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Basketball, Sports

Redbirds basketball seals their undefeated streak with RSEQ championship win

by Zoe Mineret on

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An unprecedented 460 people attended the RSEQ semi-finals which saw the top-ranked Redbirds (13-0) face off against the Citadins (4-9) on March 23. After a thrilling game, McGill emerged undefeated once again with a score of 77-71. With the highest attendance record of the season until the finals, both teams had hundreds of supporters in the stands eagerly cheering them on.

Before the start of the game, the Redbirds and coach Ryan Thorne received their RSEQ conference awards. Haris Elezovic was named the conference’s Rookie of the Year and received recognition as a second team all star along with captain Sam Jenkins. Jamal Mayali was named Player of the Year by the conference and Ryan Thorne received Coach of the Year in his third year of coaching.

The first quarter saw strong defence from both sides, but the Redbirds were already starting to come out on top, solidly ahead by seven points at only the three-minute mark. Mayali continued the scoring with a beautiful three-pointer, a layup, and two free throws made with ease, earning roars from the crowd. But UQAM remained strong and, unfortunately, the quarter ended off with the opposition edging out a 20-18 lead.

The second quarter was as uncertain as the first, with Citadins and Redbirds alike not letting each other gain a significant advantage. Though the first to score, UQAM was quickly matched by a jumper from Elezovic. Quarry Whyne closed a three-point gap with a free throw and a layup, but the Citadins swiftly retaliated, scoring four additional points.

With just over seven minutes remaining in the second quarter, Sam Jenkins scored a swift three, narrowing the deficit to 27-26 for UQAM. Although the Citadins scored again, Jenkins scored another three-pointer to equalize the score, making the crowd go absolutely bonkers. The rest of the second quarter was marked by successful free throws, as Mayali made four clean shots, and Whyne two. McGill came out on top with five points over their opponents.

The first few minutes of the third quarter proved tougher for the Redbirds. Mayali quickly scored with a jumper, but UQAM was right on their tails. The Citadins managed to tally 12 points while the Redbirds struggled to match them. However, with less than six minutes left, the Redbirds changed their pace and pushed the score back up, thanks to a series of layups and threes from Jenkins, Whyne, and Mayali. The score was 54-50 for the home boys going into the final frame.

Jenkins gave the Redbirds their first points of the last quarter with a layup and another three-pointer. The Redbirds were relentless with quick passes and excellent defence. Sydney Gauthier and Mayali both scored with amazing three-pointers; the fourth quarter was once again marked by free throws as the team sank four. The Redbirds finished the fourth quarter with a 77-71 win.

Mayali explained to the Tribune that the victory came as no surprise.

“It went as expected,” he said. “We knew they were going to come out aggressively and want to push the pace. We were ready for that and knew how to respond when we felt the force of UQAM. I expected us to come out victorious. […] I only see us being champions.”

This 13th consecutive win was a reflection of the team’s incredible performance this year, as well as coach Ryan Thorne’s leadership. It was also a good omen for Saturday’s RSEQ final against the Concordia Stingers, which saw the Redbirds clinch the championship, 48-46.

“We know basketball is a game of runs and that was especially evident last night against UQAM,” Jenkins said in an interview with the Tribune. “But, all throughout the game we kept reminding each other if we play this game at our pace, nobody is going to beat us. In the end, we found our pace, and the game turned out in our favour.”

Quotable: “The team throughout the year has performed very well. We have managed to grind out some very tough and close games. As a team, we have responded very well in those tight moments and it has shown us and everyone that we don’t run away when the pressure intensifies.” —Jamal Mayali, fifth-year guard

Moment of the Game: During the second quarter, Sam Jenkins scored back-to-back three-pointers sending the crowd into frenzy.

Stat Corner: Mayali tallied 21 points and Jenkins 20, meaning the pair scored over half of the game’s 77 points.

Features

Opening the curtains for the Montreal theatre scene

by Taneeshaa Pradhan on

More in Features:

ACT I

//Enter Canadian Theatre.// 

In 1949, Vincent Massey led the Massey Commission in an investigation of Canadian cultural and intellectual production. After its completion, the commission declared the country guilty of ignoring home-grown artistry in favour of foreign cultural products. While the American monopoly over publishing was a part of the problem, the commission ultimately placed the bulk of the blame on the Canadian public for failing to champion a national artistic identity. As the commissioners wrote: “Canada is not deficient in theatrical talent, whether in writing for the stage, in producing or in acting; but this talent at present finds little encouragement and no outlet.”

Early Canadian theatre owed itself mostly to Europe. Typically, theatres would produce classic plays written in the Old Country, rather than screenplays by local talent. In response to countless productions of Shakespeare and Molière, scholars, critics, and playgoers involved in the commission raised the question: What constitutes an authentically Canadian theatre? With a country-wide creative landscape buzzing with untapped potential, the custodians of Canadian theatre were hopeful that the commission’s promise of federal support would solve the nation’s dependence on imported scripts. 

It’s hard to delve into the roots of early Canadian theatre without coming across its explicitly nationalist and colonialist themes. Erin Hurley, a professor of drama and theatre in McGill’s English department, explained in an interview with //The McGill Tribune// that Canadian theatre originated as a mouthpiece for the settler-colonial state. 

“The first theatrical production that theatre historians point to is //Le Théâtre de Neptune en la  Nouvelle-France//,” Hurley said. “It features Indigenous peoples in it, and it is about conforming to the wishes of the French king, basically saying, ‘Welcome colonialism!’ So, this is the sort of groundwork for theatre in what we now call Canada.” 

