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Arts & Entertainment

POP RHETORIC: An in-credible end

by Ryan Taylor on

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The music at the Winter Olympics was terrible. It was painfully obvious that the majority of televised performances were lip-synched, and that god-awful theme song “I Believe” was so sappy I could’ve poured it on my pancakes. But without a doubt the most disappointing and flat-out embarassing moment of these Olympics for fans of Canadian music was the closing ceremonies.

Let me jog your memory, given that the ceremony was over a week ago: Neil Young started off with the heartfelt “Long May You Run.” It was great, and seemed to be indicative of things to come. Then came Nickelback. Then Avril Lavigne. Uh oh. I thought Alanis Morissette would steer things back on course only to gaze dumbfoundedly at the TV as Simple Plan and Hedley took the stage. The whole thing ended with the “only-known-in-Quebec” Marie-Mai and k-os, but I was too busy trying to pick my jaw up off the floor to pay attention. Canada may have owned the gold on the podium, but this line-up shouldn’t have made it past the qualifiers.

Was that really the best Canada had to offer? Nickelback? Congratulations, one of the most laughed-at bands is now a beacon of Canadian music. Avril? Is she even relevent anymore? All of Eastern Europe probably thinks we condone the glorified attempt at pop stars that are Hedley. For a country with a wealth of musical talent, these choices were disappointing, and that’s putting it nicely.

Now, before everyone immediately attacks me for riding my “indie” high-horse, don’t think I don’t understand why these acts were chosen. Hate on them all you will, but Nickelback is one of the biggest bands in the world and Avril Lavigne has sold plenty of records. Simple Plan and Hedley are pretty big too, at least by Canadian standards. These acts don’t sell millions of records for no reason; people like them, and in an event that’s intended for a worldwide audience it’s understandable that decisions were made based on popularity. After all, Nickelback hasn’t sold all 30 million of its records in Canada alone.

But just like student government, choosing popularity isn’t always the best call. Yes, the acts chosen have sold a lot of records, but how many over-30 fans of Simple Plan or Hedley are there? Under-25 Alanis fans? No question there are some, but in picking acts that only appeal to certain groups, you neglect a significant portion of the audience. While the entertainment strived for mass appeal, it should’ve instead focused on broad appeal. Yes, people will say that there was something for everyone: Avril for the kids, Alanis for the older crowd, and k-os for the hip-hop fans. But why did everything have to be so polarizing? There are plenty of Canadian musicians out there that transcend both generations and borders. Neil Young had the broadest appeal of the bunch and he opened the show (which is another issue entirely). Where was Rush? Great Big Sea? Broken Social Scene? Arcade Fire? Not only do these bands have far-reaching appeal, but they’re also actually respected by almost everyone. I can think of no better reason to be proud.

At the end of the day, you can’t please everyone, but oh Canada, we could’ve done so much better.

Arts & Entertainment

JUNO nomination proves Canada is Down With Webster

by Ross Treloar on

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Born out of a junior high talent show, Down With Webster has grown into a seven-man hip-hop/pop/rock group that’s been signed to a major label (Universal Motown), headlined its own tour, and just last week was nominated for a JUNO Award for Best New Group.

“We all have really high goals … We want to tour the whole world and do all sorts of other stuff we haven’t done yet,” says bass and keyboard player Tyler Armes. “We haven’t made it yet, but we’re on the right path right now.”

Down With Webster got their start through word of mouth in Toronto, where they played small venues – including the gym of their former middle school – as if they were big venues: banners, red plastic cups, and even a gong bearing their DWW logo have been a part of their show since the early days. Now they sell out 1,000-person venues in Toronto. Having just completed the western portion of their first headlining tour, the band has been branching out to cities they’ve never played before. Though they’ve grown accustomed to big stages – opening for the likes of The Roots, Snoop Dogg, and, most recently, Timbaland – they don’t have any qualms about playing smaller venues again.

“It was so cool to go back to venues where there’s 150, 300, 450 kids and have it be a tiny little room with a small stage again,” says Armes.

Maybe the biggest difference is that they’re playing to their own audience, instead of the headlining act’s fans.

“When you’re opening for someone else you have to kind of accept the fact that those people aren’t there to see you,” says Armes. “When we’re headlining we’re used to kids running up on stage and going crazy and we have their attention from the second we get out there.”

