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Album Reviews, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Joesef’s ‘Permanent Damage’ delves into the messiness of breakups

by Titouan Le Ster on

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On Jan. 13, Joesef released his debut album, Permanent Damage, a soulful and intimate ode to his chaotic romantic relationships. The ominous title describes the indelible mark that love and subsequent heartbreak can leave on a person. A honey-soaked voice and confessional, explorative lyrics characterize the Scottish singer-songwriter, who moved to London in 2020, as an emerging figure in the alt-pop genre. 

Throughout the album’s 13 tracks, Joesef walks his listeners through the feelings of losing and being lost, hurting and being hurt, and the residual love that lingers even when it should be gone. In “Borderline,” the instrumental quiets down, giving the stage to a close-mic narrative about meeting the right person at the wrong time. The funky and upbeat mood of  “Didn’t Know How (to Love You)” accurately conveys the feeling of not caring anymore. And “Joe”’s lively and uplifting rhythm contrasts with the subject matter of a bad relationship with oneself.  

The queer artist presents his brutally honest and unapologetic lyrics as a result of his upbringing in Glasgow’s East End, which he once described as “a rough area where what you see is what you get.” The influence of his hometown appears in “East End Coast,” which presents Glasgow as a comforting place through a melody both melancholic and uplifting.

Sonically, Permanent Damage evolves in a soul and indie pop universe. Joesef’s falsetto allows for a light breeze of airiness on themes that could easily drag you down. Alternatively, his full voice brings the listener through the tumultuousness of love with smooth delivery grounded by raw lyrics.

The 27-year-old singer emerged four years ago with the debut EP Play Me Something Nice, followed by Does It Make You Feel Good? in 2020, both exploring the theme of deep longing. With this debut album, Joesef continues digging into his emotions—especially the ones related to breakups—for inspiration. His continued authenticity and heart-infused songs are an undeniable reason for Joesef’s solid fan following, who will be the first to experience this album live on stage during his European tour starting in March.

Permanent Damage is available to stream on all platforms.

McGill, News, The Tribune Explains

Tribune Explains: McGill’s whistleblowing policy

by Oscar Johnson on

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McGill’s Policy on Safe Disclosure allows individuals to confidentially report misconduct or abuse of power at the university without fear of reprisal—a practice generally known as whistleblowing. The policy was created in 2007 and is a last resort for students when other university mechanisms have failed or are unable to address “improper activity.” The McGill Tribune looked into the whistleblowing policy, how it works, and how to use it. 

How does someone use the Policy on Safe Disclosure and what is “improper activity”?

Any member of the McGill community can submit a report if they suspect “improper activity” on campus. The person reporting improper activity is called the “discloser” and the person being accused is called the“respondent.” The policy identifies three types of improper activity: Academic misconduct, which is the “failure to perform academic duties, improper use of confidential academic material,” or “misrepresentation of material facts”; financial misconduct, or the “misappropriation or misuse of funds or property that belong the university”; and research misconduct, or “fabrication, falsification, plagiarism,” and other serious breaches of protocol specific to research being conducted. Reports through the policy are submitted to the secretary-general of McGill.

Reports should include as much information as possible about the respondent’s alleged improper activity. Only university employees, appointees, and volunteers or those serving in positions on boards of affiliated organizations, or bodies created by such a board, are subject to the policy. A student cannot be the target of a report unless they are also part of an aforementioned university body. After a report is submitted to the secretary-general, an investigation is opened.

How is an investigation conducted?

The secretary-general will send the report to an officer that specializes in incidents similar to the one reported. For academic misconduct, the provost oversees investigations; for financial misconduct, it is the executive director of internal audit at McGill; and for research misconduct, it is the research integrity officer. The appropriate officer has 15 working days to determine if the case was reported in good faith, falls within the scope of the policy, and necessitates further investigation. 

When appropriate, an investigator will evaluate the allegations and deliver conclusions within 30 days. Before a final decision is reached, the respondent will be informed of the allegations against them and have 10 working days to respond. None of the information collected is revealed to the general public; however, the involvement of the police or a granting agency can break this high level of confidentiality. 

During an investigation, a respondent has the right to an unpaid advisor to help them navigate the situation. An advisor is an unpaid member of the university who has agreed to help out the respondent. 

When should one submit a report?

A person should only whistleblow after having tried to report an incident through other means or if these other means are not suitable under the circumstances. 