After the recommendations of the Massey Commission were implemented, Canadian theatre expanded its support beyond the interests of the state. It became a creative outlet for marginalized groups, who experimented with the form’s social and political potential. Quebec, for example, is home to a rich theatrical history that supported the formation of the women’s experimental collective, as well as Yiddish and Black theatre companies. But while many artists and theatregoers now recognize the oppression of marginalized groups, the theatre continues to grapple with productions like Robert LePage’s //SLAV//, a play that was taken off the stage in 2019 for its offensive portrayal of enslaved Black people. Quebec’s reliance on American and European productions may now be a thing of the past, but the province continues to struggle with the remnants of its settler-colonial past in its mission to accurately represent and highlight marginalized communities. 

ACT II

//Enter Institutionalization.// 

As the years progressed, Montreal became the ideal backdrop for some of the most iconic moments in Canadian theatre. 

The opening of the Theatre Royal, which many consider Montreal’s first theatre, marked the beginning of a new era for cultural production. While plays were performed in Montreal long before this landmark opening, typically they were limited to temporary structures such as warehouses, converted stores, and circus venues. The Theatre Royal was the first permanent building dedicated to the theatrical mission, serving as a manifestation of the city’s increasing desire to platform entertainment on the stage. Staging over 111 full-length productions, the building was home to productions of Shakespeare, the Restoration authors, and Tit Coq, one of Montreal’s first major local plays.

In response to suggestions by the Massey Commission, an Act of Parliament established the Canada Council for the Arts in 1957 to manage the endowment of grants and services for theatre professionals, among other professionals and organizations dedicated to the arts, on a national level. The rising institutional support for the performing arts spurred the development of infrastructure to support Canadian theatre.   

“The big story of the development of Canadian theatre starts with provincial and federal arts funding, [which] allow for the building and sustaining of theatrical institutions,” Hurley explained. “The joke in a lot of Canadian theatre studies is that Canada was really good at building theatre, like the building, and somewhat less good at building //the// theatre. There was a big emphasis on the buildings, and those buildings go on to spawn the regional theatre system.”

At the same time, government officials, clergymen, and popular dissenters often policed the content of theatrical productions. These cases of censorship were often influenced by societal prejudice. Whether it was a production that hired Belgian actors to bypass a temporary ban on French performers or a feminist play that upset the patriarchal attitudes of audiences, theatre that expressed its support for marginalized groups did not have protection to fight for artistic freedom.  

Over time, this censorship was contested during a period of collective creation by actors, directors, and performers, who established unions to regulate the working conditions of theatre professionals and prevent censorship by external bodies. The development of nationwide training programs, too, played a part in legitimizing Canadian theatre as a professional practice. 

“Union formations, like the Union des Artistes, preceded [the creation of] Canadian Actors Equity to allow for training and working structures that implemented a collective creation phase in the 1970s,” Hurley said. “The institutionalization of funding bodies […] also allows for the proliferation of training programs such that actors, directors, playwrights, designers, and technicians have the training to participate in these professional level funded shows. That’s a big moment in terms of building a Canadian theatre.”

//Exit Institutionalization.// 

ACT III 

//Enter COVID-19 and Digital Theatre.// 

In the last two years, the arts have been ravaged by COVID-19. As digital theatre transformed from a distant possibility into the industry standard, however, this temporary foray into the online world proved that the stage is more than capable of adapting to the occasion. Nonetheless, the consequences were immense as the average theatregoer’s interest in watching productions online could scarcely compete with the desire for in-person theatre. 

Overnight, recreational spaces in Montreal closed due to the pandemic. Theatrical institutions in the city scrambled to find methods to save money while remaining productive. Many actors, artists, and employees in the cultural sector reported feelings of hopelessness, which led to an increased risk of mental illness as they grappled with unemployment and financial loss. Coupled with the logistical constraints of staging shows without an audience at full capacity, these factors put an undeniable strain on local theatre. As the Massey Commission predicted decades ago, government grants and initiatives were among the most important sources of monetary support keeping the theatre scene alive. 

“When COVID hit, major French language theatres [in Montreal] shifted relatively quickly to using their grant money to support in-house artists,” Hurley explained. “Instead of having rehearsals, they would have a workshop period.” 

During the two-year break from live performances, many artists developed original work. This creative period has led to a surplus of productions, since the backlog of plays awaiting to be showcased increased exponentially during the pandemic. In this saturated theatrical landscape, emerging creators may find it even more difficult to produce their first play.

The lack of a live audience led many major theatre companies to experiment with digital theatre. 

And, although the industry became well-acquainted with digital theatre during the pandemic, it returned to the loving embrace of live performances as soon as restrictions were lifted. The lessons of digitized theatre may go on to inform future innovations in the field that incorporate customizable digital environments and spotlight playwrights, performers, and other theatre artists who skillfully experimented with the stage during its online era. 

//Exit COVID-19 and Digital Theatre.// 

ACT IV

//Enter Student Theatre.//

Theatre is a fundamentally organic and democratic art form––educational institutions across the world can attest to the medium’s ability to spark change. On campus, the student theatre community attracts a variety of individuals looking to get involved in, around, or behind the stage. The opportunities are endless. 

