www. a m n e s t y. o r g / e n / r e p o r t / i n f o / ARM51/035/2007 If you are interested in the sources used to write this article or any other information contact info@yufreepress.org.

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COMMENTS Vari Hall Renovations from a Disability Studies Perspective Jen Rinaldi & Chelsea Flook Often, the problem is simply institutional indifference. It’s just that students with disabilities are a low priority; administrators complain that it costs too much for so few students--there are other, larger priorities, they say, and with the scarcity of resources, their obligations are to the majority.” - Catherine Ficthen York University’s Task Force on Student Life, Learning, and Community has put together a proposal for renovating Vari Hall, a proposal which has already been reviewed by President Mamdouh Shoukri. According to York’s VP Students Rob Tifﬁn, renovations will ideally render Vari Hall a more student-friendly space, one which may include lounges, food stands, and informational services. In an attempt to involve students, three recommended layouts have been put forward and poll is being distributed which is meant to give students the chance to vote on one

lack of consultation is reflected in the designs. There is no mention in the plans regarding whether fully accessible washrooms will be on the main floor, or installed at all, given that Vari Hall lacks this feature. Moreover, building student lounges in the rotunda might be beneficial to disabled persons waiting at this location for transportation; indeed, Nancy Halifax, a faculty member in Critical Disability Studies, has fought for and won chairs in the rotunda, so that disabled people waiting for transportation might have a more comfortable time waiting (when and whether these chairs will arrive, however, is questionable). Even so, the lounges proposed in the architectural designs put forward do not seem to account for disabled bodies since the chairs do not seem to be adjustable and in one design they are situated on an elevated platform.

One proposed Vari Hall diagram. Does this diagram look abelist to you? been envisioned as having disabled embodiments.

at York far before the Vari Hall revamp campaign commenced.

It seems that York allocates funding to the installation of features that would boost reputation and improve image, such as high-tech television monitors. The appeal to All three options put forward safety as a reason for the monitors are inaccessible. Design features seems preposterous in light of the include stairwells, an elevated lack of posted ﬁre safety protocols for getting disabled “Not only do recommendations for Vari Hall renovations people to safety, a feature already installed at OISE, fail to account for any possible disability-related a University of Toronto accommodations, but there are already a number of college. During a recent accommodations that should have already been installed, ﬁre alarm at Vari Hall, and indeed have been requested time and time again by the students were told to exit the front doors, disability community at York far before the Vari Hall revamp using doors which are not meant campaign commenced.” for disabled persons insofar as automatic platform, and furniture that would openers have yet to be installed. of the three options. clutter an already busy rotunda, Even setting aside how these all of which would obstruct the Not only do recommendations renovations will appropriate a way for people with mobility and for Vari Hall renovations fail to space meant for student activism visual impairments. Furthermore, account for any possible disabilityand organization, the proposal the acoustics in the rotunda make related accommodations, but is problematic for the disability the area a less than ideal candidate there are already a number of community at York University. To for a lounge, especially for people accommodations that should have our knowledge, disabled persons who are hard of hearing. People already been installed, and indeed were not consulted when an architect who could optimize the use of have been requested time and time drafted the three options, and this Vari Hall space certainly have not again by the disability community

The Critical Disability Studies graduate program has been requesting funds for years in order to accommodate students. Only recently was a classroom dedicated specifically to CDS, on a main floor to prevent elevator issues, and in Vari Hall--near parking and public transportation, and at a major location where snow removal is more likely. We have made requests still for wider, automatic doors, for lower, dimming light switches, for LCD projectors, for adjustable chairs and desks, for accessible washrooms on the main floor, and so forth. Plans for renovating Vari Hall’s rotunda--when requests to accommodate students in the room down the hall have fallen to the wayside for years--reflect ableism, a blatant disregard for members of the York community.

Thinking about Haiti: Implicating Ourselves in ‘Solutions’

victims, is a great sign that human beings are still capable of thinking about one another, and that we still care about the state of people who live in regions we’re aware of only dimly. And yet, there’s something wrong with this picture. Are we really doing anything for Haitians? Or have we actually done something to them?

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Daniel Tseguay Trapped for 11 days underneath a desk, a man survives on CocaCola and biscuits. An 84-year-old woman is rescued after enduring 10 days of severe dehydration. A young, 11-year-old girl spends eight days submerged in what was once the walls and ceiling of a building. She’ll emerge to the news that one of her siblings is now dead.

These are the survivors. These are supposedly the lucky ones. So far, at least 150, 000 people are conﬁrmed dead in Port-au-Prince alone. In all, some are estimating that 200,000 individuals or more may have perished subsequent to the initial quake itself. At present count, 1.5 million people are now

homeless. The devastation is something indescribable. The images that we see on television and the internet can’t possibly convey the actual experience of living through such trauma, of being there in the midst of your city’s--your home’s-complete destruction. I personally can’t imagine what that’s like. In the face of this catastrophe, the global community has promptly answered the call of despair. At a recently televised fundraising drive, Canadians collectively contributed around 16 million dollars. Since the disaster, Canadians have donated over $100 million and the amount is sure to increase. All over the world, the citizens of prosperous nations are sending money and traveling to Haiti for volunteer work. The outpour of support, produced by what is genuine empathy for the

With the 2005 Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), Ontario has called for accessible public spaces. Being told that students have a say in the renovation plans and with

During the extensive coverage of the earthquake and its aftermath, the mainstream media has largely failed to discuss Haiti’s painful history. This is probably not a great surprise to many, but this omission has its consequences: it lets us Canadians feel far too good about the charity we’re currently extending. The fact is that Haiti endured one of the most thorough cases of colonial and post-colonial exploitation, that Canada played a prominent role, and that the extent of the current disaster there is in large part the product of this history. After years of colonization and enslavement at the hands of the French, the Haitian people organized a revolt lasting 12-years (from the end of the 18th century to the early 19th century), ending in success. They were free and independent people--at least in name--because their exploitation did not end. Though their lands

funding being allocated for this purpose, one would think that we have an opportunity to render Vari Hall more accessible. The reality however, is that none of the options put forward reﬂect any sense of honouring the AODA, and not enough students are aware of the accessibility-related reasons for voting against all three options. Furthermore, no design has so far been put forward in consultation with disabled persons, which seems to negate the spirit of student involvement that York claims to be cultivating. Such is the way that decisions are made at York, it seems: not in consultation, but in confrontation with people who use the spaces. We would like to see plans to renovate Vari Hall be scrapped altogether, and resources be used instead to build a more accommodating environment for people with disabilities. If this is impossible, however, we propose instead that any effort to renovate Vari Hall entails including people with disabilities in all aspects of the renovations so that this space might also be meant for them. had been farmed and enjoyed by outsiders, and their people forced into slave labour, their newfound freedom did not make things that much better. Indicative of the level of exploitation they endured, former Haitian slaves were led into inking a deal that would have them compensate white slaveowners for their lost revenue. It’s a profoundly absurd situation, but it was borne out of serious economic considerations. Haiti simply did not want France and other Western states to impose a trade embargo, so it agreed to pay the 150 million francs. For over a century Haiti was burdened by this external debt--one laid upon them unfairly, needless to say. To pay it they had to borrow millions of dollars from foreign banks, completely devastating whatever hope for autonomous development. In the 1990s, the West made yet another move against the Haitian people, this time in the form of structural-adjustment. Because of its debts, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) forced Haiti into accepting neoliberal policies, continuing the process of exploitation begun

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16 Haiti ‘Solutions’ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 15 by colonialism, slavery, and unjustiﬁable repayments. Lowered tariffs led inevitably to ‘dumping’-a ﬂooding of cheap agriculture from the subsidized farms of relatively prosperous countries-and the destroying of local food production. From here it was only a hop, skip, and a jump towards forced dependency. Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the popular and democratically elected President, acknowledged this predatory loaning practiced by Western states, and insisted France pay back what was unfairly given to them. Shortly afterwards, a coalition of the Canadian, American and French governments overthrew Aristide in a 2004 coup. Many people died and the United Nations issued a force of 9,000 troops to maintain stability. This is where our complicity presents itself. Canada was among

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“During the extensive coverage of the earthquake and its aftermath, the mainstream media has largely failed to discuss Haiti’s painful history.”

building sturdy infrastructure and not forced to ghettoize its people into crowded slums near the centre of the city, far fewer people would have died.