So what does Webster sound like? They’ve got horns like a marching band, guitar solos like the late eighties, and party-heavy rap lyrics between catchy pop choruses. Unlike the majority of hip-hop, you won’t hear a drum machine (unless you count an often-shirtless, afro-sporting maniac behind the kit named Andrew “Marty” Martino). While some songs lean towards the energetic – “Time To Win” and “Parade Music” – others have a more laid back pop feel – “Rich Girl$” and “Whoa Is Me.” Their latest album, Time To Win Vol. 1, maintains a good balance, and a malleable one at that; the band has played for very different crowds, including the Vans Warped Tour last year.

“One of the coolest things that we’ve found since we started touring four or five years ago is that because our music is such a mash-up of different styles, it’s really cool and easy for us to cross over and play for different kinds of music fans,” says Armes. “I think generally speaking people can take away some element of what we’re doing and enjoy it.”

The band has recently returned from filming a special in Cancun for Much Music. Like the 30-second promo video in which the band members are supposedly waking up from their respective blackouts on the beach, Armes only hinted at what went on while they were in Mexico.

“We did the kind of stuff it might take you years to do and did it all in a week,” says Armes.

The Cancun special will air on March 18, in conjunction with the debut of the music video for their new single “Your Man,” a nod to sixties and seventies dating game shows. However, Webster tend to stay in touch with their fans online as well. They’re known for their YouTube videos, including a series of videos of rapper Cam Hunter freestyling (notably at an underwhelmed Waffle House in Atlanta), or Martino tearing through hotels, parks, and city streets banging on whatever he can with drumsticks. The latter perhaps as an homage to drumming legend Buddy Rich, who pulled the same stunt on The Muppet Show in the eighties and remarked “When I play a theatre, I play the theatre!” For Armes, making this kind of effort to connect with fans is crucial.

“You want to let your fans more or less into your life and let them see who you are as people,” says Armes. “It’s not just about seeing your concerts and listening to your CD in your car.”

Known for surprises, like bringing a full drum line on stage for their album release show, what does Webster have in store for Montreal?

“We’re checking out the regulations to see if we can skydive and land in the area right now. [If not] we’ll have to go with the B plan,” jokes Armes. If the B plan is business as usual for a Down With Webster show, you won’t be disappointed at the lack of daredevilry.

Down With Webster plays at the Just for Laughs Theatre on Friday, March 12.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

CD REVIEWS: Rogue Wave: Permalight

by Alex Hamilton on

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Rogue Wave’s fourth album represents something of a comeback. With the death of bassist Evan Farrell in 2007 and frontman Zach Rogue recovering from a recent partially paralyzing neck injury, the band’s efforts on Permalight really show them getting through the storm and back to business. On the band’s blog, Rogue promised “a more body-moving album.” Although Permalight is by no means electro, it does have a more upbeat sound to it – the influences are less Death Cab For Cutie and more The Postal Service. At first, the band’s new approach is fresh and dynamic, but by the end, their tact begins to get tedious.

Permalight starts off with a couple of great tracks, including “Solitary Gun,” an acoustic guitar number in the grain of previous Rogue Wave hits, and “Good Morning (The Future),” the album’s first synth-heavy single. The songs then begin to get repetitive, picking up briefly with “Permalight” and “Right With You” before trailing off again. A strong start and weak finish is typical of most Rogue Wave releases – after a once-over listen, most people will want to skip the majority of the tracks and just listen to their favourites. The album also draws some derision for being too reminiscent of synth-pop sensation Owl City, even though Rogue Wave has been making music for much longer. Still, Permalight can be enjoyable, and there’s a lot to be said for getting back on the horse after a rough fall.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

CD REVIEWS: Massive Attack: Heligoland

by Alex Hamilton on

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After a seven-year hiatus, Massive Attack’s highly anticipated new release Heligoland is a letdown, to say the least. With collaborations from a variety of musicians such as Tunde Adebimpe of TV on the Radio, Guy Garvey of Elbow, and regular Massive Attack contributors Horace Andy and Robert del Naja, fans were looking forward to something special. For those expecting a masterpiece from these long-absent trip-hoppers, however, this will fall far short of expectations.

The rumored creative presence of famed Brit-popper Damon Albarn (of Blur and Gorillaz) on this new album was cause to hope for some exciting results. However, his track “Flat of the Blade” is barely listenable, and for the most part his contributions fail to stand out from the rest of the album, which is not saying much. The songs on Heligoland are practically dirges, flat and depressing, sometimes starting out with promise but inevitably slumping. The strongest tracks on the album, “Girl I Love You” and “Paradise Circus,” are enjoyable but leave something to be desired.

