In February, my roommate and I decided to register for an online workshop on Filipino cooking and food history. Taking place every Friday night, the 5-part series promised to explain the rich history that lay behind our favourite homecooked meals. Excitement grew as the start of the series drew nearer. But still, it was another addition to the ever-growing roster of virtual commitments.
On the first night of the workshop, we made pork and cilantro dumplings to commemorate the recently passed Lunar New Year. Once we were adequately surrounded by steaming piles of fresh dumplings, our household gathered around the table to listen to the first lecture. However, we did not anticipate the atmosphere of kinship and shared origin that the series brought about. Every Friday night, we shared our dining table with over a hundred other Filipinos calling in from the Philippines and across the diaspora. It felt like a weekly family reunion. After our first session, our apartment began looking forward to what we called “Filipino Fridays.” It was a comforting sense of assurance. At the end of every week, it was guaranteed that we would all share a satisfying meal and learn a thing or two about the many stories behind the food on our plates.
On the first night of the workshop, we made pork and cilantro dumplings to commemorate the recently passed Lunar New Year. Once we were adequately surrounded by steaming piles of fresh dumplings, our household gathered around the table to listen to the first lecture. However, we did not anticipate the atmosphere of kinship and shared origin that the series brought about. Every Friday night, we shared our dining table with over a hundred other Filipinos calling in from the Philippines and across the diaspora. It felt like a weekly family reunion. After our first session, our apartment began looking forward to what we called “Filipino Fridays.” It was a comforting sense of assurance. At the end of every week, it was guaranteed that we would all share a satisfying meal and learn a thing or two about the many stories behind the food on our plates.
This year has placed us all, however unwilling, in Zoom University. Now, weekends are for binge-watching lecture recordings. It’s easy to tire of the everyday routine of Zooming and the stifling feeling of cabin fever, but let’s pause to reflect on some of the positive changes made this school year.
Flexible assessment methods
Exams this year are offered windows of time that range anywhere from six to 72 hours, allowing students to choose when to take their test depending on their time zone, other commitments, and when they feel most productive. To account for technical difficulties, students are also given more time to write exams: Faculty of Science exams, for example, follow the 2x+30 minute rule, which gives students an extra two hours and thirty minutes in addition to the time frame a given test was designed to be completed in. For students who remember how precious the last five minutes of an in-person exam were, having more time is a relief. Additionally, the relative weight of each assignment is more spread out this year. Instead of having heavily-weighted midterms and finals, grades are distributed to numerous assignments and weekly quizzes. While this combats technical glitches that could arise during any single assessment, other students are stressed by the accumulating piles of work. Some professors have also implemented more flexible evaluation systems, such as dropping the lowest quiz score or counting the higher result of two midterms.
Recouping time usually spent commuting
Being sequestered at home constantly can make us realize how much time we spent going from place to place pre-pandemic. Subtract commuting from your apartment to McIntyre, to McLennan Library, to the gym, and you’ve probably saved enough time to write another essay. Furthermore, being in a large online class means that students can sneak in late without easily being noticed. It is much less awkward than being late to an in-person class, mumbling “sorry” while squeezing between seated students to find an empty spot. Similarly, if the Zoom fatigue truly gets to you, pressing “Leave Meeting” is much more subtle than physically exiting a class.
Greater event accessibility
Since shifting to online platforms, many events with restricted access have become open to the public. Students can attend seminars held at other institutions and tune in to conferences happening all over the world. Speakers can give their keynote speeches at events that they previously could not have easily commuted to.
Virtual networking sessions during events are another new reality. Although it may be harder to form personal connections among a sea of black screens, it could also present an opportunity for different, and sometimes less intimidating, types of interactions. For students who are shy to approach a speaker in person, popping into a breakout room could provide a more welcoming space for conversations to begin. Additionally, Zoom displays participants’ names, so potential employers and course professors alike can call students by their names—a precious feature rarely found in Leacock 132 classes.
Rock your outfit and study location
For students who formerly dreamt of attending class in the comfort of their polka-dot pyjamas while stroking their pets, the freedom of being off-camera can be liberating. Behind a blank screen in a Zoom window, students can listen to their lectures while doing whatever their hearts desire with the utmost discretion. By all means, feel free to turn on your camera if you want to share.
Adapting the day to your needs
Early birds and night owls alike can enjoy the flexibility that online classes bring. Students can choose to watch lecture recordings at their own convenience. The option to re-watch lectures is very useful, as it helps to reinforce information before evaluations. Although most Faculty of Science classes were recorded pre-COVID, many Faculty of Arts classes were not. Students who missed lectures usually asked their peers for notes, but hearing a professor deliver the material can allow for a better understanding of course material. Zoom has demonstrated the importance of recording live lectures, especially for students with disabilities who cannot go to campus. This essential accessibility feature will hopefully continue in many McGill courses post-COVID.