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010 of the suffering it now aims to reduce.” This is the sad fact. Citizens here in Canada are doing some very good things--this cannot be denied. They are giving and they appear sincerely moved and concerned with the fate of Haitians. Yet we live in a country that has contributed greatly to Haiti’s destruction.

the states involved in the coup. In 2005, Yves Engler and Anthony Fenton wrote a book titled Canada in Haiti: Waging War on the “The same storms that killed so Poor Majority explore what our many in 2008 hit Cuba just as hard public representatives have done but killed only four people,” writes Canadians must now consider how in the small nation. Canada and Peter Hallward, professor of Modern to reconcile these two strands: the its allies essentially deposed a European Philosophy at Middlesex pressing, and admirable, inclination democratically elected leader--one University and author of Damming to help out during an emergency, who was popular and relatively the Flood: Haiti, Aristide, and the with the truth that we are somehow progressive--because he did not continue economic “Canadians must now consider how to reconcile relationships that would these two strands: the pressing, and admirable, be detrimental to Haiti, inclination to help out during an emergency, with but beneﬁcial to the West, Canada included. the truth that we are somehow complicit in crimes

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It is this large scale exploitation and forced poverty that has contributed to the appalling number of deaths in Haiti. If Haiti wasn’t the poorest state in the Western hemisphere, if it was not completely incapable of

against these very people.”

Politics of Containment. “The noble ‘international community’ which is currently scrambling to send its ‘humanitarian aid’ to Haiti is largely responsible for the extent

complicit in crimes against these very people. The thinker and writer Karl Jaspers wrote compellingly on how we

are indirectly implicated in the misdeeds of our governments. “There exists among men, because they are men, a solidarity through which each shares responsibility for every injustice and every wrong committed in the world, and especially for crimes that are committed in his presence or of which he cannot be ignorant. If I do not do whatever I can to prevent them, I am an accomplice in them. If I have not risked my life in order to prevent the murder of other men, if I have stood silent, I feel guilty in a sense that cannot in any adequate fashion be understood judicially, or politically, or morally.” We have raised money and have volunteered during this catastrophic emergency, but we have not acknowledged the root of the problem and our government’s role in fostering it. We must harness what empathy and sense of humanity Canadians have thus far expressed and direct it toward long-term solutions that would put an end to the longstanding history of the exploitation of Haiti.

Obama’s [S]hit List Jeremy Appel On Dec. 28, 2009, after the now infamous failed Christmas Day bombing by a lone Nigerian on a plane over Detroit, and following incessant bullying from the Republican Party, President Obama composed a list of 14 countries whose citizens will be subject to extra screening when traveling through the United States. This is a dangerously reactionary measure, as everything has a root cause and anti-American sentiment is no different. Below are selections from the countries included (for the sake of brevity) with my commentary. Afghanistan The ﬁrst country listed alphabetically is also the most obvious choice. After supporting the Taliban’s accession to power in 1996, the U.S. soon after had a change of heart. After Sept. 11, 2001, instead of taking the easy approach and withdrawing support for the grotesque dictatorship, Bush II opted for the fun, sadistic approach of full-scale invasion and occupation. We’re almost a decade into the occupation and what has been solved? Our friend Hamid Karazi won an election resulting from what the Associated Press calls a “fraud-tainted” affair. Much of his cabinet is comprised of Westernbacked warlords who are more or less unknown to the Afghan people, and often more Islamist than the Taliban itself. They also have a nasty habit of torturing suspected Taliban members, a practice tacitly supported by NATO. The always propagandistic Radio Free Europe praises Karzai’s cabinet selections and claims that his “popularity is soaring.” As evidence, they cite a joint ABCBBC poll reporting that “seventytwo percent among more than 1,500 Afghans surveyed rated Karzai’s performance as ‘excellent’ or ‘good.’” It is easy to get desired poll results when participants are polled at the gunpoint of government-backed warlords.

Cuba This choice is particularly absurd, as the only U.S. citizens allowed into Cuba are Cuban exiles. These same Cuban exiles have actively collaborated with the C.I.A. in trying to overthrow the Castro government since its inception. Considering that Castro regime is staunchly secular, there can be no real threat of ‘radical Islam.’ There is certainly anti-American sentiment, but this is to be expected; in Oct. 2009 the U.N. General Assembly, for the 18th consecutive year, voted resoundingly against the U.S.-imposed embargo on Cuba. The United States, Israel, and Palau were isolated in their opposition to the condemnation of the siege, with 187 nations voting in favour. Iran This choice is disturbing as Obama has done much to ease relations with Iran, especially compared with his predecessor. This summer he became the ﬁrst U.S. President to acknowledge U.S. involvement in the 1953 coup overthrowing the democratically elected government of Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh. Sure, he did follow it with shameful apologetics about it being “in the middle of the Cold War,” and therefore more just, but it was an immense step forward in U.S. foreign policy. Asides from ‘President’ Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s pompous rhetoric calling for Israel’s destruction, and their shady nuclear enrichment program, Iran poses no threat to America, or even its interests in the region. Since its next-door neighbor, Iraq, was invaded for no reason, Iran would be foolish not to want a nuclear weapons program for deterrence. If Iran is foolish enough to use its (currently nonexistent) nuclear weapons on Israel, it would incur the wrath of Israel’s extensive nuclear arsenal, which according to former President Jimmy Carter, numbers in at least the hundreds.

Therefore, contrary to the unsubstantiated claims of unnamed ‘U.S. ofﬁcials’ and John McCain, there is no proof of any Iranian ties to al-Qaeda. The allegation is that Iran trains al-Qaeda operatives and sends them into Iraq, yet even ultra-hawk Joe Lieberman acknowledges that a connection, let alone collaboration, between Shia fundamentalist Iranians and Sunni fundamentalist al-Qaeda members is highly unlikely. Nigeria The most populous country in Africa is also home to the wouldbe underwear bomber, and even though he himself came from the wealthy family of a successful banker, most of the country is not as fortunate. According to the U.S. Department of State, Nigeria’s literacy rate can be no more than 51%, with an average life expectancy of 47 years. It also notes that “less than 25% of Nigerians are urban dwellers,” attesting to its massive underdevelopment. Despite its poverty, Nigeria is rich in petroleum; 8% of the U.S.’s oil is bought from Nigeria. The U.S. receives “nearly half of Nigeria’s daily oil production,” making it “the largest foreign investor in Nigeria.” Both Exxon-Mobil and Chevron have ofﬁces in Abuja. Aside from being the home of the failed terror suspect, the choice of Nigeria is curious. According to The Independent, the “Islamic jurisprudence in Nigeria is based on the moderate Maliki school of Sunni Islam.” So there is not much of a base for al-Qaeda’s Sunni fundamentalist views in Nigeria. When Umar Abdulmutallab, the attempted bomber, goes to Yemen, where al-Qaeda does have a strong base, he denounced his moderate religious upbringing. It is easy to see why someone would become radicalized after witnessing the immense inequality in their homeland, regardless of their privileged upbringing.

Pakistan Pakistan has slowly emerged to the frontlines in the seemingly perpetual ‘War on Terror.’ According to Jeremy Scahill, writing in The Nation, Pakistan’s Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee works closely with U.S. intelligence, and often works with the same lawless private contractors who the U.S. uses in Iraq: namely, Blackwater and its subsidiaries. According to Pakistan’s Daily Times, U.S. Secretary of State Robert Gates “conceded that U.S. security companies Blackwater and DynCorp are operating in Pakistan in private capacities”--in other words, above the law. Saudi Arabia The Saudi theocracy was established in 1932, by what the C.I.A. World Factbook euphemistically calls “uniﬁcation of the kingdom.” This is partially true; the oil-rich Arabia

was uniﬁed by Britain under the brutal Saudi family. In exchange for Western support, the monarchs keep the cheap oil ﬂowing to the West. Resulting from the sale of oil at bargain prices, and the repression of the ruling class, Saudi Arabia is increasingly indebted and radicalized. The ruling monarchs preach a severe Wahabi Islamist doctrine that oppressively sanctions the practical possession of women by their husbands. Not only that, according to Said Aburish in The House of Saud, the past three Saudi Kings (Saud, Faisal, and Fahd) have been alcoholics despite there being prohibition laws existing in the country. Aburish concludes that their corruption and hypocrisy has created increasingly radical Wahabist movements, who appeal to popular domestic opposition,

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Obama List CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16

and whom he predicts will gain power in the near future. They will want revenge on the United States and Britain for their avid support of their country’s wholesale. Yemen Yemen is now most infamously known as the country where Umar Abdulmutallab received his weapons and training from alQaeda, and further down the list of mainstream popularity is the little known fact that Yemen is also the

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COMMENTS “It does not matter whether the above mentioned countries have connections to al-Qaeda or not; the point is that there is anti-American sentiment throughout, and as I have hopefully demonstrated, much of this contestation is not without reason when properly historicized.”

poorest country in the Arab world. It suffers from 50% unemployment, but like neighboring Saudi Arabia, has a government that sells cheap oil to Western corporations. In Newsweek’s Kevin Peraino and Michael Hirsh’s “Our Man in Yemen,” President Ali Abdullah Saleh, Yemen’s current President, is labeled both “Little Saddam” and “a pivotal ally in our war on

terror” in the very first sentence. Their problem is not so much that he is an oppressive dictator who starves his own people, but that he “has been hopelessly ineffective at keeping al-Qaeda from infiltrating the country.” The problem with this ’realist’ rhetoric is that it ignores root causes, and concerns itself solely with our own selfish interests.

