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Commentary, Opinion

Legault’s gone—Bill 21 should be too

by Amélie Marquet on

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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.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

‘Oscar Peterson’: A heart that yearns for liberty

by Loriane Chagnon on

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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.

McGill, Montreal, News

Professor Annie Bunting explores gender-based violence in Africa

by Josette Chandler on

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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.”

Research Briefs, Science & Technology

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

by Sarah McDonald on

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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.”

Student Life, The Tribune Predicts

The Tribune Predicts: Valentine’s Day Horoscopes

by Parisa Rasul on

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Valentine’s Day is coming up, and love really is all around! While unpredictability is customary for this holiday, we could all do with a touch of clarity on Feb. 14th. Find out what your horoscope holds for you in The Tribune Predicts: Valentine’s Day Edition! 

Aries (March 21 – April 19): Much like the famed Greek god of warfare, your love life is a battlefield. Whether you’ll lay waste to it or not depends on how prepared you are to fight for what you want. Be ready to give it your all this Valentine’s Day, Aries, and win that special someone’s heart!

Taurus (April 20 – May 20): As an earth sign, your groundedness will keep you and your relationships stable and healthy this Valentine’s. Ditch the frivolities and opt for a relaxing and simple Saturday this year.

Gemini (May 21 – June 21): You’ll be extra busy this Valentine’s Day (like you always are), but be sure to take some time to wind down and have a special night with your special someone. As an air sign, your mind is always elsewhere, but try to be present during this holiday.  

Cancer (June 22 – July 22): You have a tendency to burn bright and let everyone know it. However, like your mascot, the crab, you sometimes hide under a protective shell. There might be an admirer in store for you this year, Cancer, but in order to secure their attention, you’ll have to leave your comfort zone!

Leo (July 23 – Aug. 22): You’re very picky about where you’ll spend your Valentine’s this year. If the never-ending search for the perfect reservation has left you fatigued, consider spending the night at home instead. Buy some chocolates, splurge on wine, and put on a movie for some at-home viewing!

Virgo (Aug. 23 – Sept. 22): Your logical, practical, and systematic tendencies seep into your love life. This Valentine’s Day, you may find yourself thinking about what your relationship means for the future. It’s definitely something to keep in mind, but don’t forget to let loose and feel the love of right now!

Libra (Sept. 23 – Oct. 23): As a Libra, you are obsessed with finding that person who’s the mirror image of yourself. This Valentine’s, however, you may not find your perfect reflection. But who needs “perfect”? Hold out for a connection you may not think will work, but might surprise you by actually balancing you out just right!

Scorpio (Oct. 24 – Nov. 21): Your emotions are messy and intense, Scorpio. You may need to take this year to figure them out and piece together what you actually want. But don’t feel let down just yet! Your mysterious personality is attractive to many, and a secret admirer awaits. 

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 21): Be sure to stay alert this Valentine’s Day! You love making other people laugh, and you’re mighty good at it! However, a real //clown// may be headed your way, so proceed with caution, and steer clear of the “but he’s sooo funny!” trope. 

Capricorn (Dec. 22 – Jan. 19): Capricorns, you’re probably expecting the worst this Valentine’s. You have a tendency to undermine yourself in the romance that approaches you. However, you’ll meet someone persistent in gaining your affections this year, so keep your door open for any secret, or not-so-secret, admirers. 

Pisces (Feb. 19 – March 20): Pisces, get ready for the love triangle of your life this Valentine’s Day. You’ll have to make some hard decisions soon, and be sure to make the right one! Or, even better, have fun with it…*Challengers theme plays.*

Aquarius (Jan. 20 – Feb. 18): You care a lot. You care almost too much. You’re the most non–nonchalant person when it comes to love. You may be waiting for your Mr. Darcy, and wait you must! Yearning is written in the stars for you, but don’t fret not. Mr. Darcy is indeed on his way across the misty field to win your heart!