In adjusting to virtual learning, changes to evaluation methods and greater event accessibility have often proven to better accommodate students’ unique situations and preferences. As we eagerly anticipate the return to campus life in Fall 2021, let’s remember the positive lessons of virtual learning, such as the importance of being flexible and understanding of others, into the post-COVID future.
On March 12, McGill hosted a town hall to discuss the university’s plan for in-person instruction during the Fall 2021 semester. The administration announced that while remote learning will be necessary for classes with more than 150 students, students are expected to return to Montreal to attend most smaller courses in person. McGill’s promises may be encouraging to students suffering from online education, but the premature decision to return to campus is driven by administrators’ concern for the university’s revenue rather than students’ finances or health.
Unfortunately, Canada’s slow vaccine rollout increases the risk of vaccine-resistant strains of COVID-19, meaning McGill cannot be sure that the public health situation will be safe enough to permit in-person instruction by September. Based on McGill’s announcement, many international or out-of-province students who have studied from home during the pandemic must now find housing in Montreal. But if McGill rolls back plans for in-person schooling, these students will be renting apartments they no longer need. This is particularly concerning for students whose families have endured economic hardship during the pandemic. The university must be more careful about imposing new expenses based on promises that may not be kept.
In general, remote learning has not been popular, and McGill has seen international enrollment decline over the past year. Since international students pay higher tuition than Canadian students, the university has a financial incentive to maintain their enrollment by reintroducing on-campus learning. Yet if it is not safe to reopen classes in September, McGill will be faced with the choice of either putting students at risk of contracting COVID-19 or reneging on their promise to reopen—which would be dishonest to students who only paid for courses under the impression that they would take place face-to-face.
In this effort to secure international tuition, McGill has also overlooked the effects of continued international travel restrictions. The university’s plan predicts that international travel will still not be recommended by public health authorities in the fall and that a “vaccine passport” may be required to enter the country. Since vaccines are not equally accessible around the world, there is no guarantee that all international students can be vaccinated before they arrive. Further, compelling thousands of students to travel to Montreal while authorities advise against it—especially if some have not been vaccinated—is extremely irresponsible. Unvaccinated students will be putting themselves at risk of infection, and if a vaccine passport requirement is implemented, they may not be able to attend classes. The administration’s plan for an in-person Fall semester ignores their own predictions about public health, proving that the hasty decision to reopen fully prioritizes money over student well-being.
Fortunately, McGill’s policies do not neglect international students entirely. The Quarantine Bursary Program will help those who cannot afford the cost of Canada’s mandatory hotel quarantine. However, this program alone is not enough to ensure safety and equity during the Fall term. Students who cannot come to campus should have the option to study remotely to ensure that school remains accessible. Professors can continue to offer remote instruction in many courses by streaming or recording lectures. Above all, McGill must not make students choose between their education and their health or financial security.
Some in-person learning will hopefully become possible as the public health situation improves, but it is unreasonable to expect all international students to travel to Canada if restrictions continue. The past year has proved that online learning is both possible and necessary under difficult circumstances, and until the future is less opaque, it must remain an option for students.
In this episode of the Change Makers podcast, Staff Producer Noah Vaton speaks with the two founders of Designs for a Difference, Jesse Ye and Tai Nguyen. Together, they founded the Non-Profit Clothing Brand, in an attempt to try and help raise money for different organizations. They discuss how the brand came to be, their goal for creating a sustainable business, and their future goals.
A timid McGill student observes a group of classmates talking and laughing, and wishes to join them. As she contemplates whether to approach them, she remembers words of encouragement from a therapist: “You will make friends, you are kind and fun. People like you more than you think.” After recalling those reassuring words, she summons the courage to approach the group. Her heart is beating a mile a minute as she stands, shaking, waiting for the group to acknowledge her. To her relief, the group is extremely welcoming. As they let her in on their conversation, she is overwhelmed with happiness, but still fears not being liked.
(Jinny Moon / The McGill Tribune)
Many individuals face struggles similar to this timid student. Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is a type of anxiety disorder that causes extreme fear in social settings. Between eight to 13 per cent of Canadians struggle with SAD during their lifetimes and approximately seven per cent of American adults suffer from social anxiety.
SAD is characterized by fear, anxiety, and avoidance behaviours that interfere with one’s daily routine. Individuals with a social phobia have trouble talking to people, forging new social connections, and attending social gatherings because they fear judgment from others.