*Not included are Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Oman, Somalia, Sudan, and Syria The ‘realist’ framework that President Obama has adopted in the wake of the Christmas Day bombing attempt is a blatant attempt to placate his far-right opposition. It does not matter whether the above mentioned countries have

Is York University Ditching Guaranteed Graduate Student Funding? Jordy Cummings A few months back, graduate program directors were sent a letter from Dean Douglas Peers stating that the funding packages that York has traditionally offered graduate students could be in jeopardy. Peers wrote that “senior administration at York has determined that the practice over the past several years of committing to a minimum package for master’s and doctoral students can no longer be sustained, particularly at a time of budget pressures being felt across the campus.” At the same time he was writing this letter, York was cooking up plans for a medical school and a revamping of Vari Hall. Later in the letter, Peers also wrote that “we feel that programs ought to have more autonomy as to how they wish to allocate their funds as it is clear that no single model suits all the programs.” This last statement undoubtedly opens up the door for some departments to continue to provide egalitarian funding packages-especially to new masters students-while other departments may well provide larger-than-average funding packages to ‘star students’ and no funding at all to others. What is more, there is no guarantee that in the case of the former, that is to say departments that want to continue to provide funding packages, that these packages will be unit three graduate assistants, and hence entitled to CUPE 3903 collective agreement protection, or, as is increasingly the case, gussied up entry scholarships or research assistantships. Given that these positions will be funded through the departments, as opposed to the Faculty of Graduate Studies, this ‘autonomy’ amounts to a deliberate destruction of a signiﬁcant bargaining unit within CUPE Local 3903 at a time when our local is weak and under National administration. While it is fortunate that some departments are doing everything they can to ensure that incoming graduate students will not only receive funding but also unionized positions, this issue is weighing heavily on the minds of fourth year undergraduate students who are considering

attending York for post-graduate studies, even among those who have their heart set on York. “I have applied to a master’s program at York,” says Jon Whitaker, a fourth year student. “I love York and what it represents, but if I can’t get funding I’m going to have to go to my second choice.” Indeed, the type of ‘reforms’ and ‘autonomy’

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cause. Perhaps even more importantly, however, is that it inculcates grad students with the subversive notion that they are student workers! All things considered, York University’s administration never ceases to amaze in its lack of commitment to equitable funding

intuitively, despite the normally short (one year, maybe two) tenure that these workers spend in unit three, they were active supporters and participants in CUPE 3903’s 85-day strike against this employer, with the highest percentage of ‘yes’ votes in the strike mandate vote and in turn, the highest percentage of ‘no’ votes in the forced ratiﬁcation.

“Now even...[guaranteed funding] is on the chopping block, and it remains to be seen whether a local run by an outside administrator will step to the plate and protect an entire bargaining unit, one that has been instrumental in getting CUPE 3903 the best collective agreement in our sector.”

spoken of by Dean Peers in his letter effectively cuts off access to graduate school for anyone but the upper middle class. It is difficult enough to live on student loans and the paltry funding provided to graduate students already. To remove a funding package and work, which significantly includes the protection of a labour union, and thus access to benefits that are much needed, is frankly, cruel. As well, to remove from York faculty the ability to draw on the talent of their master’s students as graduate assistants is a hindrance to York as a research institution. Less than an hour ago, I was reading a book written by a York professor, who makes a very significant and kind effort to name each of the graduate assistants who had assisted in putting together the book. This praxis has a twofold educative effect on the GA. The first of course is working with eminent faculty members, or having the opportunity to edit a journal or advocate for an important

of graduate student/workers. Take unit three, as they are called in CUPE 3903, GAs. The vast majority of GAs are ﬁrst and second year master’s students who work up to ten hours a week for professors or departments, doing everything from tracking down rare books to photocopying journal articles, from doing advocacy work for non-governmental organizations to editing departmental journals. Counter

‘Unit threes’ have been active in the more active wings of our local, during and subsequent to last year’s strike, and are known to be able to stand up for their interests; take the recent successful campaign by Social Work

students to retain their guaranteed funding! This goes back to the strike itself. At one point, the bargaining team unilaterally dropped what was an important demand for unit three members, to have guaranteed minimum funding written into our collective agreement. This prompted a strong reaction by unit three members, who met and

connections to al-Qaeda or not; the point is that there is anti-American sentiment throughout, and as I have hopefully demonstrated, much of this contestation is not without reason when properly historicized. If the United States--or Nato-bombs Yemen, as we did two weeks prior to the failed attack, we are giving the population reason to resent us. This is just an extreme example, but the same holds true of the extra-screening list. It further solidifies peoples’ perception of America as a reactionary, pariah state. Where’s ‘hope and change’ when we need it? circulated a petition--collecting hundreds of signatures--and an open letter demanding that the measure be reinstated. This letter was read to a General Membership Meeting, and in turn a motion was passed to have this legitimate demand put back on the table. The bargaining team complied, but this had come to naught, as by the time the demand was back on the table the writing was already on the wall in regards to the state’s impending assault on CUPE 3903, vis-àvis back-to-work legislation. In hindsight, however hotly this issue may have been debated during the strike, it seems quite obvious now that this was an incredibly important demand. No wonder the employer held fast against it, and indeed wouldn’t even move an inch even when the demand was simply to codify the ‘past practice’ of offering funding packages of at least ten thousand dollars to new master’s students. Now even this ‘past practice’ is on the chopping block, and it remains to be seen whether a local run by an outside administrator will step to the plate and protect an entire bargaining unit, one that has been instrumental in getting CUPE 3903 the best collective agreement in our sector. Even after being legislated back to work, one can’t forget that we made significant gains in the last round. Not having master’s students who are ready to picket and mobilize will detrimentally affect any future ability to mount a job action. Of course, Peers states in his letter that this is due to budgetary issues, which as noted, seems hard to believe, as an enrollment was actually up this year and capital projects are being planned. Even if, however, one is to accept that York is doing this to cut corners, denying guaranteed graduate funding cannot be reduced to a financial issue. In fact, one has to see this, like many decisions made by York, as at least partially political. Of course, many reasons can be cited for York’s slated revamping of Vari Hall, but it would not even be a gleam in Shoukri’s eye were it not for the fact that a revamped Vari Hall would remove a vital political space from York students. Likewise, there may be many reasons--most of them having to do with cutting corners--to York’s abolition of minimum funding. In the final analysis, however, this decision, as spelled out by Peers, is an attack on working class and other marginalized potential graduate students, and a pre-emptive strike against a bargaining unit that has been and still is a hotbed of labour agency.

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WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

The Route from Slavery to ‘Freedom’: Haiti’s Recovery and the Student Movement at York In addition to paying for France’s crimes, Haiti also accumulated much debt under the rule of corrupt dictatorships. Between 1957 and 1986, Haiti was controlled by Francois and Jean-Claude Duvalier, a father/son regime. Known as ‘Papa Doc’ and ‘Baby Doc,’ the Duvalier’s corruptly spent foreign assistance dollars on personal luxury and aggrandizement. Although aware of the Duvalier’s corruption, international governments and institutions overlooked the wasted funds as long as Haiti remained on anti-communist turf.

Canova Kutuk What do we really know about Haiti? The recent earthquakes and their aftermath are what mainstream media and the general public are primarily concerned with. The truth is, prior to the natural disasters, Haiti was still one of the poorest countries plagued by famine, sickness, and external debt. Yet to understand Haiti, we must understand the background story. Saint-Domingue: Pearl of the Antilles In the late 1600s and early 1700s, French colonialists took over an island called Hispaniola, now known as Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Headed under The French West India Company, French traders took over the once Spanish colony and named it Saint-Domingue. In due time, the colony’s agriculture expanded, prompting the importation of African slaves. With colonial plantations, Saint-Domingue became one of the richest colonies in the Western Hemisphere; 60% of the world’s coffee and 40% of the sugar imported by France and Britain was produced there. Two thirds of France’s foreign commercial interest and 40% of their foreign trade depended on Saint-Domingue, and consequently, slavery. Under a regime of cruelty, Haiti became the ‘Pearl of the Antilles’ (Antilles refers to the islands that form a major part of the West Indies).

