Latest News

Prof Profiles, Science & Technology

Meet your prof: Loydie Jerome-Majewska

by Amy Gelfand on

More in Prof Profiles:

From uncovering the genes that cause birth defects to serving as Chair of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Black Scientists Network, Professor Loydie Jerome-Majewska has been a catalyst for change across fields. She serves as a professor in McGill’s Department of Pediatrics and senior scientist at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre. Jerome-Majewska sat down with The Tribune to shine light on her work in developmental biology and her efforts to advance equity and representation in the field.

Since the start of her academic journey at Wesleyan University, Jerome-Majewska has approached science with curiosity and an open mind. As an undergraduate pursuing an honours degree in biology, she gained hands-on laboratory experience working with her advisor, Laura Grabel, a professor in the Department of Biology.

“She was this amazing researcher who had children of her own, who danced after work, I mean, she just did it all,” Jerome-Majewska said. “And I thought that was just awesome. And so, I applied for graduate school.”

Jerome-Majewska continued her studies in graduate school at Columbia University’s medical campus in New York City.

“I worked with another amazing woman, [Virginia] Papaioannou,” referencing her graduate advisor and a prominent developmental biologist. “[She] was making a genetic mutation in mice using embryonic stem cells. It was brand new. Had never been done. I’ve just been fortunate to have really good advisors, and she also had children, whilst doing amazing science, she was just an amazing person.”

Combined with her postdoctoral work at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Institute with Elizabeth H. Lacy as her postdoctoral advisor—one of the women who started the whole molecular biology techniques in mice—Jerome-Majewska’s academic journey laid the foundation for her current research. Currently, she focuses on developmental disorders, using mouse models to predict how gene mutations could affect human patients.

“Now I’m interested in researching babies with congenital malformation at the time of birth, who have malformations when they’re born because things went wrong during embryogenesis.”

With a person-first approach to science, Jerome-Majewska emphasizes the importance of setting priorities to maintain balanced academic excellence, which, for her, meant stepping down from teaching to focus on her research.

“I enjoyed my teaching. I met some awesome undergrads, but you have to do it well. I’m doing a lot of other things too. I can’t do it all. You can never do it all,” she said.

Nevertheless, while the field of developmental biology continues to flourish, Jerome-Majewska notes that inclusive representation remains a challenge.

“I think there are things that impede how far we’ve moved into not just my field, but in science in general, because I don’t think everybody interested or excited who can contribute has been able to participate and contribute,” Jerome-Majewska said. “I think humans have huge potential, and if we could have all of the different people participate, we’d be so much further. Yeah, so in that way, I think that’s too bad for all of our field […], if everybody’s doing the same thing, we’re not gonna get anywhere.”

This recognition of social barriers inspired her involvement with the Black Canadian Scientists Network, which, with over a thousand members, creates space for representation and collaboration in science and is currently focused on the GenCARE project.

“We’ve been able to get part of the Genome Canada grant to sequence the genomes of people of African ancestry, looking at diseases that impact the population negatively.”

Looking toward the future, Jerome-Majewska emphasizes the importance of building a more inclusive genetic research landscape for the future generation of researchers.

“I think, for the GenCARE project, I’m super excited, because, as a Black woman, I know that precision medicine is coming, and if we don’t have the DNA from people that look like me, it’s not gonna work. And I can do something about it, I have the skills. So, it’s a no-brainer.”

News

Cecil Foster challenges Canada’s founding narrative in MISC lecture

by Asher Kui on

More in News:

On Feb. 2, the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada (MISC) hosted a lecture titled “Determining new international and domestic orders: Reflections on modern Canada’s endurance and more so resilience as Black and West Indian.” The lecture was given by Cecil Foster, a professor at the Department of Africana and American Studies at the University at Buffalo.

Daniel Béland, a professor at McGill’s Department of Political Science and MISC’s director, began the event with a land acknowledgement, along with a brief description of Foster’s work and McGill’s initiatives during Black History Month.

“Each year, Black History Month at McGill brings together students, staff, faculty, alumni and community members through […] [opportunities] to learn, reconnect and celebrate Black communities’ contributions to education and research,” Béland said. “[Foster] is a leading author, academic, journalist, and public intellectual. His work speaks about the challenges that Black people have encountered historically in Canada and their efforts to achieve respect and recognition for their contribution to what is now a multicultural Canada.”

Béland then passed the microphone to Foster, who began by highlighting the presupposition that Canada’s social resilience comes from its historical and perpetual whiteness—whether it be Anglophone, Francophone, or a combination of the two. Foster then presented his counterargument, claiming that Canada’s history and political structure today reflect a longstanding British West Indian heritage.

“From even its earliest days as a settler colony, Canada was inherently Black,” Foster said. “To this day, a social justice model of development based on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusiveness reflects Canada’s undeniable historical, cultural, and British West Indian heritage. This is an identity that dominant Canada always tried to deny in preference for the whiteness imposed through structural and institutional conformity and corruption.”

