Editor’s note: The McGill Tribune compiled a list of the top-10 most read Opinion articles of the 2017-18 year, reflecting, among other things, a year of controversial Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) action, growing discussion around the pervasiveness of sexual assault on university campuses and beyond, and continued criticism of[Read More…]
Articles by Alexandra Harvey
AVEQ confirms plan to reimburse SSMU for controversial Congress costs
Following accusations of unauthorized purchases using company credit cards, Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Vice-President (VP) External Connor Spencer and VP University Affairs Isabelle Oke explained that SSMU has conducted similar transactions in past years. They also noted that SSMU Legislative Council was notified of the purchases far in[Read More…]
McGill report disputes allegations of anti-Semitism at Fall GA
McGill released a report on Feb. 6 summarizing its investigation into allegations of anti-Semitism at the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Fall General Assembly (GA). The report, written by former ombudsperson and professor Spencer Boudreau following his research and stakeholder interviews, concluded that the failure to ratify Noah Lew,[Read More…]
Climate barbies and superheroes
The tension was palpable at a Nov. 3 press conference in Vancouver when Environment Minister Catherine McKenna stood up to a reporter from Rebel Media, asking that the organization refrain from calling her a “Climate Barbie.” The initial comment resulted in a ferocious back-and-forth exchange in which the Rebel reporter, Christopher[Read More…]
Hillary Clinton tells Montrealers “What Happened” in 2016
A cheering crowd welcomed an injured Hillary Clinton to the stage at the Palais des congrès de Montréal on Oct. 23. She opened by jokingly describing her doctor’s orders to heal her recently fractured foot. “The doctor said rest, ice, compress, and elevate,” Clinton said. “So I said, ‘Yes, and[Read More…]
University students are anything but “fragile flowers”
In her Sept. 19 column for the Globe and Mail, Margaret Wente compared today’s university students to “fragile flowers,” arguing that increasing concern for mental health on campuses is conditioning young adults to be weak, not resilient. Wente needs to learn a thing or two about resilience. Wente’s staunch disapproval[Read More…]
‘Uncle’ Joe Biden meme tickles America’s funny bone
As Democrats mourn their candidate’s surprising loss in the recent presidential election, meme-viewers turn to one Ray-Ban sporting, ice cream loving, deified figure for reassurance and solace in this hard time: Vice-President Joe Biden’s meme alter-ego, ‘Uncle’ Joe. As Uncle Joe wistfully looks out onto the South Lawn, wondering if[Read More…]
When hate trumps hope
On the morning of Nov. 8, I awoke with an overwhelming sense of pride and excitement over the possibility—in my head, it was almost a certainty—of a woman in the White House. After 44 male presidents, an incredibly qualified woman was about to claim the 45th spot and change the[Read More…]
A deadly high: Universities must take measures to educate and protect against fentanyl overdoses
Amelia and Hardy Leighton were, by all appearances, a young, happy, stable married couple from North Vancouver. They decided to celebrate the purchase of their first home—fit with a yard for their two-year-old son—by getting a little high. On July 20, they were found dead in their home. The cause[Read More…]
The cost of being a coffee-drinking woman
What if you were told that you had to pay more for your morning coffee, just because of your gender? Toronto coffee shop Tokyo Smoke got a rise out of its customers for doing just this. One woman was told she’d have to pay a whopping $5.00 for her small[Read More…]
What we can learn from Homa: Concordia professor’s release from Iranian prison underscores importance of her work
The international community cheered today when Iran finally released acclaimed academic and former Concordia University professor, Dr. Homa Hoodfar. The Iranian-Canadian anthropologist was detained in Evin Prison in Tehran for over one hundred days without access to her family or lawyer. The details of Hoodfar’s charges were ambiguous, though reports in[Read More…]
Ontario must strengthen education systems to equalize opportunity
The Ontario government is launching a new initiative to make higher education accessible and affordable for all students. In its budget, the provincial government unveiled the Ontario Student Grant—a project aimed at giving all Ontarians equal opportunity to obtain a university degree. Beginning in 2017, students from low-income families (households[Read More…]
Jian Ghomeshi trial an opportunity to reinvigorate conversation on sexual assault
“Well, hi there,” Jian Ghomeshi addressed his faithful Q audience with his trademark opening line at 10:00a.m. on Oct. 23, 2014. Ghomeshi and fans alike could not have known that this would be the last “hello” that they’d hear from Ghomeshi’s voice. Ghomeshi’s trial commenced yesterday—more than a year since[Read More…]
The corporate implications of marijuana legalization
On Friday, Nov. 13, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made the first step towards fulfilling one of his most discussed campaign promises: Legalizing marijuana. In a letter to the Minister of Justice Jody Wilson-Raybould, Trudeau asked her to begin looking into a “process that will lead to the legalization and regulation[Read More…]
Justin Trudeau’s gender equal cabinet quota is not “real change”
“In Canada, better is always possible,” Prime Minister-designate Justin Trudeau boldly proclaimed to a room full of beaming supporters shortly after leading the Liberals to victory on Monday, Oct. 19, at the conclusion of one of the most predictable, ferocious, and drawn-out election campaigns in the country’s history. Trudeau pledges[Read More…]