Supporting student-written plays since 1921, Players’ Theatre stages a variety of English-language shows that are organized entirely by students, while the McGill Savoy Society produces plays by popular authors. In general, McGill fosters a rich theatrical culture—it is home to Tuesday Night Cafe, Franc-Jeu, McGill Improv, and a Drama and Theatre program in the English department. 

With the return of in-person performances, theatre is once again thriving on campus. Maya Earn, U1 Science, recently stage-managed the play //Everyone is Annoying//, produced by the Players’ Theatre. She finds theatre to be a creative relief from the analytical focus of her degree. 

“There’s nothing like live theatre,” Earn said. “It’s a much different experience than watching something on film or watching TV. There’s a lot of work that goes into it and I find that it’s a very important part of the arts community that I think sometimes gets pushed under the rug a little. For students, it’s such a good extracurricular […] to get out of your comfort zone and be a part of something other than your work.” 

Even during the two-year period when productions shifted entirely online, student theatre at McGill continued in the digital sphere. Daniel Benjamin Miller, BA ‘21 and a producer at The McGill Savoy Society, admitted that the lack of a live audience was a learning experience for the club. 

“I can attest to the impact of //Pinafore//,” Miller wrote in an email to the //Tribune//. “[As a] fully remote show, it was a new form for all of us, both in the cast and in the audience. Theatre, as a form, is about feeding off the audience […] which is rather hard without having one in the same room. But it’s also about choreography—and I don’t just mean dancing and blocking. It’s about nailing the exact pacing—this is the heart of the performance. Working on an online substitute for theatre taught me a lot about the process of performing.”

These theatre clubs don’t just teach students the basics of on-stage performance and stage management. They are also centres of community building that support emerging playwrights in sharing narratives that may not be endorsed by mainstream theatre houses. 

“I stage-managed a short play by an Indigenous writer last semester for Players’ Theatre, and it was honestly a really great experience,” Earn said. “I’ve made friends through [student theatre], and it has allowed me to have a creative outlet that I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to have during the last few years. It’s student-run at every step of the way, and I’m really enjoying that.” 

Despite the hospitality of student theatre at McGill, getting involved can feel like a daunting step. Miller emphasized that it can be as simple as watching a performance on stage. 

“The performers need you; there’s a symbiotic relationship between those on stage and those in the seats,” Miller wrote. “Becoming an active audience member can lead to joining a cast or orchestra, too [….] There are great opportunities in all of these fields, and student theatre programs are designed to make those opportunities available to you.”

//Exit Student Theatre.// 

ACT V

//Enter Epilogue.//

Despite the monopoly of streaming services in the cultural landscape, live theatre remains an irreplicable experience for performers and audiences alike. For all of its advantages, the advent of digital theatre proved that the experience of watching a performance can only be simulated to an extent. 

“No remote performance can compare with in-person theatre. It is not and cannot be the same,” Miller wrote. “Having the performers together, rather than apart, is the only way to create a natural performance. It will always be more polished, more interactive, and more spirited. For opera and musical theatre particularly, the impact is even more pronounced, as you really need to be together to create music like that—ask anyone who’s tried to do it remotely.”

Miller is right: theatre inspires something that films and books can’t. Theatre is a living thing. Every production is open to the performer’s interpretation, and even the most well-known narratives can be radically reinterpreted. Performers and directors alike have reimagined //The Taming of the Shrew// to allow Katherine’s character to transcend the misogynistic limits of her historical context and regain her autonomy as a survivor of spousal abuse. In some productions, Katherine is submissive; other times, she is subversive. Elizabeth Taylor’s Katherine winks at the audience to inform them of her subtle impudence in the movie adaption from 1967, while Garrick’s 18th-century version depicts an obedient Katherine who bends to her husband’s will. It is clear, in this case, that a difference in interpretation can change the course of a woman’s life. 

Why does theatre still matter? James Baldwin summarized it best: “You read something which you thought only happened to you, and you discover that it happened 100 years ago to Dostoyevsky. This is a very great liberation for the suffering, struggling person, who always thinks that he is alone. This is why art is important. Art would not be important if life were not important, and life is important.”

//Exit Canadian Theatre, Epilogue.//

Behind the Bench, Sports

All we need are some private jets: The untapped potential of women’s professional sports

by Tillie Burlock on

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Imagine if Lebron James, Auston Matthews, or Mookie Betts had to work a day job. Imagine if they were not paid unfathomable sums of money or built up to be some of the biggest celebrities in North America. Would they still be held in such high regard? When you ask aspiring young athletes what their dream job is, would their responses stay the same, even without the prospect of a future padded by millions of dollars? 

Young female athletes don’t get to dream about the 12-year, $426.5 million contract that Mike Trout signed. They don’t get to wonder what it would be like to sit on a private jet while smoking a cigar à la Michael Jordan. They don’t get to think about their next mansion, sports car, or yacht. They get to think about what their second job will be if they choose to dedicate their life to sport. 

The conversation surrounding women’s professional sports always seems to be singing the same tune: The pay is too low. There isn’t equal opportunity. There aren’t the same development programs. And although women’s professional sports have made significant progress in terms of pay equity, promotion, and marketing in recent years, there is still one major element missing: The celebrity. The prospects. The dream. 

As Anya Alvarez highlighted in an article for The Guardian, the root of the problem isn’t just what women are getting paid—it is also the lack of foundational infrastructure that they have for capitalizing on their talent. By focussing on equal pay, we overlook the small things that have allowed the men’s sports industry to be so successful. 