Foster then made a connection to Prime Minister Mark Carney’s speech at the 2026 World Economic Forum Meeting. In his speech, Carney implied that many people in the world live under the illusion that current domestic and international orders produce justice for everyone. Foster referred to Donald Willard Moore, a civil rights activist who publicly criticized Canada’s racist immigration laws in 1954, suggesting that Carney acknowledged Canada’s fundamental Blackness.

“Although not seen so directly, Carney was implying [that] Canada is fundamentally Black in its cultural values, expressions, and aspirational mores and ethos,” Foster said. “Could Carney have had in mind the words of the Black porters and those of the Negro Citizenship Association, [who] […] challenged the Canadian government not to be afraid of the changing times and the noisiness that comes with changing social orders?” 

Foster then mentioned Carney’s speech at the Citadelle of Quebec just two days after the World Economic Forum Meeting, where Carney recounted the Battle of the Plains of Abraham. He framed it as a pivotal point in history when Canada chose accommodation over assimilation, recognizing its two founding peoples—the English and the French. Foster criticized such a narrative, arguing that it erases Black contributions in Canada.

“These are ethno-nationalist narratives presupposing and even defending the centrality of whiteness and the marginalization of all non-whites, in effect sidelining all other peoples in their various forms and ethnicities [and] racialized Blackness,” Foster said. “British soldiers and sailors in steaming ports like Montreal, Quebec City […] were demographically multicultural British subjects and prototypical modern Canadians. Most of them were Black with their home bases in the British West Indies [….] With the technological change to introduce trains, as the sleeping car porters on Canada’s railways that knitted Canada together, they had always a sense of belonging to Canada and always fought for inclusion and to be treated as equals to all Canadians.”

Foster then focused his lecture on a period during which there were repeated calls and appeals for the British West Indies to become part of the Canadian Confederation. Following the Slavery Abolition Act, many prominent Canadians wanted to establish a single political jurisdiction of British colonies in the Americas. The proposal did not materialize, as the population of the British West Indies was predominantly Black, while Canada officially portrayed itself as white. Foster highlighted that the British West Indies in 1838—when Black people were considered free members of society for the first time—were a leading example of changing social orders.

“To be a Negro meant to not have a country of belonging,” Foster said. “A single jurisdiction, among other things, would help create an order where freedom would confront enslavement, [where] British values of inclusion and diversity […] [would confront] American values of exclusion, white assimilation and individualism. Two different moralities [sought] to establish a single dominant order [….] In Frederick Douglass’s view, the British West Indies epitomize, worldwide, the highest ideals of human freedom and dignity, and was a model of societal nationalist formation to be copied throughout the Americas by the 1860s.”

Foster then quoted a speech from 1957 presented by former chief minister of Jamaica Norman Manley, in which Manley pointed out that the British West Indies were able to answer the ‘race question’ before many other countries.

“I dare to say that the West Indies have travelled hundreds of years ahead of large parts of the world in solving the problems of how people of different races and origins can live together in harmony,” Foster quoted. “One has only to look around this room to comprehend that we have completely exploded the myth of racial superiority, and we are rapidly progressing to a higher level in that field than most countries know, because with us, it is ceasing to be a matter of tolerance. For a tolerance itself presupposes that there is something to be tolerated, and it ceases to be a matter of acceptance, because acceptance in itself presupposes that there is some problem to overcome and some difficulty to be accepted.”

Foster ended his lecture by encouraging the audience to revise established narratives of Canadian history, emphasizing how Black communities are not merely contributors but foundational to the establishment of modern Canadian values.

“As we live in academically stimulating times, there are challenging times, but only if we continue to live the lie of dominant narratives,” Foster said. “This is an opportunity to think of all of our separate ethnicities and nationalities […] as examples of how humanity’s dignity has always fought the established enduring social orders [….] Canada was always Black, and its multicultural values and ideals that now set it apart are those developed similarly […] in the former Black British West Indies.”

The event then moved on to a Q&A session. Debra Thompson, associate professor in McGill’s Department of Political Science, questioned whether Black understandings of freedom are commensurate with multiculturalism in Canada.

“[Can] the equation of all that comprises Black understandings of freedom and radicalism that frequently are imagined beyond the boundaries of any nation state, and certainly beyond the boundaries of liberal democracy or capitalism, really be rolled into multiculturalism?” Thompson asked.

Foster responded by highlighting that we must remove institutional boundaries when considering multiculturalism.

“If you start with the notion that the nation is of the people demographically and not institutionally, then it can work,” Foster said. “It might very well mean, as is being attempted now in Canada and elsewhere, the radical dismantling of many of the institutions. That’s the only way you can bring about reconciliation [….] You start by the will of the people, so that the nation becomes a projection of the will of the people, rather than the nation being an ethno-nationalist notion where people are forced or slotted into the nation, and those who don’t meet a specific criteria are excluded.”