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Revolt, Revolt, Independence

French. About 10,000 blacks and 2000 whites were killed and over 1000 plantations were destroyed. Although a major step toward liberation, the rebellion had failed. It left the colony weak and unstable, making the area vulnerable for

world. So far so good. But, Haiti’s independence came with a price—literally. Soon after Haiti’s achievement of autonomy, France demanded compensation for loss of ‘property’ which included slaves. In

What Does this Have to do with an Earthquake? Today, while we attempt to help Haiti overcome the after effects of the earthquake, we can’t overlook that Haiti owes hundreds of millions to the IMF, World Bank, and International Development Bank. Rather than implementing immediate debt relief, these institutions impose harmful economic reforms. Haiti’s poverty, malnutrition, and underdevelopment is the result of foreign usurpation and interference.

“In 2008…[Doctors Without Border’s] management and general costs amounted to just 1% of its total ﬁnances. In effect students, faculty and staff at York who have or are planning to contribute to the YFS’s fundraising campaign, can feel comfortable that their money will actually go towards humanitarian relief in Haiti.”

Revolt...

In Aug. 1791, the ﬁrst slave rebellion was launched against the

foreign interventionists--mainly Spanish and British. During this time, a freedom ﬁghter named Touissant Louverture came on the scene. Born to an enslaved family, Louverture gained control of Saint-Domingue by 1800 in cooperation with the French. Although Louverture had not been able to his sever ties with France, his rule seriously weakened French dominion over the colony. In 1803, when war between France and Britain resumed, the French ceded from the Western Hemisphere and on January 1, 1804, Haiti was able to declare its independence as the ﬁrst free, Black republic in the

1825, France positioned warships and militia off Haiti’s coast, threatening to attack and reinstate slavery unless compensated, forcing Haiti to take on a debt that is equivalent to $21 billion dollars (with interest) today in exchange for sovereignty. This heavy debt incurred to Haiti was equal to 14 times Haiti’s export revenues. Rather than investing in healthcare, education, and other critical infrastructures, Haiti was forced to turn over income to France. In effect, Haiti sank into an ocean of debt and underdevelopment from which it has not yet surfaced.

What are York Students Doing? The $25,000 for Haiti Campaign This campaign was initiated by the York Federation of Students (YFS) just days after the earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale hit Haiti and exhausted what was already an impoverished and devastated region. It was originally called ‘$15,000 for Haiti’ but because of enthusiastic student involvement, students surpassed the $15,000 goal and had raised over $20,000 by the third day. In

addition to monetary donations, many students participated in the clothing drive and dedicated their time to help raise awareness and foster participation. Although the campaign reads ‘$25,000’ the actual amount of donations that York students will have contributed is closer to $100,000. The York Federation of Students (YFS) has agreed to match every dollar, which brings the amount to $50,000. This amount will then be multiplied by the federal government which has also agreed to match every dollar of donations made to select organizations. The $100,000 that students have made possible will be given to an organization called Doctors Without Borders (DWB), a humanitarian initiative that aims to provide medical care to areas with inadequate medical infrastructures and which is not beholden to American or government interests. What separates this campaign from various others is its consciousness of the nature of aid provided to a country like Haiti. It is saddening to hear the amount of corporate relief/ investment with a humanitarian persona being channeled into Haiti. Fortunately though, DWB has one of the lowest administrative costs comparatively in the foreign aid sector. In 2008, the organization’s management and general costs amounted to just 1% of its total ﬁnances. In effect students, faculty and staff at York who have or are planning to contribute to the YFS’s fundraising campaign, can feel comfortable that their money will actually go towards humanitarian relief in Haiti. The type of assistance that arrives to Haiti at this time is critical in determining the future welfare of the country. We need to ask ourselves: will the aid that arrives from donor countries, institutions and organizations help Haiti retain autonomy and improve socially, politically and economically or, will aid arrive in the form of veiled occupation and the continuation of centuries-old colonial relationships?

Rethinking Canadian Democracy: The Prorogation of Parliament Madison Trusolino It’s a pretty common belief that democracy exists in Canada, at least in an institutional manner. We are a nation that prides itself on a supposedly fair electoral system as well as our constitutionally entrenched Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and on top of all that we’re in other countries ﬁghting in the name of ‘democracy!’ Recently, Canada has experienced a blow

to this ‘triumphant’ democratic model: Prime Minister Stephen Harper has prorogued government. Yet even though parliament was prorogued last year in order to stall the formulation of a new coalition government, given this most recent controversy, it appears as if many Canadians are familiarizing themselves with the political term for the very ﬁrst time, and now we are seeing the word popping up everywhere. But what exactly does

proroguing mean? Proroguing, by deﬁnition, is the discontinuing or postponing of Parliament, which is constitutionally a prerogative of the Prime Minister of Canada. When Parliament is prorogued, all bills and issues that were set to go before Parliament are dissolved, which in this case ‘conveniently’ includes the parliamentary committee on the torture of Afghani detainees.

Harper denies allegations that he is hiding something from Canadians, particularly regarding torture allegations. He says that prorogation is meant to allow MPs to relax for two months and regroup. As well, Harper claims that it will create political unity, a kind of truce between MPs of all political stripes. Prorogation is also being spun as a way for the Conservatives to focus on the budget without being slowed down by all the red tape. In all, by following through with such plans, the Conservatives are relying on the assumption that this is a ‘minor’ inconvenience that the general public will not care about and idly accept. Wrong Harper, very wrong! Thanks, in part, to the ‘Canadians against Proroguing Parliament’ Facebook group, over 217,000 ‘common’ Canadians are voicing their concerns and frustration regarding Harper’s decision. According to one post, by proroguing parliament Harper is ‘effectively shutting down our democratic institutions for the sake of political expediency.’ On Jan. 23, 2010, thousands of Canadians

of all ages across the country, as well as internationally in cities such as New York and Beijing, took to the streets protesting Harper’s decision. Moreover, the Liberal, NDP, as well as a host of other oppositional Parties have publicly stated their disgust with Harper’s decision. The Conservatives seem to have forgotten what it means to be a minority government and have attempted to stiﬂe the voices of all Canadians and their representatives; so much for political unity! With that said, maybe some good can come from prorogation? Canadians are now questioning their own claim to democracy and shedding light on issues that might have remained out of the public spotlight otherwise. Therefore, in coming to terms with Harper’s decision to impose prorogation, instead of feeling uncritically patriotic while sporting lick ‘em, stick ‘em Canadian ﬂag tattoos during the Olympics, let’s get on our computers, on the streets and on our phones and show Harper what democracy really embodies!

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Arts & Culture

“ adies, wouldn’t [it] be wonderful if our pussies were detachable?” An interesting consideration. Wanda Sykes continues her joke with the observation that women would no longer have to be afraid of jogging alone at night. When a predator jumps out at you, all you have to say is “Sorry, I left it at home!” The audience is roaring at this point. I’m thinking: this is social commentary in its most inclusive form. Well, my initial thoughts were not actually that concise, but, for the sake of the piece let’s go with it. It would be naïve to think that every person who hears this joke will understand and really give credence to the oppressive, violent reality from which this joke is spurned. But, we are talking about a venue that reaches oodles (and do not underestimate the oodle) more people than academic journals or feminist literature. And, as we all know, it is the masses that the attitude shift has to come from.

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Using comedy as a political tool is not a new idea. Satire reaches far back to Ancient Greece, and trots along to Tina Fey’s ever-amusing Sarah Palin impersonation. Nevertheless, I believe that comedy as a medium for feminist commentary is overlooked and underused. Before we look at some of the existing feminist comedians and their undeniable hilarity, I want to talk about the mainstream comedy movies of our time. These are the comedies that teens and young adults quote for months and months after their release: Superbad, Pineapple Express, Knocked Up, and The Hangover to name a few. These movies have been wildly popular over the past couple years and all of them have elements of sexism. In fact, The Hangover has recently become the highest grossing R Rated Comedy ever.