This becomes the general feeling of the album. Whether from lack of conviction or inspiration, Massive Attack fails to capture their audience’s interest. Their effort on Heligoland ends up sounding like just another band trying to copy Radiohead. For all but the most dedicated fans, this fifth album will be a sure sign that Massive Attack is beginning to dry up creatively.

Student Life

Demystifying depanneur wine

by Jaime Shedletsky on

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When it’s 10:59 p.m. on a Friday night, the SAQ is long closed, the pre-drink just started, and that bottle of vodka you thought was in the freezer is actually in the recycling bin empty, depanneur wine is always there to save you from what otherwise would have been a dry night. While the best you can hope for with a $10 bottle from the corner store is usually a delayed gag reflex, there are still a few ways to minimize the damage.

Unpalatable dep wine is largely the result of Quebec regulations that stipulate that deps can only sell non-vintage wines bottled in Quebec that don’t state the variety of grapes used to make them. Without these regulations, any producer could sell wine, effectively severing the SAQ’s monopoly.

For white wine, a safe bet is Wallaroo, an Australian wine charmingly named after the native Australian wallaby and kangaroo. It has fine lemon and grapefruit aromas, with a crisp acidic taste, and should definitely be served chilled (the aftertaste resulting from warm wine is a bit rough on the throat). The white Yellowtail (also Australian) is similar, also citrusy, but with mild honeydew flavors complemented by a gentle oak scent. The palate is a bit softer and fresher, with a more balanced acidity.

I have yet to find a red wine I like for less than $15 – but if you must, Chapman House Bin 35 is a popular selection. It reeks of alcohol but the taste is surprisingly fruity and sweet, similar to Port. It’s the perfect accent to a night on the couch with some friends, or a BYOB dinner. Plaza Del Rocco, a red Argentinean wine, has berry, plum, and spice flavors and aromas that create a relatively soft, smooth taste that is easy to drink.

Beware of the boxed wine trend, which is prominent at the more avant-garde, posh deps (like Greene’s Superette at the corner of Durocher and Milton). While the boxed wine movement is still somewhat taboo here in Canada, it is institutionalized elsewhere – such as in Australia, where you can buy a four-litre box of wine for $12 AUD. I would advise against boxed and any other non-bottled forms of wine unless you think peculiar ingredients like fish eggs enhance the taste of the already questionable dep wine. Á votre santé!

Student Life

Get absolutely anything delivered

by Madeleine Cummings on

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Now that subzero temperatures and snowstorms have returned to Montreal, you may be feeling a little reluctant to leave your room. The following services will deliver right to your doorstep, whether you’re sick, hungover, or just a typical lazy student.

Scenario: It’s 3 a.m., and you want fettuccini alfredo

Company: Chef On Call Call: (514) 844-2044

Chef on Call is a gourmet delivery service started by students at McGill and Concordia. Located on Sherbrooke near Avenue du Parc, they deliver primarily to students living in the McGill ghetto. With a new and improved winter menu and fairly reasonable prices, Chef On Call will satisfy even your most sophisticated late-night cravings. Choose from soups, salads, pastas, gourmet poutines, burgers, wraps, and more. Best of all, they’re open Thursday through Saturday from 5 p.m. to 4 a.m. – ideal munching hours.

Scenario: It’s Sunday, and you haven’t done laundry in three weeks.

Company: Nettoyeurs ExpressCall: (514) 937-7377

Nettoyeurs Express offers a Fluff N’ Fold service. This means they will wash, dry, and fold all of your laundry for a rate of $1.28 per pound. Yes, you could do the job yourself, but when was the last time your clothes were properly folded? Regular service takes between 48 and 72 hours, but there are faster, pricier options available. They offer free delivery and a 15 per cent student discount before taxes.

Scenario: It’s dinnertime, and you want Indian, Thai, Italian, or Chinese.

Company: À La Carte ExpressCall: (514) 933-7000

À La Carte Express is not your normal restaurant take-out. With over 80 restaurant menus at your disposal, you can easily order a variety of food from more than one Montreal restaurant at a time. You can even place a group order. The only downside? Delivery time is not guaranteed, so your order might take longer than the typical 45 minutes to arrive. Visit http://alce.dtsc.net/ to browse menus or to order online.

Scenario: It’s snowing and icy, and you have absolutely no groceries to speak of.

