The new Title Club joins 501 other student clubs registered with the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU). Students who attend one of their Executive Networking General Seminar meetings, which occur for 30 minutes on a daily basis, have the opportunity to come up with new titles to “DIY their[Read More…]
Articles by Calvin Trottier-Chi
If I die, delete my iTunes history
I feel awkward at parties. It’s not the drinking, the dancing, or the slurred attempts at small talk, all of which I am shamelessly bad at. It’s the fear that somewhere, sometime, I’ll be asked to put my music on shuffle. There is an unwarranted anxiety that comes with showcasing[Read More…]
Pipelines, blockades, and sovereignty
Much to journalists’ chagrin, progress doesn’t come in satisfying narrative arcs. It is unsteady, disjointed, unpredictable, and ongoing in a way that frustrates the limits of news coverage. The indigenous protests at Standing Rock captured the world’s attention for weeks in early 2016, but few reporters were on the scene[Read More…]
McGill Tribune Weekly News Update | Ep.1
Managing News Editor Calvin Trottier-Chi talks us through some of the most important news on campus involving the senate, fossil fuels, discrimination, and elections!
Policy and research struggle to keep up with opioid epidemic
Although once upheld as an exemplary source of pain relief, opioid painkillers have quickly come to cause a deadly health emergency across North America. While in 2016 there were 2,458 reported opioid-related deaths in Canada, 2017 saw a considerable increase to 3,987 deaths. In light of this growing crisis, the[Read More…]
Slicing into the history of McGill Pizza
Ever since humanity invented flatbread, we’ve wanted to embellish it with savoury sauces and tasty toppings. When students tire of eating overpriced wraps from La Prep, waiting in long lines at Dispatch, and digging for that elusive toonie at a samosa sale, McGill Pizza is there for them—a welcoming space[Read More…]
Ed Talks Episode 1: SSMU
Editors at the McGill Tribune talk about voter apathy, how fall reading week created single-issue voters, and both the outgoing and incoming SSMU executives.
Journalism still matters
Returning home for reading week often comes with the usual barrage of concern from my family over my choice to pursue journalism as a career. “Journalism is a dying field,” my family members say. “Anybody with a blog can be a journalist.” Yet, I could scarcely go a day without[Read More…]
SpaceX blasts through expectations
February kicked off with a blast as private aerospace company SpaceX sent its most technologically advanced rocket, the Falcon Heavy, out into space on Feb. 6. This was a momentous occasion for anyone with dreams beyond our atmosphere, as the Falcon Heavy can reportedly carry a record 64 tonnes into[Read More…]
Fast radio bursts tangle with unknown forces
Streaking across the sky with a luminosity far greater than the sun’s, fast radio bursts (FRBs) remain powerful yet mysterious phenomena. They were discovered in 2007 when curiosity inspired the astronomer Duncan Lorimer to search the farthest reaches of space, with the FRBs being powerful enough to surpass the typical[Read More…]
The art of the steal
Classic scams like Nigerian princes in need of financial assistance and unexpected cruise tickets can seem childishly blatant, but they obscure an undercurrent of more threatening and manipulative exploitations. Over the summer, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police alerted people of an increase in fraudulent calls exploiting a duty so banal[Read More…]
Eating Disorder Program cutbacks reveal pre-existing flaws in the system
At the beginning of the Fall semester, McGill University Student Services quietly closed its Eating Disorder Program (EDP). Since 2009, the EDP has provided professional healthcare, support, and group therapy for students grappling with all forms of eating disorders. September’s reforms dispersed these services across existing counselling and psychiatric departments,[Read More…]
Facebook and McGill connect over AI
Facebook announced that it would be basing its first Canadian research laboratory in Montreal at a press conference at McGill’s Faculty Club on Friday Sept. 15. The city is home to the offices of many tech companies—including Google and Ubisoft—and the city’s burgeoning tech industry has received millions in investments[Read More…]
The Tribune Tastes: Cannoli
With school starting again, the sweet taste of summer is becoming a distant memory. To wrap up August, Montreal’s annual Italian Week showed residents of Little Italy and beyond how important good, home-cooked treats can be. Because cannoli took center stage at this year’s festivities, The McGill Tribune rolled out the dough to[Read More…]
Governance 101
STUDENTS' SOCIETY OF MCGILL UNIVERSITY Who They Are The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) is the representative and governing body for all students pursuing undergraduate and professional degrees at McGill. Its base of operations is the University Centre—also known as the Shatner Building, named after a particularly famous graduate.[Read More…]
Montreal’s Italian Week recognizes cannoli’s place in Italian culture
From Aug. 4 to 13, Montreal’s Little Italy bustled with a variety of Italian cultural activities as the city celebrated the annual Italian Week. Along Saint-Laurent Boulevard, stretching from Rue Saint Zotique to Rue Jean-Talon East, the streets were dotted with stands from local eateries, many of which were giving[Read More…]
Advice to our younger selves: What we wish we had known
Regardless of how far you’ve travelled, coming to McGill is a huge adventure to embark on. Your first year is chance to reinvent yourself and push your boundaries. Try to look at each experience as an opportunity to learn more about yourself–the more experiences you have, the more you’ll grow.