When submitting a report through the policy, one should have reasonable grounds to believe that abuse has occurred. When a report is deemed as not being “in good faith” by the responsible officer, the person filing the report can be subject to disciplinary repercussions. If the respondent is found innocent, they will face no consequences, although the university will take measures to protect the respondent’s privacy and reputation. If the respondent is found guilty, they will be subject to disciplinary action “in accordance with the relevant regulations, policies, or collective agreements.”

How frequently is the policy used?

According to McGill’s most recent report on their safe disclosure policy, it is not widely used. Since 2019, there have been three total reports, one each year. Two of the reports have found the respondent guilty. No one filed a report through the policy for the first five years of its existence. 

Off the Board, Opinion

Stop skirting around the clitoris

by Ghazal Azizi on

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Content Warning: Mention of sexual violence

Against a red background, my mobile browser welcomes a vibrating text box that reads “clit-me.” Clicking on the arrows to view the next page, I see a fluffy white avatar that I’m instructed to customize: A clitoris. I choose a wide-eyed smiley face, a bobble hat, and wavy pubes. The game then teaches me five moves—caressing, making circles, pinching, patting, and multi-tapping—before letting me freestyle. The goal is to please your customized clitoris by responding to the avatar’s visual and vocal feedback.

Clit Me is the product of eight l’Université du Québec à Montréal students’ collaboration with the National Film Board’s Digital Studio in Montreal. It was launched in 2019 to demystify female sexual satisfaction and, more specifically, the clitoris. A less important motive, I like to believe, was to give me something to make people uncomfortable with. I admit some of the sound effects make me uneasy, too, but everything else about the game strikes the perfect balance between educational and whimsical. Yet, learning about Clit Me was accompanied by the realization that the clitoris is an offensive word to the majority—two fresh discoveries for 16-year-old me. 

Giselle Portenier, the co-founder of the End Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) Canada Network, introduced me to the mobile game. I joined the Network to raise awareness about the practice of altering and injuring young girls’ and women’s genitalia for non-medical reasons. As I campaigned across Vancouver’s hotspots, I soon realized that even some women would walk away at the mention of the clitoris. 

As disappointing as witnessing people dismiss female anatomy is, their disregard is far from shocking. Science has always been more interested in the penis than the clitoris. The first known count of  clitoral tissue, released in October 2022, revealed that the clitoris is home to 10, 281 nerve fibres. Previously, the scientific community estimated there were 8,000 nerve endings—based on a 1976 study on cows. 

With the historical absence of women in the medical field, the clitoris has been neglected. Which dinosaur has never been discovered? The Clitoraus, we joke. Its mystery is due to male scientists’ audacity to omit it from the 1948 edition of Gray’s Anatomy, a landmark anatomical guide, while rushing to name female body parts after themselves. Ernest Gräfenberg planted a flag on the G-Spot, even though the erogenous area may be nonexistent!

The medical field’s bias has plagued the rest of our society, too. The promotional film for Clit Me, titled Draw Me a Penis, humorously shows that we are more informed and comfortable with male genitalia than female genitalia. Doodles of penises, penis-shaped toys, and cookies are embraced, whereas the shape of the clitoris is unknown to many. Most still do not know that the visible “pea-sized” part of the clitoris is only 10 per cent of the organ. A plush toy of the clitoris would be seen as vulgar, and even mentioning the clitoris often results in censorship. Even worse, only a few provinces in Canada include the clitoris in their sexual-education curricula. 

Breaking the massive taboo surrounding the clitoris can be an end in itself, but openly talking about the clitoris is also a means for fighting against human rights violations like FGC. There are nearly four billion people with a clitoris in the world, and at least 200 million of them today have undergone some form of FGC. Despite its prevalence, research and care for survivors is alarmingly low. Those who practice FGC may believe that an uncut clitoris will grow into a penis, hinder fertility, or is unhygienic. Silencing our mentions of the clitoris only perpetuates those vilifying myths and the disregard that shapes medical science and our societies today. To support survivors and to protect the over four million women and girls at risk of losing their autonomy, we must openly and freely talk about female anatomy. Stop beating around the bush and call it the clitoris.

Arts & Entertainment, Pop Rhetoric

Justin Bieber: Canada’s wrongfully maligned hero

by Aimee DeLong on

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When we think of famous Canadians named Justin, one particular name comes to mind—and no, it’s not Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Instead, it’s pop sensation and heartthrob Justin Drew Bieber. Though the young man’s initial rise to stardom was met with admiration and praise back in 2009, the musician has recently been reduced to somewhat of a running joke in Canadian pop culture. But why exactly did this sudden drop in Bieber Fever occur?