McGill, Montreal, News, Recap

Recap: Quebec maintains 33 per cent tuition hike for out-of-province students

by Eren Atac on

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Quebec’s provincial government has chosen to keep a 33 per cent tuition hike for out-of-province students attending an English university, who enrolled after Fall 2024, despite a 2025 Quebec Superior Court ruling that found the increase unreasonable. In a recent updated policy, the government justified its decision to maintain the hike as a measure to prevent Quebec taxpayers from having to fund the education of non-Quebecois Canadians.

The hike, initially introduced in 2024, increased tuition for out-of-province students from $9,000 CAD to $12,000 CAD. This increase primarily affects students at Concordia and McGill, the two largest English-language universities in Quebec. 

In a written exchange with The Tribune, McGill’s Media Relations Office (MRO) declined to comment on the university’s perspective on the tuition hike. 

While McGill’s administration has avoided taking a public stance on the policy, students say it has changed their perspectives on the university’s affordability. Orion Pirang, a U1 Management student from Ontario, said the tuition hike would have changed his decision to attend McGill had it been in place when he applied.

“It probably would have [changed my decision to go to McGill]. I think part of the reason that I chose it over Queens was […] because, even without scholarships, the tuition was manageable,” Pirang said. “Compared to Queens […] it’s still significantly less, but across the board, it makes it a lot more unaffordable. Especially compared to in-province, [even] if you’re not from Toronto, it would be cheaper now to go to the University of Toronto.”

For Pirang, the policy felt like an extension of broader political conflicts over language in Quebec. 
“Quebec has a long and tenuous history of conflict between Anglophones and Francophones, and, in administrations past, they’ve perpetuated this division,” Pirang said. “On one hand, it almost feels inflammatory and prejudiced, but on the other hand, it doesn’t feel productive. It doesn’t seem like it’s doing meaningful work to protect the French language, and all it’s really doing is sowing divide.”

Commentary, Opinion

“Blue Monday” is nothing more than an exercise in consumption

by Noah Bornstein on

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Every year, the third Monday in January is supposed to be the ‘saddest day of the year.’ With the doldrums of winter in full swing, and no holidays in sight, Blue Monday can be a day of deep isolation—at least, that is what we are told. But the Blue Monday claim has no scientific basis.  Popularized during a 2005 PR campaign by a British travel agency encouraging people to book summer vacations, the ‘formula’ behind it—which takes into consideration weather, low motivation, and already-broken resolutions—has been widely criticized as pseudoscience. In other words, Blue Monday is an invented marketing gimmick—an opportunity for large corporations to sell finance courses, health supplements and travel deals to cure us of our supposed blues. 

Manufacturing imaginary problems so businesses can solve them with their products is a core feature of marketing in our consumerist age. That part is predictable. The problem is that Blue Monday takes Canada’s very real and very troubling mental health crisis, and turns it into a revenue stream. In a country where 1 in 5 people experience mental illness in a given year, this issue needs to be tackled more seriously than with a marketing campaign. 

This kind of branding doesn’t only show up in Blue Monday ads but also in corporate awareness days that ask the public to talk about mental health—all while the corporation’s everyday practices tell a different story. Blue Monday is followed closely by Bell’s Let’s Talk Day. On Jan. 21 this year, Bell once again asked Canadians to ‘take action’ on mental health. The idea of reducing stigma and encouraging conversation is commendable. But curiously, Bell’s compassion doesn’t always extend to the remaining 364 days of the year, when customers and workers are left navigating the company as it actually operates.

In July 2024, a Quebec case ordered Bell to pay $1,000 CAD  after a Montreal customer  described a “Kafkaesque” ordeal while trying to cancel his satellite television plan. One court case doesn’t define a company, but it does puncture its carefully curated image. Accurately promoting itself as a mental-health leader would require the enforcement of consistent respect in day-to-day interactions. In 2022, Bell was obligated to pay a former employee more than $120,000 CAD after a discriminatory firing connected to disability. The company has been repeatedly accused of workers’ rights violations, including not paying interns, unlawful termination, and sexist discrimination. A mental health campaign cannot be carried in good faith if it functions mainly as reputation management—compassionate branding disguising practices that prioritize control and profit.

Bell is not the only actor in this ecosystem of performative support. Blue Monday is a bigger cultural script—one that invites corporations to package distress as a personal problem, with a purchasable solution. Many companies try to take advantage of people’s anxiety and loneliness to sell them products they do not need. That may be common, but it is not harmless. 