Anuradha Mallik resigns as SSMU Vice-President Operations and Sustainability
On August 15, Anuradha Mallik resigned from her position as Vice-President (VP) Operations and Sustainability of the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU). Mallik declined to provide the specific details of the reasoning behind her resignation, but emphasized that stepping down was a mutual agreement with the rest of the[Read More…]
Sadie’s permanently closes
On April 13, the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) sent an email informing its students that Sadie’s, a student-run cafe located in the SSMU building, would permanently close on May 5. The cafe–formerly known as simply the Student Run Cafeteria or SRC–had continuously faced deficits since it opened in[Read More…]
Allegations of sexual violence lead to SSMU VP External David Aird’s resignation
On Feb. 21, the Community Disclosure Network (CDN), a group of sexual assault survivors and allies, released a statement calling for David Aird’s resignation from his position as Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Vice-President (VP) External. The CDN wrote that Aird had committed gendered and sexualized violence–based on testimonies[Read More…]
McGill’s Alegria Contemporary Ballet Company puts on multimedia performance
To think of dance purely as footwork is to underestimate the scope of the expression. To dance is to move, and to move can be interpreted in a variety of ways. On Feb. 23, the Alegria Contemporary Ballet Company, the only one of its kind at McGill, presented MOVE, a[Read More…]
Kevin O’Leary speaks at McGill
Candidate for leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada Kevin O’Leary came to McGill University on Feb. 13. He elaborated on his platform for jobs and social inclusivity in an exclusive interview with The McGill Tribune, as well as in a speech at the Shatner Building. Of foremost importance to[Read More…]
Dating in the fast lane: McGill student groups offer speed-dating Valentine’s day dating events
McGill students value efficiency. With the pressures of midterms, internship applications, and extracurricular commitments, many students lack time to date regularly. For many, the answer to time constraints is the quick swipeability of Tinder. For others, an approach that combines the ease of apps and the importance of social interaction[Read More…]
Laughing Matters: Squirrel slander put to rest
McGill has been the target of some vile chattering. As good McGillians, we must stand up for our grey friends—mostly because they can’t speak for themselves. Ladies and gentlemen, I am addressing the University of British Columbia’s (UBC) student newspaper, The Ubyssey, and one article’s boast that UBC’s squirrels are[Read More…]
McGill and Concordia student groups host Kellie Leitch event
Conservative Member of Canadian Parliament Kellie Leitch held a meet and greet organized by student political groups from Concordia University, Marianopolis College, John Abbott College, and McGill University at the downtown restaurant Chez Alexandre on Jan. 12. About a dozen McGill students stood outside the restaurant with signs, protesting the[Read More…]
$20 million donated to the Montreal Neurological Institute
On Dec. 16, the Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI) received a donation of $20 million from Larry Tanenbaum, the chairman of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment. The MNI is the largest specialized neuroscience research centre in Canada and, as part of McGill’s Faculty of Medicine, offers students a variety of research[Read More…]
McGill Senate releases report on systemic discrimination
The McGill Senate Ad Hoc Working Group on Systemic Discrimination released a report on Nov. 16 describing discriminatory practices towards female, minority, and indigenous faculty members. After surveying 374 tenure-track and tenured professors, the working group found evidence of systemic discrimination at McGill. Issues raised include frustration towards the McGill[Read More…]
Smol puppers and fluffy doggos: A history of dogspotting
Taking pictures of dogs in public has been nothing but a casual activity for years; however, when humanity’s fascination with our canine companions merged with the reach of social media, the Facebook group Dogspotting was born. Dogspotting is the act of ‘spotting’ dogs in public, taking a picture, and posting[Read More…]
Construction affects professors and businesses
Ongoing construction on McTavish and Sherbrooke Streets has been causing trouble for students and professors alike. McGill staff and students have come up with strategies to cope with the obstructions, such as Anthropology Sessional Lecturer Karen McAllister, who created a map when students had difficulty locating her office. “Getting to[Read More…]
Edward Snowden speaks on privacy and surveillance at McGill
Lecture delay and AMUSE picket A line of students stretched around the Leacock Building to the Milton Gates as Edward Snowden, former contractor for the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA), held an exclusive video conference hosted by Media@McGill on the evening of Nov. 3. Snowden was streaming via Google Hangouts[Read More…]