Nadia Alexan, founder of the non-profit Citizens in Action, spoke next. She commented on the shifting political power of the wealthy, and how the current global order is increasingly shaped by elite interests rather than the true will of the people.

“The biggest danger we have now is the billionaires who have hijacked our governments. They are not content with influencing the government. They now want to be the government,” Alexan said. “It’s unbelievable what is going on, and that’s the danger […] as long as they keep making profits and cannibalizing the world.”

Foster emphasized that the initiative which started in the British West Indies and the Americas may facilitate new perspectives on international issues.

“As we think about the future, the lessons that we can learn from the experiences that have been developed in no other part of the world than in the Americas […] gives us a kind of a uniqueness,” Foster said. “We can look at all of these things and try to make sense of them and maybe share some of our experiences […] as to how some of these things might be overcome.”

Cross-Country / Track, Know Your Athlete, Sports

Meet the co-chair of McGill’s Black Varsity Association

by Abby Kronenberg on

More in Cross-Country / Track:

When Ashleigh Brown, U4 Arts, first arrived at McGill, she had barely dreamed of being a varsity athlete, let alone running a campus-wide organization of athletes. Now, as one of the current Track and Field team captains, she juggles the responsibilities of student-athlete life with those of the Black Varsity Association (BVA)—McGill’s student-run initiative dedicated to uniting, supporting, and advocating for the university’s Black athletes.

The BVA was originally founded in 2000, but completely dissolved during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its then-leaders graduated, and with them left the association’s remaining support system. When McGill students and athletes returned to campus in 2022, two former BVA members invited Brown to join, and she has been active in the association since. 

Reviving the BVA was not a straightforward process and required convincing the McGill Athletics administration of its importance. In an interview with The Tribune, Brown shed light on the need for the BVA.

“Once you’re a person that goes so long without something, you start to […] think that you don’t need it,” Brown said. “But, with continuous advocacy, there’s always people who are willing to help and be allies. And it’s about finding those right people within the administrative level specifically. That’s been one of the tougher parts.” 

Beyond forming relationships with McGill Athletics’ administration, the main focus of the BVA is fostering community between its athletes. 

“Finding people who share your culture and help you feel comfortable is something that really helps you excel in your sport,” Brown said. 

As a Jamaican athlete herself, Brown recalled feeling surprised not to find any other Jamaican athletes on the track team. 

“It’s already enough that you’re an athlete and you come to a totally new province or totally new school, and you have to adjust to that. But imagine when there’s not a lick of people who can relate to you culturally. It can really impact you in your performance.”

As Brown has spent more time in the BVA, her responsibilities have increased, along with the gratification of the association’s hard work paying off. 

“The most rewarding part has been being able to see the community slowly become stronger in front of me. With the more events we have, people recognize each other and friendships are being formed.”

As the BVA’s current co-chair, Brown helps ensure that the association serves as a hub for resources tailored to McGill’s Black athletes. 

“I was once there, an athlete that knew nowhere to go for any type of resource, whether it be monetary or any type of mental health support that’s specific to the experiences that you face at the level that we compete and as a person of colour,” she said. “You have things like racism in sport all the time. But how can you get that help from people who actually know how to help you? I’ve been able to direct people to those spaces.”

Perhaps the biggest issue facing the BVA now has been McGill Athletics’ announcement that, as of next year, 25 of McGill’s varsity and club sports will no longer exist. One of the most surprising teams to be included in the list of cuts is the Track and Field team, which Brown said has the most Black athletes and athletes of colour of any McGill team. Since over half of the BVA’s executive board is on Track and Field, they face losing their status as athletes altogether. 

“I don’t agree with their decision [to cut Track and Field] at all,” Brown said. “It does not make any sense because our team is one of the best. And this year, we’ve been performing the best we ever have. The McGill track team is still fighting against this decision.”

Despite this upcoming uncertainty, Brown remains optimistic about the BVA’s future and its importance at McGill.

“I’m hoping we can continue, and that BVA continues to grow, and that the administration continues to, or eventually recognizes how important it is to have associations like these so that they can better support [their student-athletes],” Brown said. “But most of all, seeing athletes of colour feel comfortable at McGill has been one of the greatest things ever.” 

Commentary, Opinion

In exercising institutional restraint, McGill protects only itself

by Sofia Lay on

More in Commentary:

This past November, McGill’s Advisory Panel on Campus Expression (APCE) delivered a report on the state of academic freedom and expression at the university. The report recommended that McGill exercise “institutional restraint” and refrain from responding publicly to controversial geopolitical issues in order to preserve academic freedom. This policy encourages McGill to prioritize its reputation over critical advocacy, neglecting global responsibility under the pretense of protecting free thought.

Following the report’s publication, President and Vice Chancellor Deep Saini issued an enthusiastic statement affirming the APCE’s recommendations on campus expression. However, the report’s call for political neutrality undercuts McGill’s stated commitments to responsibility and global engagement. By extricating itself from political discourse, McGill forfeits its power to catalyze meaningful community discussion. 