The Canadian Association for Mental Health (CAMH) has published a Blue Monday Survival Guide, and the Ontario Teachers Insurance Plan has done the same. The coping tips themselves—sleep, movement, social support—can be helpful. But attaching them to Blue Monday plays into the capitalist self-help industry they claim to refute. CAMH even notes that there’s no scientific evidence that one specific day is uniquely depressing—yet the frame remains: Blue Monday is real enough to require a guide. 

Distress in many cases is not an individual, seasonal inconvenience—it is a structural crisis shaped by isolation, cost of living, precarious work, long waitlists, and underfunded care. It is time to change the narrative on Blue Monday and push for free, accessible mental health services to people across Quebec and Canada, rather than surface-level awareness campaigns, wellness tips, and certainly not corporate branding exercises. Consumption is not the answer to the mental health crisis. If corporations want credibility on mental health, they have to show up in everyday practices and measurable follow-through—not only in campaign messaging. 

Arts & Entertainment, Books, Mythology

Love of mortals and Olympians alike

by Bianca Sugunasiri on

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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.

Research Briefs, Science & Technology

Powerful greens: How natural plant compounds are used in therapeutic intervention

by Arielle Brunet on

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Have you ever wondered why you were encouraged to eat your greens as a child? Not only are they packed with healthy nutrients, but some of these cruciferous vegetables are also home to a chemical compound called isothiocyanates (ITCs)—phytochemicals. These are shown to play a role in preventing cancer, cardiovascular disease, neurodegeneration, as well as autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

Previous research has shown that high dosages of ITCs can be used as an anti-cancer drug promoting apoptosis—programmed cell death—of cancer cells. Sanjima Pal, a researcher for the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, confirmed this finding in her own paper but also found that ITCs can promote cellular healing at low doses.

Pal began studying isothiocyanates after completing her PhD at the National Institute of Science Education and Research in India in 2011 and is now pursuing postdoctoral studies at McGill.

Her research began by exploring ITCs’ low-concentration effects on macrophage cells—immune cells that protect our bodies from tumours and germs, among other things. Pal was particularly interested in the macrophages that promote arthritis healing and aimed to investigate how research could then contribute to therapeutic treatments of inflammatory disease.

“When at low concentration, this isothiocyanate group of compounds can modulate and switch macrophage [functional and phenotypic] properties […] towards a favourable macrophage type. This can reduce the arthritis burden,” Pal explained in an interview with The Tribune. “You [aid] wound healing from this.” 

So how exactly do ITCs do this? Once they are introduced in the cells, they target enzymes—proteins that speed up biochemical processes—which, in turn, regulate a kind of imbalance in the body’s defence system called oxidative stress. By modulating these enzymes, ITCs can help regulate the autoimmune response for a variety of diseases, such as arthritis. 

“My thesis publication was one of the first publications in that zone [….] So that time, I used an in vitro model and used human blood. In human blood, […] I isolated macrophage and then showed the same switching [of macrophage types],” Pal said. 

ITCs also form from another compound through enzymatic activity. Broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, and cabbage are among the top sources of ITCs. When we eat these vegetables, an enzyme acts on glucosinolates to produce ITCs. However, it is important to note that ITCs’ therapeutic properties for autoimmune disease or cancer may not come from natural food sources, because ITCs in this form are not bioavailable. In other words, eating broccoli for every meal will not necessarily help prevent cancer. The concentration varies too much, which affects the consistency and efficiency of the phytochemical. Nevertheless, this field could soon start being integrated into clinical practice.

“The synthesis is quite tough. And even if you synthesize it [and] purify it at a higher amount and then make it available pharmacologically, it’s a very complicated process,” Pal said, explaining the challenges of working with the ITC compound. “Because even if it is available in cruciferous vegetables, if you heat the vegetables, you lose the property.”

Overall, Pal’s research highlights how simply shifting the dosage of bioactive compounds, such as ITCs, can expand the scope of their benefits. For her future research, Pal is interested in learning more about the benefits ITCs offer and how exactly they function—especially considering that neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s, could benefit from ITC’s regulation of oxidative stress.