Company: IGA

Visit: http://magasin.iga.net/

IGA Online Grocery lets you purchase groceries online. Orders include everything available on the store’s physical shelf space, and the staff are usually good about calling to double-check any substitutions. There is a minimum order of $35, and be prepared to pay $10 fee for processing and delivery. Check your schedule before ordering, as a precise delivery time is not given.

Student Life

In Brooklyn, fresh Montreal bagels now for sale by the dozen

by Theo Meyer on

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Minutes after they finished watching the Canadian Olympic hockey team defeat the Slovakians last Friday, Joel Tietolman and Jon Leitner walked into St.-Viateur Bagel, paid for the 115 dozen bagels they had pre-ordered, and began loading them in Tietolman’s Volkswagen Passat.

The bagels – 90 dozen sesame, 15 dozen poppy seed, and a few dozen of assorted other varieties – were destined for Mile End Deli, a new restaurant serving Montreal-style Jewish deli food in the Boerum Hill neighbourhood of Brooklyn.

When Noah Bermanoff, an ex-Montrealer living in New York, opened Mile End two months ago, he had a bit of a problem getting Montreal bagels for the cream cheese-and-lox sandwiches he was serving at the deli. At first, he had bagels shipped overnight from Montreal by FedEx, but these didn’t arrive until 10 a.m. the next day. In addition, snowstorms further delayed delivery several times during the deli’s first weeks of business.

All of that changed when Tietolman, who had helped Bermanoff set up his deli in January, proposed importing the bagels from Montreal on the weekends. Around midnight on Friday nights, Tietolman and Leitner now leave Montreal in a car packed full of bagels, driving for six hours or so before crossing the Manhattan Bridge into Brooklyn at sunrise.

“They’re still soft when we get down to New York, which is the beauty of this operation,” said Tietolman, who attended Montreal’s Herzliah High School with Leitner and Bermanoff.

The duo made their second run to New York this weekend. When asked why they chose to export bagels from St.-Viateur over those of rival Fairmont Bagel, Tietolman and Leitner exchanged knowing glances.

“It’s our favourite bagel,” Leitner said with a laugh.

“There’s a St.-Viateur in Ville St.-Laurent, where we both grew up,” Tietolman added, “and that’s where our parents would run Sunday morning to get bagels.”

Though Bermanoff still ships bagels by FedEx during the week for cream cheese-and-lox, the deliveries have enabled him to sell fresh bagels by the dozen on the weekends. And because he is saving on shipping, Bermanoff is now actually making money.

Bermanoff serves other Montreal comfort food as well, including smoked meat sandwiches and his version of the Wilensky’s Special, the pressed bologna sandwich served at the famous Montreal deli. Mile End has also become the latest New York eatery to offer poutine, which Bermanoff makes with organic potatoes, homemade gravy, and what he calls “the most phenomenal cheese curds I’ve ever tasted” from a small farm in Maine.

Bermanoff estimated that about three-quarters of Mile End’s customers are New Yorkers, with the remainder made up of Canadian expatriates. A significant number are former McGill students, said Bermanoff – who is himself a McGill alumnus – looking for a smoked meat sandwich without making the trip to Montreal.

Business has been so good during Mile End’s first couple months that Bermanoff is looking to expand his operation, particularly his smoked meat production.

“I don’t have the space or refrigeration or smoking capacity to actually stay open for dinner, because the smoked meat sells out completely in the afternoon and I’m more or less forced to close down,” Bermanoff said.

For their part, Tietolman and Leitner don’t plan on spending their weekends running bagels forever. Tietolman is a law student at the University of Ottawa and Leitner works in the family import-export business – an experience that has come in handy when filling out forms at the border. The duo plans to hire drivers to make the runs in the coming months and is considering an eventual expansion: multiple runs per week, maybe, or deliveries to locations in Manhattan as well.

For Bermanoff, who dropped out of law school and took out loans to open Mile End, getting back to his Montreal roots is the best part of running his deli.

“It’s definitely a highlight of my day when someone comes in and we get to talk about Montreal and the good times we had at McGill,” Bermanoff said.

News

Tuition comments spark protest

by Lauren Hudak on

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In response to the Quebec Minister of Education Michelle Courchesne’s recent hint that tuition may increase in Quebec, a small group of McGill students gathered in protest at the Roddick Gates on February 18. Some carried signs reading, “Courchesne I can’t afford your lies” while others passed out flyers explaining that since the 2007 deregulation of tuition fees for Quebec and out-of-province students, tuition has increased by approximately $100 per year. Courchesne’s recent statements seemed to confirm these students’ fears that even larger tuition hikes are imminent in the near future.