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In is undeniable that these ﬁlms, along with other aspects of popular culture, help form and reinforce social attitudes. This is especially true for impressionable youth. In the past, when I have brought up a feminist critique of these ﬁlms, in a non-feminist setting, I have heard the all too familiar routine of pointing out my over sensitivity and inability to loosen up. In Superbad, the chubby, not-soattractive character grinds with an attractive girl at a house party and, gasp, she somehow gets menstrual blood on his pants. As I have read on the many comments of this YouTube clip, it appears to be one of the favourite moments of the movie. (Disclaimer: if you want

to keep your faith in humanity do not read the comments on this YouTube clip). Actually, that is a bit of an exaggeration. If you want to avoid the aforementioned, do not

Services. In 1997, it began as a site specific piece in Banff National Park. Dempsey and Millan sported their twist on typical park ranger uniforms and gave information on the ‘preservation of lesbian wildlife’ to the unassuming public. Their aim was to activate LGBT visibility in public leisure spaces. Due to their humorous, nonthreatening approach, the Lesbian National Park Rangers received positive feedback. No small feat in a community that is heavily populated by conservative American tourists. With the initial success they took the production further by creating a ‘mockumentary’ and a field guide. The field guide expands the duo’s contagious humour with a section

“I believe that comedy as a medium for feminist commentary is overlooked and underused.” watch the newly released comedy The Ugly Truth. This ﬁlm pokes fun at date rape. And date rape is never funny. The blood scene in Superbad, along with similar scenes in similar movies, teaches shame to young girls. I would also argue that it is just as harmful as more blatant forms of sexism because it is embedded amongst a slew of other things that all ‘cool’ young people must ﬁnd funny. For the masses of people who found most scenes of Superbad hilarious, myself included, it is a radical statement to call that scene sexist. If such a statement is radical, then we have a problem here. We need to take this power of comedy and inject some feminism. In fact, it is already being done by some clever women. For those of you who have not watched any of Sarah Haskins’ Target Women segments, you need to get off your rocking horse and check it out immediately. Her segment on

“We need to take this power of comedy and inject some feminism.” Current TV mocks the absurdity of advertising targeting women. She delivers her commentary in an infectiously amusing sardonic manner. On jewellery she says, “There’s nothing that says ‘I love you’ to a woman like a diamond. Nope, not even the words ‘I love you.’” On diets, “For the New Year all the women in the world have resolved to lose weight. But how!? Where can we ﬁnd we ﬁnd an array of tips on dieting and exercise…oh that’s right, everywhere!” On ridiculous hair product advertisements, “Hair care used to be just about brushing it a hundred times before bed. Now, beautiful hair is something to die for. In a deserted jungle temple.” In Canada, we have Shauna Dempsey and Lorri Millan’s aptly named Finger in The Dyke Productions. One of their most famous productions was titled Lesbian National Parks &

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Ellie Gordan-Moershel

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What the World Needs is More Feminist Comedy >

of the book titled Keeping Wet in the Bush and an explanation of the ‘bulldyke moose and her strap-on antlers.’ These are just a few examples of what feminist comedy can look like. As a feminist community, we

need to encourage such initiatives and support the work that already exists. It is outright funny and it works as a tool for public awareness. Again, I do not wish to discredit other avenues for social change, but it is about time we put feminist comedy on the map.

A Poem for Humanity Elizabeth Goldstein I know that we have only been together for a short while, but with you, time and space is always immeasurable, as if we can travel though endless atmospheric miles at the touch of a dial.

You are forever beautiful in every shape and form, in character, in intellect, that any human being, no matter their sexual orientation, would adore.

At ﬁrst I thought this unchartered queer world was difﬁcult to navigate through. Life has so many unexpected surprises, and when they ensue, I will take my cues based on whatever is best for you.

I know that we have entered a doorway that not many people have passed, it is difﬁcult for them to understand us. They don’t think we can, nor should, last.

When society says we should not be together ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ can often ﬁll our thoughts and make us sometimes fraught, as if we ought to not be happy in order to do what is normatively sought.

Yet there is still a lot of time, until we have to fully deal with the ‘here’ and ‘whys’ of our lesbian relationship, that some say is a crime.

When reading this poem and when thinking about how you feel when you are with me, this poem can let us breathe and feel free to express ourselves as we believe was meant to be.

And when it comes to dealing with our surroundings complexity I will be content if for the next while we just ‘wait’ and ‘see’.

This way, we can continue to get to know each other in the clear, and spend time together without fear. Of what would happen if certain people hear about our queer identities and try to char all that we want to hold near.

Arts & Culture

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

My City? Laurence Parent Through my research, the Montréal subway is analysed as an ableist public space that contributes to the production and the stigmatisation of the disabled body. The Montréal subway, as of 2009, is one of the last subway systems in the world only accessible by stairs. The City of Montréal plans to renovate one station per year which means that the subway system will be fully accessible by 2071. This overt exclusion of people whose mobility needs are not being accommodated has been poorly challenged within the last few decades. Inaccessible spaces, like the Montréal subway, tell disabled people that they are out of place. This ever-present unwelcomed reminder, written on urban landscapes, denies disabled people citizenship by jeopardizing their right to mobility. I can’t stand for this overt and silenced exclusion, this exclusion that is my everyday life. Taking pictures of myself in spaces in which

Photos by Éric Laliberté, Marcel Allard, and Joëlle Rouleau

I have been silently excluded, while being gradually included in a conservative and paternalistic way, offers me the possibility to resist, the possibility of claiming my presence in this space. I remember my history of exclusion from the Montréal subway. Silenced and normalized. I remember feeling much better in other cities that weren’t my own. I remember losing my home. I remember trying to ﬁnd words to claim my own political exile and being unable to ﬁnd them in my mother tongue. I remember my urban exclusion written on my skin and rooted in my bones forever. Je me souviens que l’on m’a oublié.

When Will White People Stop Making Movies Like Avatar? Annalee Newitz

ritics have called alien epic Avatar a version of Dances with Wolves because it’s about a white guy going native and becoming a great leader. But Avatar is just the latest sci-fi rehash of an old white guilt fantasy. Spoilers... Whether Avatar is racist is a matter for debate. Regardless of where you come down on that question, it’s undeniable that the film - like alien apartheid flick District 9, released

earlier this year - is emphatically a fantasy about race. Specifically, it’s a fantasy about race told from the point of view of white people. Avatar and sci-fi films like it give us the opportunity to answer the question: What do white people fantasize about when they fantasize about racial identity? Avatar imaginatively revisits the crime scene of white America’s foundational act of genocide, in which entire native tribes and civilizations were wiped out by European immigrants to the

American continent. In the ﬁlm, a group of soldiers and scientists have set up shop on the verdant moon Pandora, whose landscapes look like a cross between Northern California’s redwood cathedrals and Brazil’s tropical rainforest. The moon’s inhabitants, the Na’vi, are blue, catlike versions of native people: They wear feathers in their hair, worship nature gods, paint their faces for war, use bows and arrows, and live in tribes. Watching the movie, there is really no mistake that these are alien versions of stereotypical native peoples that we’ve seen in Hollywood movies for decades.

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On Generative Process I

would like to think that those pursuing any artistic discipline will be able to take something from this piece. As a student of music composition and theory, my analysis of creative process will be based on the crafting of music. Often in my studies the notion arises of generating a finished product by means of manipulating and expanding fragments of material. This is an idea that goes back at least several centuries. In musical composition it is said that you can ‘write four bars and you have the entire piece.’ Those four bars can be the deciding factor in whether your preliminary idea ultimately becomes a finished work or merely forgotten in time. I am of the opinion that the process of arranging music is straightforward in its own right. I will not deny that it is time consuming and often tedious, but once that arduous first step is over the rest of the process is much easier. However, come up with those critical first bars may seem impossible. Logically the question arises of where these preliminary ideas come from, and whether that ultimately matters. Arguably there is no such thing as a truly original idea; in everything I create I can usually name at least one influence. But even in considering outside influence, how does one generate wholly ‘original’ ideas? There are of course a variety of methodical devices to generate material; there exists no shortage of technical algorithms that have surfaced throughout history. However if you do not want to take this route for whatever reason, you may find that you will not want to, and possibly cannot afford to, wait for ideas to simply ‘happen.’

For most people finding inspiration for new projects can be a very haphazard territory, but for some it can be as simple as a change of environment or a break in routine. I recently composed a piece for piano and generated my original concept with one rationale: to attempt to create the opposite of whatever my material usually sounds like. The piece still ended up sounding characteristically ‘mine,’ albeit slightly atypical. The point is not necessarily to revolutionize your work, but to expand your comfort zone and avoid selfrepetition. This can be done in various ways. If possible, try working in a new locale or at a different time of day. While I find that early in the morning is my prime time to write, I know many who insist on writing after midnight. I am not sure why these differences exist, but I do not necessarily see the need to question them either. In the end we all do what works best for us. One concept that I find myself divided on is the notion of ‘writer’s block.’ While I do not deny that at times I find myself frustrated, I also suggest that those who suffer from writer’s block may be inhibited by an aversion toward means outside their typical

basically a war-torn wasteland with no greenery or natural resources left. The humans started to colonize Pandora in order to mine a mineral called unobtainium that can serve as a mega-energy source. But a few of these humans don’t want to crush the natives with tanks and bombs, so they wire their brains into the bodies of Na’vi avatars and try to win the natives’ trust. Jake is one of the team of avatar pilots, and he discovers to his surprise that he loves his life as a Na’vi warrior far

Na’vi’s home tree, Jake switches sides. With the help of a few human renegades, he maintains a link with his avatar body in order to lead the Na’vi against the human invaders. Not only has he been assimilated into the native people’s culture, but he has become their leader. This is a classic scenario you’ve seen in non-scifi epics from Dances With Wolves to The Last Samurai, where a white guy manages to get himself accepted into a closed society of people of color and eventually becomes its most awesome m e m b e r. But it’s also, as I indicated earlier, very similar in some ways to District 9. In that film, our (anti)hero Wikus is trying to relocate a shantytown of aliens to a region far outside Johannesburg. When he’s accidentally squirted with fluid from an alien technology, he begins turning into one of the aliens against his will. Deformed and cast out of human society, Wikus reluctantly helps one of the aliens to launch their stalled ship and seek help from their home

“This is a classic scenario you’ve seen in non-sciﬁ epics from Dances With Wolves to The Last Samurai, where a white guy manages to get himself accepted into a closed society of people of color and eventually becomes its most awesome member.”