New trends in United Nations Peacekeeping: Canadian and Global Perspectives Conference at McGill
On Oct. 21, the Centre for International Peace and Security Studies (CIPSS), a joint academic body of McGill and the Université de Montreal, hosted a conference titled, “New trends in United Nations Peacekeeping: Canadian and Global Perspectives” to discuss the future of Canadian peacekeeping. The talks primarily focused on how[Read More…]
The Tribune Explains: McGill Senate
What is the McGill Senate? The McGill Senate was established in 1935 as an elected body intended to serve as a link between the McGill community and the Board of Governors (BoG). The BoG is partially comprised of elected Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) and Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS)[Read More…]
Homa Hoodfar released from Iranian prison
After being held captive for 112 days, retired Concordia University Professor Homa Hoodfar was released from an Iranian prison on Sept. 26. Hoodfar, a Canadian-Iranian dual citizen, is a professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology with an interest in women’s roles in Muslim societies. She travelled to Iran[Read More…]
SSMU copes with reality of failed base fee increase
The current Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) executives have been forced to adjust operations to fit the new budget constraints caused by a failed Winter 2016 referendum motion. The motion proposed a $5.50 increase to the SSMU base fee but failed by 0.3 per cent. The current SSMU executives[Read More…]
McGill Senate reacts to BoG decision to not divest
Following the McGill University Board of Governors’ (BoG) vote against adopting Divest McGill’s proposed actions, the Mar. 23 Senate meeting had members discussing transparency in McGill’s finances and actions. Maintaining ethical research behaviour was another topic of deliberation, as well as ensuring that no student final evaluations weighted higher than[Read More…]
McGill conference discusses Truth and Reconciliation
As a large part of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) spent six years documenting the suffering caused by the residential school experience. The TRC published its final report in 2015, but consideration of the ongoing legacy of reconciliation continued with the McGill organized conference[Read More…]
McGill Against Austerity hosts panel, “Protesting, Police, and Knowing Your Rights”
McGill Against Austerity continued its series of workshops on Feb. 17 with a presentation entitled “Protesting, Police, and Knowing Your Rights,” given by civil lawyer Max Silverman. A former McGill student, Silverman currently practices with law firm Avocat Montreal and teaches at Concordia University. He talked about the history of[Read More…]
Proposing the future of the Royal Victoria Hospital site
This past week, the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) passed a motion supporting the use of the Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH) site for the establishment of an Indigenous Leadership Academy. Of McGill’s undergraduate population of approximately 23,000 students, 170 identify as indigenous, with even fewer indigenous faculty and staff[Read More…]
Omar El-Sharawy elected SSMU VP Internal
Omar El-Sharawy was elected Vice-President (VP) Internal of the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) with 4807 points earlier today The runner-up, Kahli Douglas, got 4445 points. The turnout for the election was 8.7 per cent. SSMU President Kareem Ibrahim explained that since the 2014-2015 school year, SSMU has been[Read More…]
Anti-protest law ruled unconstitutional
Article 500.1 of Quebec’s Highway Safety Code, previously used to disperse and ticket protesters, has been repealed. Quebec Superior Justice Guy Cournoyer issued a ruling on Nov. 12, declaring the article unconstitutional. Quebec will have six months to amend the code. The article in question The Highway Safety[Read More…]
SNAX may resume sandwich sales pending MoA negotiations with McGill
After a six month ban, students may once again be able purchase sandwiches from SNAX. Ongoing Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) negotiations between the McGill administration and the Arts Undergraduate Society (AUS) concerning the future of the AUS student-run business, appear to be coming to a conclusion. These negotiations follow the[Read More…]
SSMU Council discusses resignations of VP Internal, General Manager
The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Council met on Oct. 1 to discuss motions regarding improvments to student life, the resignation of vice-president (VP) Internal Affairs Lola Baraldi, and a SSMU climate change policy. Resignations of executive positions The loss of general manager Jennifer Varkonyi in August is[Read More…]
AUS Council discusses errors in financing, $20,000 in additional audit costs
The Arts Undergraduate Society (AUS) held its first Council meeting of the semester Wednesday, addressing errors in its financial record, its Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with McGill, and the election of a new Arts Representative to the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU). Mirza Ali Shakir, vice-president (VP) finance, presented[Read More…]