Let’s start with marketing at the collegiate level in the U.S. During the week of March 18, many were left wondering why there were so many empty seats at the women’s Frozen Four tournament games. Despite the men’s games having low attendance as well, the $182,000 per year discrepancy in marketing and promotion by the NCAA was a contributing factor to the lack of fans. 

An investigation by Kaplan Hecker & Fink LLP, a legal firm specializing in employment and discrimination matters, revealed that the structure of the NCAA itself is designed to maximize the support for the men’s March Madness tournament as it is the primary source of funding for the NCAA. Not to mention the $13.5-million budget gap in the 2021 tournaments. 

This disparity is felt across all levels of college sport. For Sara Escallon-Sotomayor, a Martlets soccer wingback, the social and financial barriers associated with being a professional female athlete made it difficult for her to fantasize about a future in professional sports. 

“I’ve always noticed that the boys who would play at the same level as me seemed to have such unrealistic ideas of what they could do with soccer after high school,” Escallon-Sotomayor said in a conversation with The McGill Tribune. “A lot of them would just expect that one day it would work out for them. There’s just so much money in men’s soccer, and so much more scouting. It has always been very clear to me that I need a university degree and that I need a job. And soccer would not be enough to support me, because realistically, I’m not the best player in the world, and there are very few women that have lucrative contracts.”

Indeed, the struggle to tear equal pay out of the hands of professional sports has been ongoing for a long time. After 39 years of equal pay advocacy by tennis legends such as Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova, and Chris Evert, Wimbledon announced that female tennis players would receive equal prize money in 2007. In turn, Venus Williams was awarded her well-deserved $1.4 million for her fourth Wimbledon victory. But even for one of the most decorated tennis champions in the world, Williams’ million-dollar prize did not come without a fight. Following a failed plea to Wimbledon’s governing body for equal pay—and an ultimate tournament victory in 2005—Venus Williams wrote an op-ed essay in the Times of London titled “Wimbledon Has Sent Me a Message: I’m Only a Second Class Champion.”

( Adrian Dennis / Getty Images)

Again, young female athletes are only left to dream of a world where the sport they love so dearly loves them back.

Elizabeth Benn, who was recently hired as the director of Major League operations for the New York Mets—now one of the highest-ranking women in the sphere of professional baseball—knows this feeling all too well. In an interview with the Tribune, Benn discussed the hardships of her unrequited love for baseball. 

“It’s tough because I think I always really loved baseball. I think that the lack of opportunity definitely affected my development, but it did make me more curious about learning the game on a more intellectual level,” Benn said. “When I wasn’t given the opportunities to play competitively and develop well, I ended up watching a lot more baseball, and studying it that way. It did affect my enjoyment. I knew that there wasn’t really a future on the field, to the point where I actually wasn’t even considering a future working in the game.” 

Even in scenarios where there is an opportunity to play at the highest level, female athletes are often brought to centre stage in a negative light. 

Megan Rapinoe, with a bottle of Veuve Clicquot in one hand and the FIFA World Cup trophy in the other, chanted “I deserve this!” and the media immediately berated her as cocky and unbearable. Brittney Griner, one of the highest-paid and most skilled WNBA players, has only begun to garner media attention after her recent arrest in Russia. And Lia Thomas, a transgender woman and NCAA 500m freestyle champion, has recently become the GOP and a sector of cis liberals’ newest obsession in their hell-bent attempt to keep trans people out of sport. 

The world knows how to talk about female athletes—but only if it is to demonize them. This form of notoriety is not so desirable for young athletes dreaming of a professional sports career. 

However, this negativity isn’t the case for all female athletes. For many, like Martlets head basketball coach Rikki Bowles, their love for the sport overshadows the weight of existing barriers. 

“I’ll be honest, when I began playing, it was out of a pure love for the game,” Bowles told the Tribune. “My father built a basketball court in our backyard, and I played out there until the sun went down and I couldn’t see the rim anymore. I guess as a child playing, I wasn’t aware of any burden or even thinking of the difficulties faced by professional female athletes.” 

Even for Benn, as a trailblazer in one of the most male-dominated sports, her love for baseball has never wavered. In fact, during her time working for MLB, she has seen more and more eyes gravitate toward women’s baseball. 
“The Breakthrough Series in Texas last October got so much publicity,” Benn said. “There were a ton of former players and agents coming to watch the games because they knew about it from Twitter. People are learning about it. And when they see it, they support it.”

(sagharborexpress.com)

As for Escallon-Sotomayor, she feels lucky to be playing a sport that has seen such rapid growth as of late. The development of the UEFA Women’s Champions League has exploded, with streaming service DAZN guaranteeing coverage of every single match for the upcoming season. Each participating team will earn $464,538, and each game will be available to global audiences in three languages—the language of the home and away teams, and English. 

The untapped excitement and potential surrounding women’s sports is unmatched. The opportunity to build up the infrastructure that has made men’s professional leagues so successful and profitable is sitting right there, waiting. The talent is there. The personality is there. The fans are there. All we need are some private jets.

Science & Technology

New vaccine could lead to the elimination of deadly parasite

by Cyril Kazan on

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Prevalent in habitats ranging from rainforests in Central and South America to deserts in the Middle East and Africa, a devastating protozoan parasite carried by tiny flies infects over a million people each year.  