“This is one of the drugs I will always look forward to putting into my research work [….] It has a diverse effect and some activity we don’t even know [about], like anything at the neuronal level,” Pal said. “You can implement this compound and see how neuron and immune cells interact. This is now a hot topic.”

Know Your Athlete, Sports

Know Your Athlete: Eliana Zhang

by Zain Ahmed on

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For Eliana Zhang, badminton has never existed in a vacuum. It is part of a life built around discipline, balance, and sustained excellence, which she has learned to manage at a level few student athletes ever reach.

A fifth-year medical student in her final year at McGill, Zhang has played badminton for 18 years. The Montreal-raised athlete from Ile-Bizard picked up the sport nearly by accident after transitioning from summer tennis. She recalls her tennis coach, David Pealow, who also coached badminton in the winter, urging her to try the sport out for fun at the end of the season.

 “When it was time to go back to tennis, I just never went back,” Zhang said in an interview with The Tribune.

That decision launched a career shaped by persistence and adaptation. Zhang rose quickly through Badminton Québec’s junior ranks, but the limits of provincial infrastructure became clear early on. 

“I reached the top of my province as a junior, but then when nationals came, I got absolutely beaten by the Ontario and [British Columbia] kids,” she explained.

Rather than plateauing, Zhang adjusted. Beginning in 2015, she spent summers training in Toronto at E Badminton Training Centre and overseas in China. Eventually, Zhang benefited from elite coaching that followed her home to Montreal, where she trains at CB Excellence Yonex, with coach Jean-Paul Girard. Those opportunities helped her achieve results beyond traditional Quebec standards. Today, Zhang is the only Quebec athlete competing internationally and the only national team member on McGill’s badminton roster.

“I was very lucky to have the resources move to me,” Zhang reflected.

Despite her elite background, Zhang did not initially plan on competing for McGill—it was a friend and soon-to-be teammate who convinced her to join. What she found was a rare sense of alignment. 

“The McGill team really bridges my two identities. They’re student-athletes. They understand the grind that neither my professional badminton friends nor my full-time medical school friends really get,” she said. 

That understanding became crucial once Zhang entered medical school. Early on, she stepped away from badminton entirely after being told by a mentor that elite sport and surgical ambition could not coexist. Without the sport, she quickly felt the difference. 

“My life was so much less structured. I had more free time, but I was procrastinating more. My health went out the door.” 

Returning to badminton changed everything. She credits the sport with sharpening her ability to manage stress, a skill she now leans on heavily as she navigates residency interviews for ophthalmology, one of medicine’s most competitive specialties. 

Zhang’s leadership evolved further this past summer at the 2025 FISU World University Games in the Rhine-Ruhr region of Germany. Competing alongside athletes from across Canada, she became more aware of her broader impact. 

“I didn’t realize the amount of inspiration I was able to give people,” Zhang said. “I had been so focused on myself that I didn’t really think about the impact I could have on others.”

That realization has carried directly into her final varsity season. A two-time recipient of the Jean Béliveau Athletic Award, Zhang has shifted her focus toward mentorship, strategy, and leadership. As captain, she collaborates closely with the coaching staff on individualized training plans and, due to her coaching certifications, also serves as an on-court coach during tournaments. 

With the RSEQ Championships looming, Zhang enters familiar territory. While the pressure of championship play remains, her preparation reflects years of navigating overlapping demands. Between residency interviews scheduled on the same day as competitions and an international tournament on the horizon, adaptability has become essential. Challenges remain—McGill is likely to face a vocal Université de Montréal crowd on the road, and many Martlets will be competing in their first university championship. 

“A lot of [my teammates] haven’t played a tournament like this before, so it’s about reassuring them that the most important thing is to have fun,” Zhang emphasized

Beyond McGill, Zhang’s future in badminton is already taking shape. A coach for six years, she mentors junior athletes, including a 15-year-old national champion, and was recently elected President of the Badminton Canada Players Association. As her varsity career nears its close, Zhang hopes her story resonates with younger students considering varsity athletics. 

Her advice is simple: “If you want to do it, do it. Don’t be scared.”

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