While his arrest in 2014 for driving under the influence of alcohol, marijuana, and Xanax may have lost him some points with parents, it’s difficult to fathom how the same genius that wrote “Yeah, you got that Yummy-yum” could become so tragically irrelevant among the youth. After all, a bad boy is every teen’s dream come true, and nothing screams rebellion like a side-swept fringe and a purple hoodie. His destruction of an Icelandic canyon thanks to the filming of his “I’ll Show You” music video shows that he is more than willing to stick it to the man. This incident is not his only anti-establishment action disrupting the incredibly corrupt systems of government—he was also forced to abandon his pet monkey Mally in Germany back in 2013. 

Bieber’s rise to fame can be owed to the combined efforts of his own talent and access to YouTube. After all, it was his cover of “So Sick” by Ne-Yo that garnered the attention of record producer Scooter Braun, in turn landing him R&B singer Usher as a mentor. Despite Usher’s helping hand, Bieber came up with “Like, baby, baby, baby, oh / I thought you’d always be mine, mine”—something Shakespeare could only dream of writing—all on his own. But do not take these lighthearted, whimsical lyrics for granted—he can also be clever. “I get my weed from California” is clearly a joke, seeing as the Ontario-born star knows all too well that Canada is home to legal marijuana of the highest caliber. 

All of his other accomplishments aside, one revolutionary, national contribution truly makes Justin Bieber stand out—Timbiebs. The legend himself collaborated with Tim Hortons, a Canadian restaurant chain boasting North America’s finest dining, to create a medley of delicious Timbits and stylish merch that took the nation by storm. With the rate at which toques and fanny packs are flying off the shelves, the boxes alone sell online for a handsome sum of $950,000. In fact, the Timbiebs taste so incredible that customers are afraid of developing an addiction, which is the only logical explanation for why the flavours are growing stale behind glass display cases. Fellow Canadian pop star Drake vouched for the quality of these treats, demanding that Bieber and Tim Hortons “right this wrong” after their temporary discontinuation. 

And not only has Bieber won the hearts of young girls around the world, but he has also managed to catch the eye of numerous famous actresses. Every hero has a bit of arm candy—Theseus and Ariadne, Shakira and Piqué—and Bieber is no exception. For instance, the musician’s on-again-off-again relationship with Selena Gomez has entertained the tabloids for years, going so far as to manufacture a love triangle involving Bieber’s current wife Hailey Bieber (formerly Baldwin). The fact that he can romance the two gorgeous gals proves that he deserves our endless adoration. If he can win both Gomez and Baldwin back, then why not Canada? The Great White North has been home to many heroes—Terry Fox, Tommy Douglas, Wayne Gretzky—why should Justin Bieber be hailed any differently? His achievements rival, and arguably even surpass, those of his predecessors. He is a perfect representation of the Canadian dream: He can solve a Rubik’s cube, has his own clothing line, and wrote a song with Ed Sheeran. But will Canada ever see Bieber for the gem that he undeniably is? Never say never.

Arts & Entertainment, Theatre

TNC’s ‘Girl in the Goldfish Bowl’ is hilariously eccentric

by Bianca Romero Gallegos on

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What’s the common denominator between the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 and a mother seeking to abandon her family? The death of a goldfish. At least, this is what the precocious Iris tries to convince us of in Tuesday Night Café’s (TNC) production of Girl in the Goldfish Bowl. 

With hilarious dialogue, authentic performances, and poignant direction, Girl in the Goldfish Bowl achieves memorable status among productions put on by the performing arts group. 

The play, written by Canadian playwright Morris Panych, is narrated by Iris (Jaimie Coplan, U0 Arts), a highly intelligent and talkative 10-year-old. She introduces us to her quirk-filled and complex household during a point of palpable tension caused by a crisis in her parents’ marriage. To make matters even more complicated, Iris takes in an unexpected stranger by the name of Mr. Lawrence (Skyler Bohnert, U1 Arts) when she finds him on the shore, as she firmly believes he is the reincarnation of her beloved goldfish. The show’s comical nature hides deeper themes of both adolescent helplessness and domestic dissatisfaction in an unassuming manner. 