This parasite, which belongs to the Leishmania genus, enters the body through the bite of an infected sand fly. Once inside the body, the parasite can cause two types of disease: Visceral or cutaneous leishmaniasis. In the case of visceral leishmaniasis, the parasite breaks down the internal organs, eventually leading to internal bleeding and, if left untreated, death. On the other hand, cutaneous leishmaniasis can cause severe skin lesions, and, at its worst, can even migrate and propagate inside of the nose, leading to the progressive destruction of the face. 

Despite the potentially severe consequences of a Leishmania infection, there is currently no vaccine that protects against it. For centuries, doctors in several countries with high rates of the disease have had to resort to intentionally infecting people with the live parasite on their arm as a means of immunization. The immunity conferred from a Leishmania infection lasts for life, and although this method prevents the infection from occurring at more critical locations such as the face or internal organs, it is considered unethical and no longer practiced. 

In collaboration with researchers from Ohio State University and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, McGill researchers recently created an attenuated form of the parasite that can be used as a vaccine. They used CRISPR, a gene editing technology, to delete a single gene coding for a protein called centrin, which plays a key role in cell division. Without it, the parasite’s ability to replicate is very limited, and it cannot survive for long inside the body. 

“Using CRISPR, we created a weakened parasite that is still alive but cannot cause disease. It still stimulated the same kind of immune response as the wild type parasite,” said Greg Matlashewski, a professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at McGill who co-led the study, in an interview with The McGill Tribune. 

The Leishmania genus comprises over 20 different species that cause different types of leishmaniasis— all of which are found in various parts of the world. Leishmania major (L.major) is the parasite that causes cutaneous leishmaniasis primarily in Europe, Asia, and Africa, while Leishmania mexicana (L.mexicana) causes cutaneous leishmaniasis primarily in North, Central, and South America.

Documented in a 2021 study, the first vaccine developed by the team targeted L. major. The safety and efficacy of this vaccine has been confirmed in mice, and human clinical trials are set to start in early 2023. In March 2022, the team published another study documenting the development of a vaccine against L. mexicana, which was also shown to be safe and effective in mice. Clinical trials for the L. mexicana vaccine will likely start in 2024. 

Despite the development of two vaccines, each targeting a different parasite species, the researchers expect that the L. major vaccine will be effective at protecting against all cases of leishmaniasis. 

“We will initially use the L. major vaccine for both cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis, but if it doesn’t work, we have the L. mexicana one as a backup, which may work better in the [North, Central, and South America],” Matlashewski said. 

The vaccines will be produced in India by the biopharmaceutical company Gennova. The estimated cost of an individual vaccine will be between two and five U.S. dollars. In contrast, a leishmaniasis treatment can cost up to $200 USD, and involves repeated drug injections with very unpleasant side effects. 

Given its low cost, great capacity for production, and that immunity from Leishmania lasts for a lifetime, Matlashewski believes that the vaccine has the potential to have a significant global impact. 

“The vaccine could certainly contribute to the elimination of leishmaniasis as a major public health problem.” 

Arts & Entertainment, Poetry

A penny for your prose

by Arian Kamel, Louis Lussier-Piette on

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Encapsulating one’s thoughts and emotions into words can be as rewarding as it is daunting. Such rewards are monetary in the case of the bi-annual Montreal International Poetry Prize, a competition for poems of 40 lines or less, where the winning poet receives $20,000 and, along with 54 finalists, gets to be published in an anthology by Véhicule Press. Hosted by McGill’s English Department, the prize is accepting submissions until May 15. Then, a judging committee of 11 local and international poets review the submissions and each pick five favourites. Of the 55 chosen finalists, former Poet Laureate of Jamaica Lorna Goodison, this year’s prize judge, will pick the winning poem.

“[The Montreal International Poetry Prize] was founded in 2010 by Asa Boxer, who was an alumnus of McGill,” Eli MacLaren, prize director and associate English professor at McGill said in an interview with The McGill Tribune, who explained that McGill began managing the prize in 2019. “We’re trying to maintain what Asa Boxer started and rooted institutionally, so it survives for a long time.”

American poet Victoria Korth won the Prize’s last cycle in 2020, with her poem “Harlem Valley Psychiatric Center.” This 40-line freeform piece tells the story of her father’s institutionalization, describing the toll of his mental health on their relationship in hauntingly vivid detail. 

MacLaren explained that Yusef Komunyakaa, the 2020 prize judge, selected the poem in part because of its “authentic voice.” 

“It convinced him that this speaker was writing about something that was really crucial to her, which was essentially the death of her father,” he said.

MacLaren also mentioned that diversity is a key priority for the organizers. “We are trying to get in touch with the international culture of contemporary poetry. And in order to do that, we want to make sure that the prize is open to entrants from all around the world, and also that we have a jury that can judge poetry in diverse ways.”

In addition to the poetry competition, the Prize will host a virtual poetry reading series, Fluid Vessels, a new addition for this iteration of the competition. From January to May, monthly readings from poets across the globe will be held to create a sense of community around the Prize—one that crosses continents while uniting jurors and poets from past and current iterations of the competition.

“We’re going to try to do [the poetry reading series] every year from now on, because it’s been working so well,” MacLaren said.

For example, March’s poetry reading featured Indian poets Nabina Das, Sridala Swami, and Maithreyi Karnoor. Das, one of the 2022 jurors, kicked off the reading with her introspective pieces. Her poem “Thinking Tank,” which was inspired by John Lennon’s “Imagine,” drew heartbreaking contrasts between the terminal consequences of war and the bliss of a world where the only tanks are thinking tanks. 