In a February 11 La Presse article, Courchesne wrote, “I think that there is a consensus that is being established in Quebec. When I speak of consensus, I exclude students. But one sees that, more and more, the importance of increasing tuition fees is apparent.”

Courchesne, however, did not definitively announce that there would be tuition increases, only that “one will see what [Quebec Minister of Finance Raymond] Bachand will announce in his budget,” which will be made public in March.

According to Myriam Zaidi, Arts representative to the Students’ Society, “There was good momentum [behind the protest] because of the General Assembly that happened the week before where students voted against the self-funded tuition model and the increase of ancillary fees.”

“Does a consensus without the students’ advice really mean anything, in terms of consensus?” Arts and Science student John-Eric Hansson stated in response to Courchesne’s statements. “Even if the tuition increases didn’t affect me, I would still be here. I am in solidarity with all other students and that means that I also want to fight their tuition increases.”

McGill was one of many Quebec universities and CEGEPs to participate in the protest on the 18th against the potential tuition increases. SSMU Vice-President External Sebastian Ronderos-Morgan called the event a “symbolic action in solidarity.”

“The event was intended to encourage more awareness amongst the student body as to this announcement, primarily because there was very little coverage in the English papers,” he said.

Talks of tuition increases and a lack of student input has been a growing trend in Quebec. In particular, Ronderos-Morgan pointed to a “pre-advisory budget” Quebec economic forum last January.

“The business community and various other important people were invited by the government to discuss the budget, but nobody from the union sector or the student sector was invited. In fact, they were not even allowed inside,” he said. Because of these events, Ronderos-Morgan labeled Courchesne “out of touch with students.”

Regardless of tuition increases in the short-term, the protest helped to shed light on the broader issue of financing education in Quebec. Many students fear that the recent self-funded tuition model of McGill’s Master of Business Administration program sets a negative precedent for other Quebec universities. Referencing the higher tuition fees in both public and private American universities, JoÃl Pedneault, Arts representative to SSMU, explained, “People do not want to see American inequalities in Quebec.”

“A study commissioned by SSMU in 2007 proved that as tuition fees increase, the level of government contribution to university decreases, which is to say that [tuition increases] don’t necessarily, in the long run, improve the funding of the university,” added Ronderos-Morgan.

Approximately 52 per cent of McGill’s budget is subsidized by the government whereas less than 20 per cent comes from student tuition fees.

“At what point would it actually become more profitable for universities to have tuition hikes at the point where they would be earning more from tuition than from government subsidies, which would essentially be a private model?” asked Ronderos-Morgan.

“At any rate, I hope that we can strike a balance in Quebec between accessible education and not having an elite system,” Pedneault said. “Education should be a leveling factor in society, one that does not entrench inequalities and create a hyper-educated elite. I would hope that universities, like CEGEPs are supposed to create a cohesion within society,”

Ronderos-Morgan added that there will be “more plans of attack” over the course of March with regards to the allegations of tuition increases.

Science & Technology

Grants fund phthalate research

by Anne Haldane on

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Researchers at McGill and affiliated institutions have received $5 million to study the effects of common synthetic substances on reproductive health.

Awarded by the Canadian Institute for Health Research (CIHR), the five-year grants will fund two multidisciplinary teams of researchers from McGill University, the Research Institute of McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), and several other universities in Quebec and Ontario.

Dr. Cindy Goodyer, of the RI-MUHC, and Dr. Barbara Hales, a professor of pharmacology and therapeutics at McGill, are set to lead one of the teams. They will study the physiological effects of brominated flame retardants (BFRs), which exist in many household products and accumulate in dust.

Goodyer has previously found that BFRs can become concentrated in human fetal tissues, but the role of BFRs in reproductive development remains unclear. The team will investigate how chronic BFR exposure affects humans, and will use analogous animal experiments to manipulate levels of BFR exposure at various stages of development.

“We are especially interested in the development of baby boys after in utero exposures,” Hales said. “In adults, we want to see what happens to male and female fertility.”

Another team, led by Dr. Bernard Robaire of the RI-MUHC, plans to look at the impact of phthalates on male fertility. Phthalates, which are found in most plastics, have been suggested as potential environmental pollutants that may contribute to reduced sperm count.