Making such an absurdist plot compelling presents a significant challenge. But director Olivia Marotta (U2 Arts & Science) and the production team tackle it with ambition. The whole play develops in one room, changing environments by using lighting and sound when needed. It’s worth remarking that this is Marotta’s directorial debut. After pitching the show, her sheer passion for the project brought her to the director’s chair.

Upon first sight, the logical star and backbone of the show is Iris. Coplan delivers each of her lines with a strangely endearing bluntness, which, combined with impeccable comedic timing, keeps the audience captivated. Iris is perhaps the most coherently written character, which certainly helps to support Coplan’s delightful performance. In an interview with The McGill Tribune, Marotta explained just what made Iris, and Coplan’s performance, so exceptional. 

“I knew whoever was going to play Iris needed to understand her sense of humour,” Marotta said. “[She needed to be] someone who truly believed in each of the lines and didn’t just think like ‘oh, this is just some crazy kid.’”

The rest of the cast’s quirks make the story that much richer. Iris’ parents, Owen (Hugh Kelly, U0 Science) and Sylvia (Ellie Mota, U1 Arts), might start the show as introspective caricatures of quirky parents, but later on, start to unveil both their genuine personalities and some deeply rooted problems intrinsic to a 12-year, one-sided marriage. Their unforeseen guest, Mr. Lawrence, personifies confusion in the tale, as both his origin and purpose remain a mystery throughout. Bohnert’s portrayal of Lawrence both charms and entertains the audience. As for Miss Rose (Molly Frost, U1 Psychology), Iris’ godmother, her dialogue doesn’t reflect much of her personality besides her flirty and alcoholic tendencies. Yet, Frost easily distracts the audience from her character’s lack of substance through her mesmerizing performance.

The production includes elements of magical realism, with the set design serving as a particular standout. Set designer Arwen Lawless (U1 Arts) creates a beautiful and immersive world, cementing the idea that we all are in a goldfish bowl together. She painted a large ocean window that supports the layout of TNC’s theatrical space—where both audience and actors stand on one shared level—to flesh out this innovative design concept. 

As soon as audiences step into the room, they are welcomed by a retro atmosphere, reinforced by multiple vintage artifacts and an—intentionally or not—cozy smell, that transports them directly into the family’s home. They transform from audience members to guests, entertained by the movement of a dysfunctional household, whose story lingers long after the show. 

Girl in the Goldfish Bowl ran from Tuesday, Jan. 24 to Friday, Jan. 27 at Morrice Hall.

Arts & Entertainment, Film and TV

Brian Tyree Henry captures hearts by opening his own

by Ella Buckingham on

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For some, his name may not ring a bell, but his face definitely does—and for others, his name alone garners instant respect. Ranging from Broadway to Emmy-winning TV shows and blockbuster films, Brian Tyree Henry has done it all. Born in Fayetteville, North Carolina and raised in Washington, D.C., his childhood was forever changed when he first saw John Singleton’s classic 1991 Boyz n the Hood and was blown away by Angela Bassett’s character, Reva Styles. Impressing him with both her presence and versatility, Bassett’s performance cemented Henry’s desire to be an actor. 

Henry’s career contains the tried and true elements of hard work, talent, and sheer good luck, as exemplified by his breakout performance as the General in the original Broadway cast of The Book of Mormon in 2011. In 2016, he garnered critical acclaim for playing Alfred ‘Paper Boi’ Miles in the FX dramedy Atlanta, a role that landed him an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. He was later nominated for a Tony Award as Best Featured Actor in a Play for his performance in Lobby Hero in 2018. And as of this past week, he was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in Causeway, where he starred alongside Jennifer Lawrence. Coming full circle, Henry is nominated alongside his former idol, Bassett, for her role in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Henry celebrated with a stranger in an elevator when he first got the news, later writing on social media, “…thank you for hugging me and not freaking out!!” 

Brian Tyree Henry has been slowly but steadily working his way up the ladder of success, amplifying underrepresented voices through the characters he chooses to play along the way. Beginning from his roots at Morehouse College, a historically Black college in Atlanta, Henry has put conversations about Black masculinity and vulnerability into the spotlight. Henry admits he used to not get too close to his characters, keeping them at arm’s length and, using them as a shield, making a clear divide and not letting his personal emotions affect his acting.