Next up was Swami, a 2020 juror and recent author of Run for the Shadows. Her shortest and most bittersweet poem, “Meditations,” gave shocking insights into her psyche and anxiety, such as how “disorder shapes the leaves down into my rippling mind.” Also unforgettable was “Annotations,” a citation of her youth that pays homage to the gardens, her private playgrounds, she once explored. 

Karnoor, a 2017 and 2020 finalist for the Prize, concluded the reading, displaying her artistic range through humorous snippets and poems of epic scale. Her breathtaking piece “A Burden of Beasts” traversed the Himalayas, the staggering behemoths which stretch beyond eye’s reach, indifferent to humanity’s whim despite their dependence. Leaving the audience wanting more. 

The Prize remains open for submissions until May 15. Upcoming poetry readings from Canadian, Jamaican, Nigerian, and other poets occur on April 5, April 19, and May 2.

Off the Board, Opinion

Every conflict deserves equal coverage

by Shafaq Nami on

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A month ago, I opened my social media only to be met with a flood of panicked posts. Ranging from tweets to reels and everything in between, the message was the same: How unbelievable it was that our generation was experiencing live coverage of war––a statement with which I did not exactly resonate. My earliest memories of hearing about ongoing war were stories of resistance during the Gaza siege, in particular that of Rachel Corrie, an American student who was crushed by an Israeli bulldozer while peacefully protesting the attempted demolition of a Palestinian family’s home. Even though I remember hearing about this incident at the age of eight, it actually happened five years prior, in 2003––a stark reminder of the decades of conflict and war that have been happening in our lifetime and covered by civilians on social media in the absence of Western coverage. 

Politicians and media figures’ attempts to garner sympathy for Ukrainian people by describing their “blonde hair and blue eyes” dragged many racialized people into the middle of the coverage of a war unrelated to them. This media attention did not portray the conflict in Ukraine as the latest addition in a long list of recent tragic wars and conflicts, but rather tried to emphasize that it was different. 

No one deserves to have their country attacked, to be forced to leave their homes, or to lose their loved ones violently. Yet, many in the media and in politics revealed a racial bias when they attempted to explain why the Ukrainians deserved it even less. 

Elevating Ukrainians above others under similar circumstances of displacement and war by describing them such as “civilized,” “intelligent,” and “educated” has exposed the dangerous, racist tendencies to further marginalize non-Western people. Other statements, however, were overtly ludicrous, with some claiming Ukrainians were less deserving of war because they were “well-dressed,” had access to “Netflix and Instagram,” or had similar “cars.” This dehumanization of people in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East not only normalizes their tragedies but facilitates their continued suffering. The insistence that those in the West are more advanced and educated than those in “developing countries” has been used in the past to justify colonialism and American military invasions of countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq—both of which were justified under the guise of “civilizing” the populations living there.  

Coverage of Ukrainian civilians learning to use guns and creating molotov cocktails depict them as heroes fighting for their country. However, in recent decades, Palestinians and other racialized people worldwide have been dubbed as “terrorists” for doing the same. The simultaneous glorification of white people and condemnation of people of colour who engage in armed resistance reminds us who has the right to defend themselves.

Biases do not just affect our perceptions, they also affect our policies: They dictate who gets to flee a warzone. Consider the African and South Asian students fleeing the Ukrainian crisis, who are struggling to find transportation and being denied entry at the Polish border. This treatment is reminiscent of how racialized refugees and immigrants have been treated—as criminals and “aliens” who threaten Western culture.

Beyond blatant racism comes ignorant and incorrect media coverage. In the early days, people circulated videos of airstrikes in Gaza falsely identifying them as Ukrainian. The claim that we have not been privy to a war or conflict of this scale before serves as nothing more than an erasure of the tragedies suffered by a long list of countries including Yemen, Libya, Ethiopia, and Nigeria. 

No one is immune from the harms of this selective empathy. For Ukrainians, where the conversation should centre their suffering, criticisms of media hypocrisy and comparison with other conflicts have become dominant. 

If there is anything that facing a pandemic together should have taught us, it is compassion. Being apathetic about war and conflicts is a privilege not afforded by all. In one part of the world, children are labelled as terrorists and killed for defending themselves against occupying forces, or have to walk 1,000 kilometers to escape a warzone, while those in another part of the world are making memes about war. With a wealth of information at our fingertips and the biases in media well-known and well-documented, it is inexcusable to be ignorant to human tragedies.

McGill, News, SSMU, The Tribune Explains

Tribune Explains: SSMU and McGill’s Memorandum of Agreement

by Ghazal Azizi on

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In an email sent to the student body on March 24, McGill’s Deputy Provost Fabrice Labeau condemned the adoption of the Palestinian Solidarity Policy, a question that was approved in the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Winter 2022 Referendum with a 71.1 per cent majority. Labeau announced that McGill found the policy to be in violation of SSMU’s constitution and threatened to terminate its Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with SSMU if the student union’s leadership does not remedy the alleged violation. 

What is the Memorandum of Agreement between McGill and SSMU?

The Memorandum of Agreement between McGill University and SSMU governs the relationship between the two institutions. The majority of the document describes the process by which McGill collects and distributes fees gathered from students to support the SSMU. It also outlines rules guiding the society’s use of the McGill name and the University Centre. Both parties typically renew and update the MoA for necessary changes every five years.