And Pandora is clearly supposed to be the rich, beautiful land America could still be if white people hadn’t paved it over with concrete and strip malls. In Avatar, our white hero Jake Sully (sully Jake Sully learns archery from the Na’vi chief’s daughter in Cameron’s Avatar. get it?) explains that Earth is

Matthew Karas

Arts & Culture

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

processes. We in the Western world have a predisposition toward causal methods of thinking, where we see things as a sequence of events and consequences. In other words our frustration can be a result of not seeing the bigger picture. If you feel such a block, ask yourself if you are taking the necessary measures to change how you approach your work. This emphasizes the importance of play. I often ﬁnd that radical changes need to be made to bring an idea

more than he ever did his life as a human marine. Jake is so enchanted that he gives up on carrying out his mission, which is to persuade the Na’vi to relocate from their ‘home tree,’ where the humans want to mine the unobtanium. Instead, he focuses on becoming a great warrior who rides giant birds and falls in love with the chief’s daughter. When the inevitable happens and the marines arrive to burn down the to life, in my case parameters such as instrumentation, tempo and harmony. I am an advocate of approaching music from a technical standpoint, but I maintain that one has to be wary of the end product sounding too mechanical or predictable. An interesting perspective on this subject is that music theory stems from a centuries-long tradition of seemingly arbitrary experimentation, yet we treat it as something as concrete as science or mathematics. In short we are often taught about what music is, but it takes practice and experimentation

CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE on our own time to discover what these ‘rules’ actually mean and to what extent they apply to what we do. I try to maintain the perspective that we have total control over our end product within the limitations set by our resources. This is obviously beneficial, yet having too much freedom can also seem daunting. Most of us are used to working under certain limitations imposed by a teacher or a client, but at some point in our undertakings we must learn to generate our own. But where does one begin in doing so? Composition is like visual art or architecture in the sense that it involves envisioning a finished product and then taking the necessary measures to make it tangible. I do not believe there is necessarily a ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to create; rather what matters in the end is whether the composer can reach their objective. That said, I do not deem everything I create worthy of completing, or even necessarily worthy of showing to anyone. This leads eventually to the strenuous and often selfdegrading task of omitting sections of your own material. In order to create a cohesive product, we must realize that having numerous ideas does not mean all of them will find use in a work. Although I see this as a necessary part of the compositional process, I will not deny that it can be taxing on one’s sense of pride. Most people need copious amounts of feedback and encouragement to foster the necessary confidence to stand behind their product, something that we all need to develop on our own time.

Arts & Culture

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When Zaynab Entered the Mosque... Remembering the Azan of a Female, the Call to Silence Oppression Ali Abbas

istory, the books say, is often written with the winner’s ink. That ink can be tainted by blood, which is evident in various histories. I bring you one such history: a moment in Islam’s history, a moment when a female, Zaynab Bint-eAli, wrote her own history and announced her victory. I ask you to unlearn the position of the victor and the vanquished, for as Dr. Himani Bannerji explains it, this is at the heart of feminist life.

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religious lives being governed by the ruler, caliph, of the political empire. This majority, Sunnite Muslims, accepted the Prophet’s companion, Abu Bakr, as the ﬁrst caliph. However, a minority, Shiite Muslims, vehemently opposed this rule, believing that the successor

his journey to southern Iraq and a standoff took place at Karbala. After three days of being denied food and drink, Husain’s army was massacred, while the women who accompanied them were taken as captives to Yazid’s political seat in Damascus, Syria. Amongst these women was Zaynab, the lady whose ‘Azan’ I wish to make you hear.

“She broke codes traditionally associated with femininity, particularly silence, and delivered a sermon, Khutbah, traditionally the domain of males.”

Every Day is Ashura and Every Land is Karbala: The History to Karbala In 680 CE, on the 10th day of the Islamic month of Muharram, the younger grandson of the Prophet Mohammad, Husain Ebn-e Ali, was slain on the plains of Karbala along with 72 of his faithful male companions and family. This day is remembered as Ashura and Husain ever since has been alive as Sayyid Al-Shuhada, the prince of martyrs. Husain’s sacriﬁce at Karbala is eloquently contextualized in Ali’s collection Rooms are Never Finished: “For just as Jesus went to Jerusalem to die on the cross, Husain went to Karbala to accept the passion that had been meant for him from the beginning of time.” Following the death of the Prophet Mohammad in 632 CE, Muslims experienced a “crisis of succession”. The Muslims were uncertain of who was to assume an authority over their religious lives. As a result, a caliphate system was established and a majority of the Muslims voted in favour of their

Avatar

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 21 planet. If we think of Avatar and its ilk as white fantasies about race, what kinds of patterns do we see emerging in these fantasies? In both Avatar and District 9, humans are the cause of alien oppression and distress. Then, a white man who was one of the oppressors switches sides at the last minute, assimilating into the alien culture and becoming its savoir. This is also the basic story of Dune, where a member of the white royalty ﬂees his posh palace on the planet Dune to become leader of the worm-riding native Fremen (the worm-riding rite of passage has an analog in Avatar, where Jake proves his manhood by riding a giant bird). An interesting tweak on this story can be seen in 1980s ﬂick Enemy Mine, where a white man (Dennis Quaid) and the alien he’s been battling (Louis Gossett Jr.) are stranded on a hostile planet together for years. Eventually they become best friends, and when the alien dies, the human raises the alien’s child as his own. When humans arrive on the planet and try to enslave the alien child, he lays down his life to rescue it. His

of the Prophet was to be ordained through divine judgment. To them, Ali Ebn-e Abi Taleb, the Prophet’s son-in-law, was the first infallible guide, Imam, after the Prophet and they swore their allegiance to Ali. Backed by a majority vote, the caliphs exercised their authority over the Muslim population. Political disputes ensued and Shiites mark this juncture as the trigger that fired off the years of oppression suffered by the Prophet’s household, Ahlul Bayt. The Shiite, particularly the IthnaAsheri, faith revolves around the public commemoration of this oppression. They believe it is the cause of the unjust caliphate rule making the most solemn event in the Shiite calendar the martyrdom of Husain in Karbala. Husain was martyred for refusing to accept the reign of the second Umayyad caliph, Yazid Ebn-e Muawiyah. When ordered to pledge allegiance to Yazid, Husain, accompanied by his family and followers, decided to proceed to southern Iraq and initiate an uprising against Yazid. To Husain, Yazid’s rule was outside the parameters of Islam. Yazid, however, intercepted Husain on loyalties to an alien have become stronger than to his own species. These are movies about white guilt. Our main white characters realize that they are complicit in a system which is destroying aliens, AKA people of color - their cultures, their habitats, and their populations. The whites realize this when they begin to assimilate into the ‘alien’ cultures and see things from a new perspective. To purge their overwhelming sense of guilt, they switch sides, become ‘race traitors,’ and fight against their old comrades. But then they go beyond assimilation and become leaders of the people they once oppressed. This is the essence of the white guilt fantasy, laid bare. It’s not just a wish to be absolved of the crimes whites have committed against people of color; it’s not just a wish to join the side of moral justice in battle. It’s a wish to lead people of color from the inside rather than from the (oppressive, white) outside.

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Just as the name of Islam is with the name of Mohammad,

The names of Zaynab and Shabbir (Hussain) cannot be separated. (A quote from a Shiite Poetry) Sayyedeh Zaynab: Fatah-eShaam, Conqueror of Damascus After Ashura, the night of the dispossessed, Sham-e-Ghariban, descended upon the women of Husain’s caravan. There was only one male survivor of the afternoon’s massacre, Ali Ebn-e-Husain, the son of Husain. He was ill and though he succeeded Hussain as the 4th Imam, he was unable to assume his duties. In a parade of power, Yazid’s army looted the caravan’s belongings, mounted the heads of the dead on spears and raped the women. Zaynab fought back and assumed the leadership of the caravan. An Imam is always a male in Shiite tradition, but by assuming leadership, albeit unofﬁcially, Zaynab is representative of the power of females within Islam. The women, along with the children and the ailing 4th Imam, were made to walk semi-naked from Karbala to Yazid’s political seat in Damascus. This is where Zaynab courageously battled Yazid.