But now, Henry is moving away from this emotional austerity and embracing vulnerability—and it’s doing wonders for his career. In recent performances, audiences are connecting with not only Henry’s portrayals, but with the actor as well. This on-screen authenticity breaks down the wall that separates where the actor ends and the performance begins, immersing viewers in a more genuine experience, a side effect that he derives a lot of joy from. Henry’s new vulnerability is especially evident in Causeway, which was directed by Lila Neugebauer, a longtime friend of his from the Yale School of Drama. His role as James Aucoin, a mechanic dealing with physical and mental trauma, forced Henry to come to terms with how his own grief has affected him, and allowed him to translate that on-screen. 

Balancing the intimately personal aspects of his characters with the universal, the roles that Brian Tyree Henry has played have helped him establish a good rapport and reputation amongst audiences while uplifting the diverse experiences of Black men for the film industry. His character, Phastos, in Marvel’s Eternals is the first openly gay super-powered person in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and will hopefully pave the way for better inclusion and range within this often ‘straight’-laced set of characters. He is also set to reprise his voice role as Jefferson “Jeff” Davis, the father of Miles Morales, a.k.a. Spiderman, in Sony’s upcoming Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. The openness and vulnerability with which Henry approaches his work truly makes him one of the people’s favourite actors and has helped him capture the hearts of audiences everywhere. 

Off the Board, Opinion

Keith from Bell, you have my heart

by Kareem Abuali on

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Last summer, at four in the morning, I found myself on a beautiful Aegean island, in the dark bedroom of an Ionian villa, with moonlight fluttering in through sheer curtains that generously ushered a gentle, cooling wind towards me. I lay sprawled on the bed, head propped up, phone in hand, arguing with Keith from Bell Mobility on the company’s app about a $30 roaming charge. “I promise, Keith,” I plead with him. “I never once turned my data on while I was out of the country.” He replies in his little blue chatbox: “I hate paying bills too, but there’s nothing I can do.” 

As I gaze upon the flurries of snow out the window of McLennan One, I remember this moment distinctly, and cherish it wholly. Keith and I chatted for a little over half an hour—learning together, growing together. 

“Keith, surely this situation is ridiculous on your end, too. Be real with me, bro, don’t you think this is unreasonable?” I challenge him. “Let me talk to my supervisor,” he writes. By the end of our conversation, during which we navigated an extremely arbitrary web of company policy and unsolicited personal questions from my end, we found a way to solve the problem together and I was refunded. 

I didn’t expect that Bell would ever be sympathetic to my confusion. Anyone who has lived in Canada knows that its monopolistic telecom companies can very swiftly drain someone of their will to live. I also didn’t know if Keith really couldn’t help, if he was talking to other Bell users while he was talking to me, or if his name was actually even Keith. But at that moment, I had unreasonably strong faith that he would guide me to justice. I was also proud of myself. Over chat, I managed to convince someone that an over-dramatic, stubborn, and faceless stranger was worth helping out.

Calling customer support centres, striking up conversations with strangers, and unexpectedly running into acquaintances have become activities that I eagerly look forward to. If a main door to a university building is locked for no reason, you might jokingly complain to a McGill security guard about how absurd you find it. It’s quite remarkable how quickly that can turn into the security guard telling you how he used to frequent a nudist social club that would get together on Thursday nights at the UQAM gym complex and how he loved to swim laps naked in the pool. If you get racially profiled at the U.S. border on your bus ride to New York, and a Québécoise lady and fellow passenger concerningly ask why they held you up, all you need is to express that it must be much worse on the Mexican side before she interjects: “No, but the Mexicans are the real terrorists.” The absurdity and irreplicability of such interactions with strangers—the awkward pauses, oversharing, and out-of-pocket remarks—make me feel more human.

Talking to someone like Keith can be dehumanizing on both ends. Monolithic institutions try to make us feel guilty for subjecting Keith to our complaints—that he’s just someone trying to do their job. And accountability is obscured along the chain of command. Keith might be numb to the unending customer dissatisfaction and has lost his sense of agency, of individuality. But once you ask someone their name, we remind each other that we’re more than preprogrammed dialogue.

I obtain a lot of satisfaction from engaging with people in this way. I hope that Keith found a little bit of strength so that we could each transcend these roles that we often prescribe to ourselves. On that blissful midsummer night in early July, as the sound of the waves hugging the southern Kefalonian coastline echoed towards me, I witnessed Keith’s ardent refusal to succumb to a narrative that wasn’t his. He became my hero that night.