The current MoA was signed in 2019 and is scheduled to end on May 31, 2024. 

What is an ‘event of default’ and what happens after a default occurs?

According to SSMU president Darshan Daryanani, Labeau provided SSMU with a notice of default on March 22. Section 12 of the MoA defines a default as an instance where either party breaches any term of the agreement, or when SSMU violates Quebec law, policies of the university, or its own constitution.

Once a party believes that a default has occurred, it must inform the defaulting party with a written notice and allow them 30 working days to remedy the default. Should the accused party disagree over the existence of the default, either party may submit the dispute to be resolved by a jointly selected arbitrator within 90 calendar days of receiving the default notice. 

If the occurrence of a default is confirmed after the arbitration process, the MoA may be terminated by the accusing party. This would cause all funds intended for the society currently held by McGill to be placed in an interim trust fund. The funds will then be overseen by a committee of two McGill representatives, two SSMU representatives, and a mutually selected chairperson. Currently, the university is in sole possession of the gathered fees until McGill transfers the funds to SSMU on its three scheduled distribution dates. 

Would SSMU cease to exist if the MoA is terminated? 

No. Quebec’s Act respecting the accreditation and financing of students’ associations mandates educational institutions such as McGill to collect fees assessed by an accredited student association, such as SSMU, from students during registration. McGill is also mandated to transfer those funds to SSMU within 30 days after the end of the registration period. While Quebec law protects SSMU’s existence and financing, a termination of the MoA would prompt legal complications in SSMU’s use of McGill’s name. 

Is there precedent for the current dispute?

In 2017, Legislative Council representative Igor Sadikov tweeted “punch a zionist today.” According to anonymous sources who reached out to The McGill Daily, the controversy allegedly led Principal Suzanne Fortier to threaten to terminate the MoA if the SSMU Board of Directors (BoD) did not demand Sadikov’s resignation. Though Sadikov eventually resigned, the university’s actions spurred protests amongst students who viewed the threat of a default as undermining student democracy. 

While the aforementioned notice of default has been the only one publicly known since 2017, SSMU directors and officers have cited approaching decision-making with caution in recent years to avoid confrontation from the administration.

On Feb. 16, 2021, the motion for the adoption of the Divest for Human Rights policy passed at a SSMU General Assembly and Legislative Council. However, the policy’s final ratification by the Board of Directors was postponed on March 4 due to fears of an MoA default. While the BoD eventually approved the motion, hesitations spurred by previous threats of an MoA default overshadowed the process. 

Students continue to protest SSMU’s historical compliance with the administration’s interference in student affairs. Many believe the administration is infringing on SSMU’s democracy and are calling on SSMU to fight back against these challenges to student autonomy.

Album Reviews, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Charli XCX’s ‘CRASH’ yields gems among the generic

by Anna Berglas on

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If you’ve come to appreciate Charli XCX’s hyper-pop charm, you’ll love CRASH, released on March 18, a collection of dance tracks perfect to bob your head to. However, the fast-paced set lacks the expressionism that has defined Charli’s career so far. Especially following her latest, self-reflexive pandemic album, how i’m feeling now, CRASH deviates from that inward gaze.

Every song on CRASH fits the high energy of nightclub music, but the best tracks find ways to be original: They subvert the often hollow EDM club music style by layering melodies or incorporating elements of classical music. “New Shapes,” featuring the synth-pop vocals of Christine and the Queens, plays with a confident and bubbly ‘80s sound. The upbeat tone juxtaposes regretful lyrics about shying away from commitment, inspiring reflection from the listener about the complications of love and vulnerability. “Beg for You” is another highlight; Charli XCX shines in her lower vocal range over a harp melody, complemented by the more delicate voice of feature Rina Sawayama.

“Every Rule” strays furthest from the self-destructive lyrics and layered synthesized effects that are characteristic of many of the tracks on CRASH. It’s a pop ballad with a slow, gentle beat. Despite the more distinct sound, this love song falls short, lacking Charli XCX’s unique signature apart from unpleasant moaning. The lyrics are out of a high school diary, with lines such as “straight away, we started falling/Conversation never boring.” The ballad is simple, but not pretty—the auto-tune works against the supposed intimacy of a love song.

If there’s one thing Charli XCX excels at, though, it’s fun. For instance, “Baby” is a particularly groovy song, where Charli XCX delights in her allure with provocative lines such as “I’ma put you on the floor/Leave you wanting more.” The lyrics are simple and repetitive, but the dynamic instrumentals keep the track fresh. “Lightning” is another exciting song with some beautiful vocal harmonies, although the vocal splitting can be abrasive. To those devoted to Charli XCX’s characteristic experimental sound, CRASH may come as a disappointment. The album is unashamedly more mainstream than her previous records, which is apt in light of her recent lighthearted jokes about the joy of selling out. Though Charli XCX is not necessarily on a quest for authentic self-reflection in her music, this direction does allow for some more high-energy songs. Whether Charli XCX’s self-awareness saves the songs is up to the listener to decide.

McGill, News, SSMU

McCall MacBain Arts, University Centre, and Leacock buildings vandalized

by Madison Edward-Wright on

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On the morning of March 21, students arrived on campus to find the front of the McCall MacBain Arts Building vandalized. On the banners flanking the main entrance, along the front wall, and on the small statue in front of the building, phrases including “education for liberation,” “fucking slave owner,” “decolonize,” and “the university is a factory” were spray-painted in black and red ink. 