Just last week, in light of the brutalization of Iranian protestors, McGill released an email directing students to mental health resources. Strikingly, this email was sent only to students on McGill records as Iranian passport holders and did not include a clear condemnation of the Iranian government’s actions. This message exemplifies McGill’s reticence to speak publicly on issues with global reach and disturbing human rights implications. 

While the university is eager to embrace its reputation as a globally-renowned institution, it engages selectively with the world around it, prioritizing its own reputation over advocacy. Because McGill’s priorities are not transparently reflected in its mission statements, the university’s decision to implement institutional restraint rings particularly dissonant. 

In its report, the APCE draws a false contrast between academic freedom and institutional positions, weaponizing this manufactured dichotomy to justify McGill’s silence on geopolitical issues. The report does not offer a clear definition of academic freedom, but merely describes the concept as “associational to freedom of expression” and bound by “the standards of scholarly research and inquiry.” The APCE’s intentional vagueness in defining academic freedom obscures the fact that official university stances and academic freedom are not inherently at odds with one another. Arguably, academic freedom is epitomized when educational authority figures can simultaneously espouse opinions and encourage community dissent. It is dangerous to conflate neutrality with equity and tolerance, as such practices vilify the expression of opinions. Additionally, if academic freedom extends only so far as “scholarly standards,” then opinions, institutional or otherwise, are protected only when they reinforce McGill’s pre-existing party lines.

This outcome—where the McGill administration’s biases are preached as nonpartisan and student voices are made political—is at clear odds with the APCE’s overarching goal of maintaining a vibrant academic and intellectual culture at McGill. 

The APCE advocates that McGill assume a neutral stance on all geopolitical issues. However, maintaining neutrality is a position in and of itself. In today’s polarized climate, acknowledging facts can be perceived as a political act. Institutional restraint enables McGill to refrain from affirming vital truths as suits the university’s agenda. In its report, McGill repeatedly refused to acknowledge genocide in Gaza, instead referring to the conflict as the “Israel-Gaza War.” Although intergovernmental organizations and NGO’s, including the UN, have repeatedly stated that the Israeli government’s actions align with the definition of genocide, in its report, the APCE employs misleading alternative terminology that downplays the conflict’s severity. 

Yet, McGill doesn’t stray from all political conviction. In 2022, the Provost issued a statement denouncing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and expressing “shock and sorrow” over the conflict. Herein lies just one example of how the concept of neutrality can be selectively applied to uphold some truths while obscuring those deemed “too controversial” for public endorsement. In many critical instances, McGill, a school that prides itself on promoting the “dissemination of knowledge,” chooses to remain silent and protect its reputation. 

The APCE cited community outrage regarding previous university-issued geopolitical statements as a pretense for the necessity of institutional restraint. The report stated that, on an individual level, many faculty and staff members felt discouraged from voicing their opinions on political issues because they fear being negatively misinterpreted. Thus, the students are burdened with the responsibility to foster a campus environment that promotes constructive conversation and institution-level dialogue over ‘cancel culture,’ whereas professors—hired with a duty to protect academic freedom and promote discourse—are absolved of this duty. 

The APCE portrays institutional restraint as promoting academic freedom, drawing a false contrast between the declaration of political views and the protection of free thought. Yet, in today’s polarized social climate, even the truth has become politicized. Truth is imperative to freedom, both academic and otherwise. McGill would be wise to remember this.

Commentary, Opinion

Legault’s gone—Bill 21 should be too

by Amélie Marquet on

More in Commentary:

Since his 2018 inauguration, Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ) leader and Quebec premier François Legault has prioritized secularization and the protection of Quebec’s francophone identity. His resignation in January 2026 has left the province in political uncertainty, particularly regarding Bill 21, which prohibits certain public servants—including police officers, judges, and teachers—from wearing religious symbols at work. 

The bill was adopted through the notwithstanding clause, which allows the provincial government to override sections of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and prevents the Supreme Court from challenging Bill 21’s validity for the next five years. With Legault’s departure, Quebec faces a choice: Continue down a path that uses secularism as a pretext for exclusion, or seize this moment of political transition to address what Bill 21 truly represents. Far from being a neutral measure of secularism, Bill 21 functions as a legal tool that legitimizes systemic employment discrimination. Legault’s resignation removes the political figurehead most personally invested in defending this framework, making it both politically feasible and ethically necessary to re-examine whether Quebec’s commitment to secularism must come at the cost of systemic discrimination against religious minorities.

Quebec’s contemporary debates on secularism are rooted in sentiments dating back to the 1940s and 1950s, when the Catholic Church exercised significant influence over social and political life, administering schools, hospitals, and moral norms. The Quiet Revolution of the 1960s marked a decisive effort by Quebecois society to reduce religious influence and assert greater provincial control over public institutions. Although Bill 21 might function as a bulwark to limit religious impact on future governance, such objectives do not require the exclusion of religious minorities from public representation or employment.