Album Reviews, Arts & Entertainment

‘Five Easy Hot Dogs’: Mac DeMarco’s listless instrumental road trip

by Amalia Mairet on

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Mac DeMarco was trying to break out of an artistic rut, a process that led to the conception of his latest project, Five Easy Hot Dogs. The album, released on Jan. 20, follows DeMarco’s road trip after a Bay Area show in mid-January of last year. He began driving north up the California coastline, planning to stay on the road and write every day until he had completed a record. The songs were mixed in childhood bedrooms and basements of friends’ houses; each title corresponds to the city where it was written. The album tracks his journey chronologically, encapsulating DeMarco’s musical and geographical progression in an ambitious but ultimately flat way. 

While writing on the road, DeMarco explored the limits of minimalism: The record was made with only an eight-channel system, DeMarco’s guitars, a bass, a half-sawed drum kit, some mics, an old Model D portable synthesizer, and a keyboard. The sound is stripped down, lightly percussive, cohesive, and ever-shifting.

The album features a few standout songs, such as “Gualala,” which exhibits DeMarco’s dreamy, plucky guitar riffs and classic soft drums. It sounds like a lazy afternoon on a Californian highway: repetitive, lightly pushing forward, but nonetheless relatable. DeMarco later makes his way to the Canadian West Coast, starting in “Victoria.” A melodic xylophone line over consistent bongos and guitar perfectly mimics the town’s slow pace and hippy-ish culture. He eventually moves into “Vancouver” with a metropolitan coolness and an almost jazzy guitar and bass line that’s the most playful of all the tracks. 

The album is far from bad, but tends towards blandness. The instrumentals are simple, and the songs lack his usual compelling lyricism. His slow, repetitive arrangements mimic the album’s theme of losing yourself on an endless road trip; DeMarco succeeds in making his boredom musically palpable, but this leads to a somewhat dull album overall. This road trip was supposed to break him out of his routine, but instead is reminiscent of a bizarre, transient fugue state. Through each song, and the story of the album’s conception, he tracks a listless artistic journey north.

Editorial, Opinion

Stricter bail is a far cry from justice

by The McGill Tribune Editorial Board on

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On Jan. 13, all of Canada’s premiers signed a letter addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urging him to take immediate action in enforcing stricter bail measures. Such reform would place the onus on the accused to qualify for bail, increase the number of people held in jail without trial, and lead to the financing and construction of more prisons in the country—when the only steps taken should be toward the abolition of the carceral system.

Trudeau’s decision will resonate particularly closely with those in Montreal, considering the malicious murder of Nicous D’Andre Spring on Dec. 25. D’Andre Spring, killed by guards at the Bordeaux Prison under illegal detention—he was innocent of any crime and supposed to have been released the day before. 

Unfortunately, the case of D’Andre Spring is far from isolated. Today, over half of prisoners in provincial jails are being detained without trial, and their right to justice denied. Reforming bail would further undermine the “innocent until proven guilty” principle that is purported to underpin the Canadian justice system. 

Systemic racism is deeply embedded in the carceral system, with people of colour, Indigenous peoples, unhoused populations, and those suffering from mental illness significantly overrepresented in prisons nationwide. Implementing stricter bail measures would only increase the disproportionate incarceration of lower-income Black and Indigenous populations, who are already over-policed and racially profiled. 

The premiers’ letter—and Trudeau’s entertainment of it—reflects the “tough on crime” rhetoric dominating Canadian politics. This discourse ignores that investing in education and health care is actually the most effective solution to reduce crime. Yet, politicians concerned about reelection focus instead on short-term “band-aid” measures that are more appealing to voters while pretending that convictions equal safety. In addition, bail reform is motivated by the Western emphasis on the prison-industrial complex, a mutual system of lobbying working in the best interests of both political actors and the massive prison industry, which will only grow if bail measures are tightened. Since the Canadian government uses the prison system as a means to levy taxes, amounting to approximately $550 per person per year, every taxpayer is complicit. 

The premiers’ response calls for a larger conversation not only about bail reform but the Canadian justice system’s use of punishment instead of rehabilitation in general. The colonial and oppressive roots of the carceral system are inescapable and historically used to dispossess Indigenous nations of their land. Such a system, one that continues to perpetuate colonial violence, is so fundamentally broken that innocent inmates plead guilty to avoid being killed behind bars. Its whole purpose must be rethought, rather than simply reformed. As Black and Indigenous people continue to die at the hands of police, their conception as “first responders” must be completely overhauled.