The Sayyidah Zaynab Mosque in Damascus, Syria, houses the tomb of Zaynab struggle against Yazid, a Shiite scholar Sayyed Ali Naqi al-Naqvi writes, “can any person hesitate to say that the stations that she (Zaynab) passes [the obstacles she overcame] were more difﬁcult than that station that was crossed by the friends of the Prince of Martyrs?” Clearly, Zaynab, in the eyes of the Shiites is worthy of the same, if not more, respect than her brother Husain. Zaynab won her ﬁght against Yazid when she rebuked him in his court. She broke codes traditionally associated with femininity, particularly silence, and delivered a sermon, Khutbah, traditionally the domain of males. Condemning Yazid’s oppression, Zaynab’s sermon, to date, is read during Muharram commemorations, “ O Yazid, you will not be able to efface of our account nor will you be able to comprehend our intentions. Begone! I don’t expect any such thing from you.” She, hereby, defeated Yazid and conquered Damascus.

In saluting Zaynab’s role in the

Each year, millions of Shiites pay

to be a Na’vi because he always has the option to switch back into human mode. Interestingly, Wikus in District 9 learns a very different lesson. He’s becoming alien and he can’t go back. He has no other choice but to live in the slums and eat cat food. And guess what? He really hates it. He helps his alien buddy to escape Earth solely because he’s hoping the guy will come back in a few years with a ‘cure’ to turn him back into

mythic story you find in science fiction, generally written by whites, “is going to a foreign culture and colonizing it.” Sure, Avatar goes a little bit beyond the basic colonizing story. We are told in no uncertain terms that it’s wrong to colonize the lands of native people. Our hero chooses to join the Na’vi rather than abide the racist culture of his own people. But it is nevertheless a story that revisits the same old tropes of colonization. Whites still get to be leaders of the natives - just in a kinder, gentler way than they would have in an old Flash Gordon flick or in Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Mars novels.

“Think of it this way: Avatar is a fantasy about ceasing to be white, giving up the old human meat-sack to join the blue people, but never losing white privilege.”

Think of it this way: Avatar is a fantasy about ceasing to be white, giving up the old human meatsack to join the blue people, but never losing white privilege. Jake never really knows what it’s like

a human. When whites fantasize about becoming other races, it’s only fun if they can blithely ignore the fundamental experience of being an oppressed racial group. This is not a message anybody wants to hear, least of all the white people who are creating and consuming these fantasies. Afro-Canadian sciﬁ writer Nalo Hopkinson recently told The Boston Globe, “In the US, to talk about race is to be seen as racist. You become the problem because you bring up the problem. So you ﬁnd people who are hesitant to talk about it.” She adds that the main

When will whites stop making these movies and start thinking about race in a new way? First, we’ll need to stop thinking that white people are the most ‘relatable’ characters in stories. As one blogger put it: “By the end of the film you’re left wondering why the film needed the Jake Sully character at all. The film could have done just as well by focusing on an actual Na’vi native who comes into contact

homage at her shrine in Damascus. The location surrounding her shrine is named after her. It is also signiﬁcant to note that Zaynab is not the only lady who carried the ﬁght against Yazid. Husain’s infant daughter, for example, Sayyedeh Sakina, is mourned heavily: she died as a result of torture and her prison cell is the site of year round commemorations. Zaynab’s and Sakina’s shrines are sites of pilgrimage where male and female mourners seek the blessings of these female warriors. Zaynab was her brother’s comrade in spirit and a carrier of Husain’s message. I hear her message as the muscle that protects Husain’s, the fortress that homes Islam. How on earth such a strength has been forgotten in mainstream Islamic discourse is beyond the skies of my imagination. How has a faith that was protected by a female now evolved into one that cannot be interpreted by a female? In hearing her story perhaps the ‘penis pride’ of the historians will be rendered impotent.

with crazy humans who have no respect for the environment. I can just see the explanation: “Well, we need someone (an avatar) for the audience to connect with. A normal guy will work better than these tall blue people.” However, this is the type of thinking that moulds all leads as white male characters (blank slates for the audience to project themselves upon) unless your name is Will Smith.” But more than that, whites need to rethink their fantasies about race. Whites need to stop remaking the white guilt story, which is a sneaky way of turning every story about people of color into a story about being white. Speaking as a white person, I don’t need to hear more about my own racial experience. I’d like to watch some movies about people of color (ahem, aliens), from the perspective of that group, without injecting a random white (erm, human) character to explain everything to me. Science ﬁction is exciting because it promises to show the world and the universe from perspectives radically unlike what we’ve seen before. But until white people stop making movies like Avatar, I fear that I’m doomed to see the same old story again and again.

Reprinted from http://io9.com

WINTER ISSUE 3 2010

EVENTS FEBRUARY Justice Café

WHEN: Mondays, 5:30pm - 6:30pm WHERE: Student Centre 430 (GSA lounge), York University, Keele campus CONTACT: http://www.yugsa.ca/index.php?cmd=Home DETAILS: The Justice Café aims to create a community of like-minded students who care about local and global justice. It is an opportunity for students to collaborate and share ideas and be surrounded by supporting and encouraging minds. Come hang out and have some FREE COFFEE!

Asian Arts Freedom School

WHEN: Feb. 3 - March 24, every Wednesday 6:00pm - 8:30pm WHERE: Kapisanan, 167 Augusta Ave. CONTACT: asianartsfreedomschool@gmail.com DETAILS: Eight weeks of creative writing workshops featuring the stuﬀ they don’t teach you in school: Indigenous history and Asianness in Canada, family secrets and migration, Asian community organizing and activism, how to wrestle with the headlines and win, what we can make ‘Asian’ mean to Toronto, living in a black and white world, and MORE!

Free Digital Viewing for Black History Month

WHEN: Feb. 1 – Feb. 28 WHERE: 150 John St. CONTACT: 416-973-3012 or nfbmediathequeonf@nfb.ca DETAILS: To celebrate Black History Month, we’ve compiled a selection of ﬁlms that can only scratch the surface of a rich and multilayered culture. Any day during the month of February, try our Digital Viewing Stations and watch any of our ﬁlms which highlight the history of Canada’s Black community.

The Revolutionary Traveller, with author John S. Saul

WHEN: Thursday February 11, 7:00pm WHERE: Type Books, 883 Queen St. West, Toronto. DETAILS: Book Launch: John S. Saul draws on a series of his own occasional articles written over a span of forty years which, together with a linking narrative, serve to trace not only his own career as an anti-apartheid and liberation support movement activist in both Canada and southern Africa but also help recount the history of the various struggles in both venues in which he has been directly involved

Donald W. Light on Pharma-Industry: Meds for Health or Proﬁt?

WHEN: Feb. 12, 12pm - 1:30pm WHERE: 320 Bethune College, York University, Keele campus CONTACT: Graduate Research Association for Students in Public Health: http://www.yorku.ca/grasp DETAILS: Donald W. Light will share his insights into the pharmaceutical industry. Please join us for this fascinating talk, titled “Prescription Drugs as a Leading Cause of Death: The Risk Proliferation Syndrome”. Lunch/refreshments will be served.

Intersectionalities: Asian Canadian and Feminist/ Gender Studies

WHEN: Feb. 12, 11am - 1pm WHERE: OISE Centre for Women’s Studies in Education Room 2-227, 252 Bloor St. W. CONTACT: http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/oise/ DETAILS: This will be an open and informal dialogue on the relations between the emerging ﬁeld of Asian Canadian Studies and Feminist Studies. Discussions will be facilitated by Dr. Sedef Arat-Koç, Dr. Enakshi Dua, Dr. Bonnie McElhinny, and Dr. Roxana Ng.

Fundraising Film Screening: Under Rich Earth

WHEN: Feb. 13, 6:30pm - 9:00pm WHERE: Bloor Cinema, 506 Bloor St. W. CONTACT: http://www.yorku.ca/cerlac/events09-10.htm COST: $10 DETAILS: Under Rich Earth was a labour of love produced on a shoestring budget over two years. Proceeds from this event will help to pay for the making of the film and to support two Ecuadorian community organizations that are featured in the film: Radio Intag, a community radio station, and Café Rio Intag, a fair trade coffee co-op located in the Intag valley.

Toronto Nepali Film Festival

WHEN: Feb. 13, 12:00pm - 10:15pm WHERE: Innis Town Hall, University of Toronto, 2 Sussex Ave. CONTACT: tnff_mail@tnff.ca, (416) 878-1526, www.tnff.ca COST: $15 - $30 DETAILS: TNFF is hosting its inaugural Film Festival showcasing films/ documentaries that pertain to Nepal. The festival will include four screening sessions, a panel discussion, a reception for the guests, and a musical concert.