The Bill disproportionately targets marginalized groups by banning visible religious symbols or clothing—including the hijab, the kippah, and the dastar. This comes as Islamophobia, xenophobia, and antisemitism are on the rise in Canada: Police-reported hate crimes targeting Muslims increased by 173 per cent from 2020 to 2024, and antisemitic hate crimes increased by 83 per cent from 2021 to 2023.

Compared to other provinces, Quebec has significantly higher levels of Islamophobia than the rest of Canada, with 56 per cent of Quebec residents reporting a negative view of Islam compared to 36 per cent outside of Quebec. This has forced religious minorities into an impossible position: Having to choose between removing required religious symbols, or giving up on a stable, public-sector job. State employment guarantees, on average, stability, security, better salary and retirement benefits. Bill 21, therefore, enforces structural inequality under a false sense of secularism and neutrality.

Furthermore, the bill creates symbolic exclusion, arbitrarily designating who is truly considered to have Quebecois Identity. As teachers, judges, and police officers embody public authority, the exclusion of religious minorities from these professions distances them from the province’s sphere of influence.

Bill 21 not only creates structural inequality in job opportunities but also in social representation. Montreal, the most diverse city in Quebec, reported that the city is approximately 11.9 per cent Muslim, 3.8 per cent Jewish, and 0.9 per cent Sikh in 2021. The bill does more than regulate religious symbols—it insinuates who the government believes belongs in Quebec’s public sector. 

The use of the notwithstanding clause to preemptively override Charter protections further normalizes limiting minority rights and permits the bill to be passed without adherence to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The clause’s use signals that minority protection can easily be suspended for political goals, and encourages future restrictions. 

Legault’s resignation offers Quebec’s next government a chance to chart a different course—one that doesn’t require the province to choose between secularism and inclusion.

McGill, Montreal, News

Professor Annie Bunting explores gender-based violence in Africa

by Josette Chandler on

More in McGill:

On Wednesday, Feb. 4,  Annie Bunting, professor of Law and Society at York University, hosted a discussion at the McGill Faculty of Law’s Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism (CHRLP) entitled “Knowledge production and gender justice in post-conflict Africa” at New Chancellor Day Hall. 

Bunting opened the presentation with a background on her past work in international feminist law, including her role as the Chair of International Gender Justice at York University. 

“I started as a Boulton fellow here at McGill back in another century, which is such an amazing program,” Bunting said. “I am really glad to be engaging with all of you, especially at the Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism because the [work done here] fits really nicely with my own.”

Bunting then explained her experience working on the Conjugal Slavery and War Project from 2015 to 2020, a project that documented cases of forced marriage during times of conflict to establish a system of reparations for survivors of gender-based violence. 

“The coalition was monitoring international criminal tribunals and their prosecution of gender crimes, starting with the international criminal tribunal for Rwanda,” Bunting said. “The special court for Sierra Leone in 2008 found forced marriage to be its own heading of a crime against humanity. This was the impetus for this further research project.”

Bunting then shifted her focus to the Kinshasa Declaration, made at a Survivor’s Hearing on reparations during November 2021 in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. To help create this document, Bunting assembled survivors and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and secured financial backing from 12 African countries. 

Bunting emphasized the number and diversity of goals presented during the hearing, explaining how she, the survivors, and the NGOs involved in the creation of the declaration came to the hearing with different outcomes in mind. 

“I’m interested in the tracking of these crimes against humanity, especially forced marriage,” Bunting said. “You have survivors [who] are very concerned about school fees for their children, about medical fees, about reintegration. So, you have really quite disparate goals for this event.” 

The event then transitioned to an open discussion, during which McGill Law Professor René Provost explained how language barriers impacted the drafting of the declaration. 

“One of the challenges we encounter is that the vocabulary used to talk about sexual relations in some African languages tends to be metaphorical, which posed enormous challenges when we convert that to the language of international or criminal law,” Provost said.

Next, McGill research fellow and Board of Displaced Internationals member Yana Liubymova spoke on the connection between sexual violence and conflict through her experiences with the war in Ukraine. 

“Unfortunately, we have numbers and numbers of survivor cases, and unfortunately, the statistics are growing. But, we improved our legislation and have a special program for survivors,” Liubymova said. “The displacement process is absolutely linked with the survivors of sexual violence in war.”

Bunting concluded by emphasizing the need for a focus that expands beyond individual survivor narratives, tackling the systemic issues themselves that enable gender-based violence.  

“I don’t want to leave the impression that we should overly rely on survivor testimonies or individual harm, because I think that can limit our thinking to not engage in substantive and structural redress. And that’s not an easy thing, right? It’s not easy to talk about what structural change looks like,” Bunting said. “These individual narratives exist within this broader communal push for recognition and reparations and for substantive change.”