Ultimately, it is in the taxpayers’ hands to decide where they want their money to go. As the media’s crime alarmism amplifies the “tough-on-crime” discourse, voters must remember that they will be paying the cost of stricter bail conditions by financing mass discriminatory incarceration with their tax money. 


To this day, Nicous’ family has received little justice. The correctional officer in his case received only a suspension. Nicous was not the first, and without large-scale transformation, he certainly won’t be the last. Abandoning the fundamental “innocent until proven guilty” principle of justice is a slippery slope, promoted by a short-sighted government under the guise of safety. Instead, it is crucial that the government fights crime with rehabilitation, not punishment, and that justice is granted for all of the innocent people behind bars, waiting for a trial that they might not ever see. The failure of the carceral system proves the need for another kind of bail reform, one that would respect a human’s right to only be convicted after trial, and one that would be the first step toward abolishing the punitive system as a whole.

Ask a Scientist, Science & Technology

Peering into the universe with gravitational lensing

by Ali Baghirov on

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Radio waves coming from galaxies millions or billions of light-years away—an immense distance compared to only eight light-minutes between the Earth and the Sun—gradually fade as they lose energy. Many become essentially invisible even to today’s powerful telescopes by the time they reach our little, blue planet. 

So it’s not surprising that the recent news from Arnab Chakraborty, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Physics at McGill, was met with great enthusiasm and interest when he detected a radio signal from a distant galaxy. Chakraborty, who works with the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment (CHIME) telescope, picked up the longest-range radio signal to date—from galaxy SDSSJ0826+5630—thanks to a phenomenon called gravitational lensing. 

As the name suggests—physicists are not quite as inventive with terminology as biologists—gravitational force can and does act as a lens. It collects and concentrates waves into a single radiation beam, which is a lot like a converging optical lens commonly prescribed to shortsighted patients.

“There is [another] source between the galaxy and us, the observer, which acts as a lens,” Chakraborty said in an interview with The McGill Tribune. “If there is a large amount of mass, like a black hole, it will bend the space-time around itself, so when light is passing through [a region near the massive object], it will be bent.” 

The bending effect magnifies signals—kind of like burning paper with a loupe on a sunny day—to make detection significantly easier. 

Objects that bend light may sound like science fiction, but Einstein’s theory of relativity provides a consistent explanation for this effect. Imagine stretching a tablecloth from all its edges and then putting an object in the middle. The matter around the object—the fabric, in this case—becomes curved. The same curvature is applied to the space around extremely massive bodies, like planets and stars. Electromagnetic waves such as light change their trajectory because of this “lensing” though space distortion. 

What were the chances of finding something that huge between our Milky Way and some distant galaxy in the observable universe’s outer edge? As it turns out, it’s largely a matter of probability.

“We are lucky in that sense, it is a natural phenomenon, [otherwise] it would not be possible to detect a galaxy so far away from us,” Chakraborty explained. 

At the same time, the odds of a “gravitational lens” being out there increase with the distance. 

“If we want to see a far galaxy, it can always happen that in the path, there is another galaxy or a cluster of galaxies,” Chakraborty said. “Presence of a huge mass will bend light and magnify it.”

The probability of a black hole being positioned between the Earth and the Sun is ridiculously low compared to Earth and, for example, the Andromeda Galaxy, which is about two million light-years away from us. 

Signals coming from very distant objects are “running late,” which means that they may reach the Earth within minutes, as is the case with our Sun, or within millions of years. Signals are not transmitted instantaneously; their speed is limited by the speed of light, causing a delay. In some cases, the original source might well be dead in our ‘present’ on Earth. 


The progress made by Chakraborty and his team is only the first step toward building a complete picture of how the universe works. As more signals are detected, they can be compiled to establish an image of what the universe looked like in the past. 

“When we have more observations and more detections, we can do studies to understand the evolution of galaxies over cosmic times,” Chakraborty said. 

Detections can then be compiled into a “lensing catalogue” so that scientists can gain insight into star formation. 

“Currently, we do not have that information since it is just one detection. I think in future we will [obviously] push there,” Chakraborty added. 

If more sensitive telescopes are developed in the future, astronomers may be able to detect waves originating billions of light-years away by way of a more advanced technique called gravitational microlensing. But until then, traditional gravitational lensing is perhaps the exclusive route to researching distant galaxies. 

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