In addition to using tissue cultures to study biochemical effects of phthalates, the team will run correlational studies of phthalate exposure, human sperm count, and testosterone levels. As a second part of the project, chemical engineers will synthesize and test new plasticizers to create benign alternatives to phthalates.

A group of ethicists are collaborating in both grants and will look at the social and legal aspects of the teams’ findings.

“Because phthalates are so widely used,” said Dr. Peter Chan, another RI-MUHC researcher, “if we do find any kind of effect we can pass information on that will be useful for policymakers.”

News

Funding cuts may shut First Nations University’s doors for good

by Sean Wood on

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The First Nations University of Canada, North America’s only fully accredited Aboriginal university, has had a rough year.

The school’s future is up in the air after losing over $12 million dollars in provincial and federal funding cuts in late January and early February. The cuts were in response to a long, complicated series of administrative problems.

The university – which was founded in 1976 as the Saskatchewan Federated Indian College and has three campuses, all in Saskatchewan – has been in full crisis mode since Saskatchewan Advanced Education Minister Rob Norris’s February 3 announcement that the province would stop funding the school in September. Students have held multiple rallies to try and save the institution, and faculty members have started a “Fund First Nations University Now!” blog.

Norris’s announcement stated that the province had “lost confidence in the governance and management of the school.” Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC), which withdrew its $7.3 million annual support a few days later, cited similar reasons.

“For some time now, [we have] worked with the First Nations University of Canada to address long-standing and systemic government and management issues,” said Margot Geduld, an INAC spokesperson.

In the short term, the two cuts were direct responses to allegations of corruption by former chief financial officer Murray Westerlund. In a lawsuit filed on December 17, Westerlund claimed that he was fired in early December because he had submitted documents to an auditor that revealed questionable spending by the university’s administration. The documents allegedly revealed that top administrators had been taking big payouts for vacation leave and had filed extravagant expenses for business trips.

But these allegations are only the latest episode in the school’s troubled history. The biggest issue has involved what many claim to be an overtly political Board of Governors that has repeatedly prioritized its own political interests over the university’s academic well-being. The Board has several members appointed by the tribal leaders of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN), the governing body of all First Nations in the province.

Aboriginal education expert and 32-year FNUC faculty member Blair Stonechild criticized the way that chiefs have stubbornly held the Board seats.

“There was a governance model here that was based on this concept of ‘Indian control of Indian education,'” he said, “but [their] interpretation of that was that it meant that chiefs were entitled to sit on the board, and they basically didn’t want to have it any other way, and they couldn’t understand any rationale for not having it that way.”

The school’s problems began in February 2005 with controversial actions by then-FSIN Vice-Chief and FNUC Board Chairman Morley Watson. Watson suspended and replaced senior university managers and ordered an audit of the school’s finances without the approval of the Board. After an FSIN Task Force’s recommended remedies were ignored, the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) conducted its own investigation. Concluding that the Board was violating the university’s independence, the AUCC put FNUC on probation in April 2007. Although AUCC released the school from probation the following year, Stonechild filed an academic freedom suit that led the Canadian Association of University Teachers to censure it in 2008.

“The faculty believed that there had been political interference, that there had been unwarranted intrusion into the affairs of the institution,” said Stonechild, who filed the suit.

The school appeared as though it might fold after the funding cuts, and it is far from safe. However, Arizona lawyer Manley Begay released an important report last week on the school’s government, and his recommendations for a depoliticized Board will be debated at the FSIN legislative assembly from March 8 to 9. And according to a February 17 report in the Regina Leader-Post, a working group will build a proposal in the upcoming weeks that would tie FNUC closer to the University of Regina.

Geduld said that the federal government will remain in “listening mode” to negotiations between the province and the schools, but that, for now, INAC remains committed to its withdrawal. Indian and Northern Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl echoed these sentiments in a Leader-Post editorial last Tuesday.

“While I continue to remain an active participant in these discussions, I want to be clear that the Canadian government will no longer directly fund First Nations University of Canada,” Strahl wrote.

Both the province and the government have repeatedly voiced their concern for FNUC students.

“Our priority at this moment is the students of the First Nations University of Canada,” Geldud said, “We’re working with our partners to provide students with the support needed to successfully complete their academic year.”

FNUC’s Students’ Association has organized a rally and spoken before the FSIN Assembly, but declined to comment in any detail on the crisis.

“We’re going to let the politics work themselves out,” said Vice President Cadmus Delorme.

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