Arts & Entertainment, Music

‘Oscar Peterson’: A heart that yearns for liberty

by Loriane Chagnon on

More in Arts & Entertainment:

On a warm summer day in August 1925, Oscar Emmanuel Peterson, one of Canada’s most respected jazz artists, was born. Growing up in the working-class, predominantly Black neighbourhood of Little Burgundy in Montreal, Peterson developed his musical skills alongside his four siblings and with the support of his loving parents. Forced to give up the trumpet after contracting tuberculosis, he chose to focus on the piano and soon developed a musical talent that foreshadowed his bright future. Peterson honed his skills, and with the support of his sister, Daisy, won a nationwide amateur talent competition in Canada and landed his own weekly radio show: Fifteen Minutes Piano Rambling. Soon after, Peterson signed with a record label, and, by 1945, he had released his first two recordings: I Got Rhythm and The Sheik of Araby.

Norman Granz, founder of Verve Records, became Peterson’s agent, allowing his fame to grow internationally. Granz was famous for introducing jazz to broader audiences by taking “jazz out of smoky clubs and putting it in concert halls.” He heard Young Peterson on the radio in a taxicab on his way to the Montreal airport and was immediately struck. After learning that the music was a recording of Peterson at the Alberta Lounge, Granz asked the driver to turn around and take him there so that he could meet him. In the following years, Peterson’s career grew, and he established himself as a household name in the jazz world, working with the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Chet Baker, Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, and Louis Armstrong. The last nicknamed him “the man with four hands” for his rapidity and precision when playing.

“The way you play music is a tonal biography of yourself, your thoughts and feelings,” said Peterson. Peterson was a quick and precise artist; he could execute lightning-fast runs, possessed incredible timing, and had a deep understanding of swing. His hands were able to tell many stories, such as that of a lover yearning for his beloved in Blue and Sentimental or of a person who has achieved success at the cost of someone special in I Can’t Get Started.

He is further remembered for his commitment to racial equality and his defiance of stereotypes, emerging as Canada’s first Black jazz star in the 20th century. He overcame racial prejudice to establish himself as a giant in his field. Further, he was a music educator and humanitarian, receiving many accolades, including eight Grammy Awards, a Praemium Imperiale World Art Award, the UNESCO Music Prize, and 16 honorary doctorates. Notably, a coalition of Black community groups has recently asked for Montreal’s Place des Festivals to be renamed after Oscar Peterson to honour his legacy, which has marked the city’s music scene.

The prolific Peterson released several albums each year and appeared on more than 200 albums by other artists. He is widely considered to be one of the best jazz pianists of all time and remains a cornerstone of the genre. His influence resonates in the works of artists like Laufey, who are reintroducing jazz to younger audiences. 

Peterson’s composition Hymn to Freedom also had a deep impact, becoming pivotal to the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. The song calls for a world of unity, dignity, and liberty, with lyrics by Hariette Hamilton. Peterson’s wife, Kelly, is currently translating the composition into various languages, such as French and Cree, to allow individuals from various backgrounds to hear and understand Peterson’s vision for a free and harmonious world. 

Peterson is renowned for his technical mastery, virtuosity, and the warmth with which he played, and he is remembered for his deep love and connection with the art of music.

Behind the Bench, Sports

Conflicting feelings of fandom

by Will Kennedy on

More in Behind the Bench:

Never Google the owner of your favourite sports team. It almost never yields results that make you feel good about spending your money on tickets and merchandise, and often leaves you feeling put off altogether. 

Five National Football League (NFL) owners have been named in the latest Jeffrey Epstein file release, with all communications occurring after Epstein’s 2008 conviction for sex offences. Minnesota Vikings owner Zygi Wilf inquired about purchasing a property in Paris from Epstein in 2015. Epstein spoke via email with someone named “Josh” about New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who was arrested and charged with two misdemeanour counts of soliciting prostitution in 2019. Epstein alluded to “a past issue with Kraft that may come to light later.” Josh Harris, co-owner of multiple teams, had a multi-year business relationship with Epstein and visited his Manhattan home on at least one occasion in 2014. Meanwhile, New York Giants owner Stephen Tisch crudely discussed multiple girls, including one so-called “Ukrainian girl,” over email with the depraved pedophile. In emails where Tisch asked Epstein to be set up with this “Ukrainian girl,” she was referred to in vulgar language before Tisch followed up with “pro or civilian,” inquiring if she was a prostitute. 

On Jan. 30, Tisch put out a statement saying he “regrets associating” with Epstein and that “we all know now, he was a terrible person”—something Tisch should have known from Epstein’s prior 2008 conviction.

While the Epstein files dominate the news, Memphis Grizzlies owner Robert Pera has flown under the radar. On Jan. 29, investigative journalist Pablo Torre shared the findings of an investigation into the former Apple engineer and founder of Ubiquiti Inc., a company that specializes in making user-friendly internet equipment servicing remote areas of the globe. 

One of Ubiquiti’s top customers is the Russian military. The company stopped direct shipments to Russia when sanctions were implemented in 2022, but since then, sales have continued to pass through third parties. The company has not yet released a public statement on Russian combat units obtaining their equipment, but verified videos from the Donbas region clearly show Ubiquiti technology being used to commit war crimes against civilians. 