The “slave owner” comment and the call to “take him down” refer to the fact that James McGill enslaved Black and Indigenous people. Students had been calling for the removal of his statue for years before it was eventually removed after being vandalized. Whether the statue will be returned has yet to be determined. 

(Léa Bourget / The McGill Tribune)

The Arts Building was not the only graffitied site; the pillars on the side of the Leacock Building had “divest” written across them and the front of the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) building, the University Centre, had the words “democratize SSMU” sprayed on. All of the spray paint was cleared by March 23, but not before many students had the opportunity to see the messages. 

(Madison Edward-Wright / The McGill Tribune)

Taylor,* U1 Science, stopped to take photos of the messages scrawled across the front of the Arts and Leacock buildings after a class on March 21. While Taylor says he understands the message behind the graffiti, he disagreed with the methods vandalizers took to deliver it. Taylor believes it undermined student resistance to the McGill administration.

“I think making graffiti on the Leacock building is sort of detrimental to their cause, perhaps not the best way to protest what the university is doing,” Taylor said in an interview with The McGill Tribune. “I think there are more effective and more respectful ways of being in disagreement with certain policies.” 

Chloé Mersereau, U3 Science, spent half an hour sitting outside Arts on March 21, studying and watching other students stop and look at the paint. Mersereau agreed with Taylor, but felt somewhat conflicted.  

“I did not exactly know what it was at first, but I just saw ‘slave owner’ written all over and I was just a little bit shocked,” Mersereau said in an interview with the Tribune. “Graffiti is bad on its own, but I am torn because [James McGill] was a slave owner, so like, am I for this or am I against this?”

(Madison Edward-Wright / The McGill Tribune)

The McGill administration was not pleased when they discovered the state of the Arts building on March 21. In an email statement to The McGill Tribune, McGill media relations officer Frédérique Mazerolle stated that the university supports students’ rights to voice their opinions, but not in an illegal manner. 

“While we recognize the right of every individual to express their views and opinions, we regret that in this case, the manner of expression damaged University property,” Mazerolle wrote.

Science & Technology

From bioink to cryogenics: The rapid acceleration of 3D printing technology

by Atticus O’Rourke Rusin on

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A nozzle squeezes out a stream of molten plastic, ceramic, steel or even cells—layers and layers of which stack up, one after the other. Every layer laid down must wait for the last to dry before the next is begun. Patience is a virtue, and these machines are virtuous. 3D printers can create wildly imaginative works of art and cost-efficient products; they are only limited by the speed of research and the human mind. 

3D printers have taken the world by storm. Once viewed primarily as tools for the production of low-quality prototype parts or casual artistic endeavours, 3D printing is now being used in commercial production, like resin printing for shoe soles. 

Where things get even more interesting is the 3D printing of organic materials such as cells and tissues. Not only is it incredibly difficult to find organ donors, but tissue and organ transplants often fail due to a mismatch between donor and recipient, resulting in transplant rejection. Bioprinting, as this phenomenon is often called, aims to help solve these problems.  In 2018 alone, over 200 people in Canada died while waiting to receive an organ transplant. As bioprinting technology continues to develop, a future without waitlists may be on the horizon. 

Just as in the case of inorganic 3D printing, there are also multiple ways to approach bioprinting. One such example, and the most popular, is extrusion bioprinting. 

Researchers developed a bioink made from a mixture of materials, including cells, hydrogels, and growth factors—proteins that stimulate the growth of tissues. The mixture is placed into a syringe and the bioprinter is then linked to a computer. The computer guides the movement of the nozzle, creating the desired product by extruding the ink in different shapes and concentrations to mimic different organic tissues.

Hossein Ravanbaksh, a post-doctoral researcher in McGill’s Department of Mechanical Engineering, led a research team to determine how  to best store these materials and extend their shelf lives. Hydrogels, Ravanbaksh explained, are a key element in the bioprinting process. 

 “The hydrogels play exactly the role of a scaffold, to keep the cells in place and to keep all the nutrients in place,” Ravanbaksh said. “On the other hand, the waste materials from the cell can be washed away. The hydrogels will be degraded in the body so that the new regenerated tissue can take the place of the hydrogel after it is degraded.” 

In a way, the hydrogel is the life blood of the bioink: It acts as the body before the cells are put into an actual body. 

A common issue with bioprinting, however, is the shelf life of key materials—the tissue dies very rapidly after production. As most hospitals do not yet have the sophisticated machinery to 3D-print tissues on demand, organs need to be printed at another location before being shipped to where they are needed. This is where Ravanbaksh’s research into cryobioprinting comes in.

Cryobioprinting takes place at temperatures of between -15 to -20 degrees Celsius. The bioink exits the extruder, or nozzle, and touches the surface of a freezing plate, causing the bioink to freeze in a process called cryopreservation.

A primary goal of the study was to find the best cryopreservative that would ensure that the highest number of viable cells are produced and stored. According to Ravanbaksh, the bioinks are highly resistant to low temperatures and can last months in liquid nitrogen—the storage medium for these tissues. The tissues can then be transported to any hospital that needs them and thawed on site.

Much of the innovations in 3D bioprinting are still in early development; cryobioprinting, for example, is purely in its proof-of-concept stage. The possibilities are promising and could be life-changing in the near future. From mechanical Michelangelos to a new-age robotic Hippocrates, 3D printing machines have the ability to radically alter art, medicine, and industry.

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