African Canadian Literary Workshops

WHEN: Feb. 13, 12:00pm - 6:30pm WHERE: York Woods Library Theatre, 1785 Finch W. CONTACT: 416-395-5980 DETAILS: Workshops on poetry and spoken word plus a panel

discussion and performances by Lola & Quentin Vercetty.

Action Grrrlz Meeting

media, convergence and days of action leading up to and during the G8/20 Summits in Ontario (June 25-27,2010)

WHEN: Feb. 13, 2:00pm - 4:30pm WHERE: 519 Church St. CONTACT: http://www.actiongrrrlz.org DETAILS: Action Grrrlz meet on the second Saturday of every month. Grrrlz and trans folks of all ages get together to chat and work on whatever projects are always on your “To Do” list (knitting, zine-making, collage, life-planning, embroidery, thank-you cards, mending, comics--whatever you like!). It’s super sassy grrrl anarchy. With juice and cookies. Come when you can, stay as long as you want!

Professor Mark Winﬁeld on Electricity Conservation in Ontario

Documentary: Under Rich Earth

Child Soldier: Banned in Canada? Orwellian Language and our Human Rights Obligations

WHEN: Saturday February 13, 6:30pm. WHERE: The Bloor Cinema, 506 Bloor Street West, Toronto. COST: $10 DETAILS: Rye Cinema presents: Director’s Cut! Guest Speakers! Director Q+A! DVD Launch! Fundraising! In a remote mountain valley in Ecuador, coffee and sugarcane farmers face the dismal prospect of being forced off their land to make way for a mining project. Unprotected by the police and ignored by their government, they prepare to face down the ‘invaders’ on their own. Their resistance leads to a remarkable and dangerous stand off between farmers and a band of mysterious armed men high in the cloud forest. In a world dominated by news of massacres and terrorism, Under Rich Earth is a surprising and poignant tale of hope and determination.

Show the Love Valentine’s Concert for Haiti

WHEN: Feb. 14, 2:00pm WHERE: Royal York Rd United Church, 851 Royal York Rd. CONTACT: 416-231-9401 COST: Suggested donation $20 DETAILS: Performances by Paul Schillaci, Hank Furman, Henry Heilig, David Johannesson, Brenda Webb and others. Donations go to the Red Cross.

5th Annual Rally for Our Missing Sisters

WHEN: Sunday, February 14, 2009 @ 12 pm WHERE: Rally at Police HQ, 40 College St. at Bay. Gathering with food immediately to follow at U of T’s Centre for Women and Trans People (563 Spadina Ave) DETAILS: Over 500 Indigenous women have been murdered or gone missing – most over the last 30 years – on Turtle Island. We come together in defense of our lives and to demonstrate against the complicity of the state in the ongoing genocide of Indigenous women and the impunity of state institutions and actors (police, RCMP, coroners’ oﬃces and the courts) that prevents justice for all Indigenous Peoples.

Toronto Bisexual Network (TBN) Brunch

WHEN: Feb. 23, 12:30pm - 2pm. WHERE: 140 Health, Nursing & Environmental Studies Building, York University, Keele campus CONTACT: http://www.yorku.ca/fes DETAILS: Professor Mark Winﬁeld of York’s Faculty of Environmental Studies will examine the regulatory and policy framework governing the electricity conservation and demand management activities of local electricity utilities in Ontario.

WHEN: Feb. 26, 7pm. WHERE: Toronto Reference Library, Atrium 789 Yonge St. CONTACT: http://www.pencanada.ca/ COST: $10 DETAILS: A panel discussion with Afua Cooper, scholar, author, and poet; Mark Kingwell, philosopher and critic; and Judy Rebick, social justice expert and activist. Moderated by Carol Oﬀ, author and broadcaster.

Winter Queer-Friendly Hip Hop Classes

WHEN: Starting Feb. 28, 3pm - 4pm and running for the next 8 weeks WHERE: International Student Centre, 33 St. George St. CONTACT: lgbtdance.club@utoronto.ca or visit http:// lgbtdance.sa.utoronto.ca COST: Students: $35, General: $70 DETAILS: Eight-week beginner hip-hop class with LGBT Dance.

MARCH Israeli Apartheid Week 2010

WHEN: March 1 - March 7 WHERE: various Locations. See http://toronto.apartheidweek. org/toronto2009 CONTACT: saia@riseup.net DETAILS: First launched in Toronto in 2005, IAW has grown to become one of the most important global events in the Palestine solidarity calendar. IAW 2010 takes place following a year of incredible successes for the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement on the global level. Lectures, ﬁlms, and actions will highlight some of these successes along with the many injustices that continue to make BDS so crucial in the battle to end Israeli Apartheid. For a complete list of York University events see http://toronto.apartheidweek.org/ node/147.

WHEN: Feb. 14, 12:00pm - 2:00pm WHERE: Bishop & Belcher, at the southeast corner of Hayden and Church Streets, one block south of Bloor CONTACT: http://www.torontobinet.org/ DETAILS: Join the Toronto Bisexual Network on the second Sunday of the month for brunch. If you’re new to bisexuality or want to meet us in a social atmosphere instead of coming to a meeting, this is the place to go. Reservations under the name “TBN.” Look for the bi ﬂags on the table (blue, purple and pink stripes).

Health and Human Rights 2010

Tallgrass Prairie: One of Canada’s Most Threatened Native Habitats

Speak your heART out!

WHEN: Feb. 17, 4:00pm WHERE: Toronto Botanical Garden, 777 Lawrence E. CONTACT: http://nanps.org COST: $12 DETAILS: Janine McLeod, our speaker is the Natural Heritage Coordinator of the Alderville Black Oak Savanna and Tallgrass Prairie. She will explore the use of prescribed burns and will illustrate the spectacular results of this aggressive and eﬀective process to restore nature back to its former glory and promise for a balanced and expanding ecological marvel.

Allies in Protecting the Environment: First Nations and the Land WHEN: Feb. 20, 7:30pm WHERE: Toronto Botanical Garden, 777 Lawrence E. CONTACT: nanps.org COST: $12 DETAILS: A talk with Paul General, the general manager of the Six Nations Eco-Centre. The Eco-Centre is a leading Aboriginal centre for ecological sustainability located in Ontario.

Third Community Mobilization Network Open Planning Meeting for G8/20 Summit

WHEN: February 21, 2010 11:00am (approx. 2 hours) WHERE: 25 Cecil Street (Steelworkers Hall) CONTACT: https://masses.tao.ca/lists/listinfo/community. mobilize DETAILS: Community based organizers and activists from across Ontario and Quebec are invited to an open planning meeting focusing on Toronto’s response to the G8/20 Summits. The CMN is organizing the community based outreach, independent

WHEN: March 5, 4:00pm - 9:00pm and March 6, 9-6 pm WHERE: J. J. R. MacLeod Auditorium, University of Toronto, 1 King’s College Circle CONTACT: info@hhrights.ca COST: Students: $15 General: $25 DETAILS: The focus of this year’s conference is on foreign aid eﬀectiveness. Our panels will explore topics in ethics, social justice, journalism, politics, business, student volunteerism, and more. WHEN: March 12 WHERE: Toronto Free Art Gallery (Bloor & Lansdowne) CONTACT: sassl@yorku.ca COST: Pay-what-you-can donations DETAILS: An event to empower, share, inspire; build awareness, celebrate strength, and raise money for Nellie’s Women Shelter.

Should Ontario end Public Funding of Catholic Schools? WHEN: March 12, 7:00pm WHERE: OISE, 252 Bloor W. CONTACT: http://ndpsocialists.ca DETAILS: NDP Socialist Caucus panel discussion with public school trustee Jan Johnstone, prof Peter Russell, and others.

The 8th Annual Female Eye Film Festival

WHEN: March 17 - March 21 WHERE: Rainbow Cinema 80 Front St. E. CONTACT: Leslie Ann: info@femaleeyefilmfestival.com, 905 264-7731, http://www.femaleeyefilmfestival.com COST: Students: $8, General: $10, Panels & Script Readings: $5 DETAILS: The Female Eye Film Festival (FeFF) is an annual international women’s film festival. The Female Eye showcases films from debut, emerging, and established women directors from around the world. The festival features documentary, shorts, experimental, animation, avant-garde, and feature films. The FeFF also and hosts script readings, The FeFF Art Exhibit, panel discussions, and workshops.

Compiled by Stefan Lazov SEND YOUR EVENTS TO: info@yufreepress.org

Rm. C449 Student Centre, 416-736-5724