One Ukrainian military official estimated that 80 per cent of Russian drones use Ubiquiti equipment to relay video feed to command centers. The technology is so important that Russian military units have made Telegram videos begging for public donations in order to purchase more of the equipment. The equipment is small enough that it can be attached to the vests of operators, and, unlike satellite internet, it cannot be disabled by the provider remotely.

Although the company has stopped direct sales to Russia, sanctions experts have told Pablo Torre that pleading ignorance is not a valid legal defence for how Russia obtained their technology. 

This is not the first time Ubiquiti has been involved in a scandal over sanction violations. The company settled for over $500,000 USD in 2014 after it granted exclusive rights to a United Arab Emirates-based distributor to sell Ubiquiti technology to Iran. At the time of the settlement, Ubiquiti allegedly did not have a proper compliance department, and since then has taken no meaningful steps to ensure its technology does not end up in the wrong hands. Western tech illegally ending up in Russian hands is a large part of why the war is still ongoing. At best, Ubiquiti is being negligent; at worst, it is a willing participant in war crimes. 

From a fan perspective, it can be really disheartening to know that supporting your favourite team may directly benefit these owners. It can cause a lot of conflicting feelings and disconnect fans from the team. It often feels like blissful ignorance might be your best option as a fan because major sports owners are rarely in the news for doing good in the world.  Although our individual influence over such matters may appear minuscule, it is crucial that as a whole we pay attention to these issues, as this is the only way we can impose any sense of accountability on owners.

No fan wants to hear that the person who calls the shots for their favourite sports team is connected to a pedophile or is actively fueling wars. For those who want to support their favourite team and be part of something bigger than themselves, it is unfortunate that they may be financially benefiting some truly despicable folks in the process. Sports organizations are a massive part of the communities in which they exist and thus have a duty to properly represent the fans who support them.

Research Briefs, Science & Technology

From fauna to flora: The benefits of switching to plant-based protein

by Sarah McDonald on

More in Research Briefs:

Vegetarianism has been on the rise for years; in 2024, 2.3 million Canadians self-identified as vegetarian, a 176 per cent increase from 2015. Several factors contribute to the marked rise, including vegetarianism’s perceived benefits for both individual consumers and the environment. But how beneficial is it really? McGill Professor of Animal Science, Surgio Burgos, and his former PhD student, Olivia Auclair—a postdoctoral researcher at Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute—worked to determine the benefits of transitioning towards, or entirely to, a vegetarian diet.

“First, we looked at the contribution of important foods, which we call ‘livestock produce products,’ whether that be meat, red meat, white meat, or dairy foods, and the contribution to nutrients,” Burgos said in an interview with The Tribune. “[We] then looked at the environmental impact [of these foods] through greenhouse gas emissions [….] [Then we] put the information that we had gained for Canada in the context of other countries.”

In their recent review paper, Burgos and Auclair aimed to further elucidate the consequences of switching from animal-based protein to plant-based protein, analyzing nutritional, environmental, and health impacts of complete and partial dietary substitutions.

“Basically, we found that there were co-benefits of substituting red and processed meat with plant protein foods across all three of the dimensions that we looked at, so nutrition, environment and also health,” Auclair said in an interview with The Tribune. “So that’s good news, and we saw that for total replacements, where 100 per cent of red and processed meat was substituted. But we also saw, obviously smaller, but similar co-benefits when simulations were partial substitutions, so 50 per cent of red and processed meat.”

Their study found that substituting animal-based protein with plant-based protein sources led to average increases in calcium, iron, fibre, and potassium intake, as well as decreased levels of saturated fats. They, however, noted that their results were highly influenced by governmental policy. 

“For example, in the Netherlands, they don’t supplement [cow] milk with vitamin D, but we do [in Canada], it is mandatory. In the U.S., it is optional. So that vitamin D outcome changes because of [those policies],” Burgos said.

This illustrates the impact of policy on nutritional levels; the nutritional benefits of switching from animal to plant-based products are dependent upon which sources are fortified. Fortifying plant-based protein alternatives is critical to cementing the benefits of transitioning towards a plant-based diet.

Along with vitamin D, vitamin A, calcium, and iodine levels appear to have been particularly dependent on fortification policy.

“So for me, the goal of the study is to inform public policy in dietary guidance [and plant-based alternative fortification],” Burgos said. “Some countries include environmental impact as part of the considerations that they have to guide dietary guidance [….] But food fortification is another aspect of it.”

Another key finding of the study is that substituting meat with plant-based alternatives yields greater benefits than dairy substitutions.

“We’re sort of seeing there’s no clear co-benefits from substituting dairy. You get trade-offs with certain nutrients, you don’t see as big of reductions to diet-related greenhouse gas emissions, and the health gains that we saw in the dairy scenarios were only because of this increase in plant-based foods that accompany the reduction in dairy,” Auclair said. 

The research highlights the importance of choice in dietary substitutions. While the study shows that opting for plant-based alternatives can have positive environmental, nutritional, and health-based impacts, policy plays a huge role in the nutritional benefits of these substitutions. Their findings also reveal that changes don’t need to be extreme to have a real impact; substituting meat with plant-based alternatives, even just once a week, can benefit both your health and the environment.

“I think, for me, it’s not so much like telling people to eat a specific way, like ‘You should do this dietary pattern, or this dietary pattern,’ it’s really about just making more conscious food choices,” Auclair said. “And like Sergio said, like a few nights a week, integrating [plants], instead of cooking something with red meat, just try a new recipe [….] It’s about those individual choices that you make every day.”

Arts & Entertainment, Books, Mythology

Love of mortals and Olympians alike

by Bianca Sugunasiri on

More in Arts & Entertainment:

Greek mythology has traversed themes of love across eons. Although the stories themselves may have evolved through modern times, their passion, yearning, and grief still ring true today. In honour of Valentine’s Day, The Tribune presents two everlasting love stories to pierce the hearts of all Greek mythology lovers. 

The Story of Patroclus and Achilles — “I would know him in death, at the end of the world,” The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller

Poised on the edge of Achilles’s impetuous blade, Patroclus was his balancing force. Their story began as boys when Patroclus was banished from Opus after accidentally killing a man in a game of dice. He then travelled to Phthia and resided under the command of King Peleus. There, he became acquainted with Peleus’ son, the famed Achilles. 

Like fire and water, the two became opposing sides of a coin—their fellowship lasting a lifetime. Achilles’s precipitous nature was often soothed by Patroclus’ resolute hand. During the Trojan War, the lovers joined the Greek attack force. Achilles, quick to anger, got into a quarrel with Mycenaean leader Agamemnon and refused to continue leading charges in battle. 

In an ill-fated attempt to bolster the Greek troops after Achilles’s refusal, Patroclus donned his paramour’s armour and rode into battle underneath his lover’s helm. Achilles emerged from his brooding to find his dearest companion slaughtered. 

He contorted with grief, instilling fear even in the gods. Sullying himself with dirt and grime, he tore at his shining golden locks. Half of his heart had been cleaved clean away. He had valued Patroclus above all others and loved him as dearly as his own life. 

Achilles’s anguish recast itself as acidic rage as he turned his attention to Patroclus’s executioner. After killing Prince Hector in single combat, Achilles fastened his corpse to the chariot by its heels and dragged it through the dirt until he returned to the Greek battle camp. He denied his adversary a proper burial as penance for his sin. 

The lovers were reunited in death at Achilles’s request to have his own ashes mixed with Patroclus’s. They rest together, encased in a golden urn. 

The Myth of Eros and Psyche — “For I love and cherish you passionately, whoever you are, as much as my own life,” Metamorphoses, Apuleius

The irresistible Psyche, constantly mistaken for the goddess Aphrodite, lived a lonely life, too beautiful for anyone to approach her. It was as though she was trapped in a case of glass, an ornament at which to marvel but not understand. 

Her revered countenance attracted Aphrodite’s censorious eye, and the goddess became chagrined that a mortal was being worshipped as a god. She commanded her son, Eros, to punish Psyche by compelling her to fall in love with a hideous creature. Eros obediently transformed into a serpentine beast, but as he turned to face Psyche, it was his heart that flooded with love. He bid Zephyr, the west wind, to whisk Psyche to his opulent palace, where she might rest to wait for him. But when Eros came to call upon her, he insisted they embrace only in darkness. He begged her to have faith in their vulnerability even without the security of appearances. 

As the nights passed, Psyche and Eros conjoined in darkness but never beneath the sun of day. Wishing for companionship, Psyche innocently invited her sisters to visit, despite Eros’s warnings of their ill intentions. Tarnished with envy at Psyche’s happiness, her sisters schemed to sow doubt in her faith in Eros; they claimed that if she properly looked, she would see the vile creature that he was. Although Psyche’s hands may have known the shape of her husband’s love, seeds of uncertainty festered in her mind.

As night fell, Psyche waited for Eros to succumb to slumber. She then lit a candle, allowing its glow to flicker across his seraphic features. She became so entranced that she did not see the melting wax dripping onto his lustrous skin. Awake and betrayed, Eros fled, his love scorned by distrust.
Psyche wandered across the countryside looking for her lover, pining for Eros. Cunning and still ensconced with indignation, Aphrodite promised to assist Psyche only after she completed a set of impossible tasks. She completed the first of the two, swift in her earnest intentions. But in the third trial, she finally faltered, falling into an endless sleep. Eros, stricken with pain, appealed despairingly to Zeus. He woke Psyche from her sleep and even granted her immortality so she and Eros might be reunited forever. Their daughter, Hedone, a conjoinment of heart and mind, was born the goddess of pleasure.

1 … 19 20 21 22 23 … 1,364

Read the latest issue

Read the latest issue