“I think the fairest way to describe it in my personal experience is feeling a bit like an alien trying not to be found out,” Ashley*, U3 Arts, wrote in an email to The McGill Tribune. “It’s as if everyone around you has some kind of cheat, or instruction manual you were not given, and they are all constantly inspecting you trying to prove that you don’t in fact know what you’re doing.”
This constant fear of being scrutinized by others is accompanied by both physical and psychological symptoms. Physical symptoms include excessive sweating, trembling, difficulty speaking, and rapid heart rate. Individuals also experience emotional and behavioural symptoms such as intense fear of interactions, and may spend time analyzing their social performance for flaws.
According to Helen Costin, a clinician at the Student Wellness Hub, these physical and emotional symptoms result in avoidance behaviours.
“A person with social anxiety may go to great lengths to avoid social interactions and will make choices based on avoiding these interactions,” Costin wrote in an email to the Tribune.
The fear of being judged by others, especially in public settings, can interfere with eating and working habits.
“I also have trouble being comfortable doing anything in front of other people, especially eating in public,” Ashley wrote. “There have been many days I haven’t eaten at school because I was alone.”
Other avoidance behaviours include refraining from dating and asking questions in public.
Symptoms of social anxiety often appear in early adolescence, around the age of 13. According to Dr. Tina Montreuil, an assistant professor in McGill’s Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, both nature and nurture are responsible for the development of the disorder.
“The incidence of anxiety disorders more generally are associated with a genetic predisposition combined [with] an interplay [of] environmental factors,” Montreuil wrote in an email to the Tribune.
Physiological abnormalities such as imbalances of serotonin, a chemical found in the brain that helps regulate mood, and an overactive amygdala, a brain structure that controls fear and anxiety responses, play key roles in the development of SAD. Moreover, anxiety tends to run in families, further supporting its genetic basis. However, an individual’s upbringing is also a pivotal factor.
“Systemic factors such as overly controlling parenting, greater criticism potentially stemming from inadequate parental support, lack of adequate coping skills, and poor sense of personal competence are all associated with a greater incidence of anxiety,” Montreuil wrote. “In some cases, exposure to violence, trauma, or bullying could be [a] trigger of social anxiety.”
Given that SAD has causes and symptoms that are both psychological and biological, psychotherapy and medication are both effective treatments.
Cognitive behavioural therapy, exposure therapy, and group therapy have all been shown to ease symptoms. Cognitive behavioural therapy teaches individuals how to control anxiety through relaxation and breathing exercises, and also how to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. Exposure therapy helps make individuals more comfortable in anxiety-triggering situations by gradually introducing them to social situations. In group therapy, individuals acquire social skills and techniques to interact with other people. Therapists try to provide a safe, non-judgmental environment for patients to practice these skills through role-playing.
Common medications used to treat social anxiety disorder include Paxil, Zoloft, and Effexor XR, which are anti-anxiety medications as well as antidepressants. However, caution must be exercised with medications: Common side effects include insomnia, weight gain, and upset stomach.
The pandemic has only increased the number of university students struggling with SAD. Extended periods of isolation have both eliminated opportunities for students to exercise social skills and cut them off from the social contacts they feel comfortable with.
“What we’re seeing in the data is that students across Canada and the United States are reporting increasing feelings of loneliness and anxiety—it’s a phenomenon that touches all university campuses, not just McGill,” Dr. Vera Romano, Director of the Student Wellness Hub, wrote in an email to the Tribune.
Students suffering from this disorder encounter many academic barriers in addition to feeling socially stunted. Even routine classroom activities such as presenting in front of the class and interacting with peers become harder, potentially impacting their academic performance.
“It could conceivably make it more difficult for such a student to give a presentation, participate in group work, and if severe enough, attend larger classes,” Teri Philips, Director of the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD), told the Tribune.
Students with anxiety often make their academic choices around the avoidance of potentially triggering situations.
“Trying to take classes with a larger number of people can make you feel less observed [or] scrutinized,” Ashley wrote. “Trying to take at least one class with a friend also helps if you have questions about the course material and are too scared to ask a TA, [as well as] signing up for a class with little or no participation marks.”
SAD can also impact student life outside the classroom such as when joining student clubs or participating in university events.
“I am the only one out of my friends who has not participated in or joined any university groups, organizations, [or] clubs,” Ashley wrote. “Since I don’t have to interact with anyone, I am unable to practice, and I get stuck in a negative reinforcement cycle.”
Despite their virtual delivery, McGill offers services to help students who are struggling to manage the symptoms of social anxiety. Many of these resources are available through the Student Wellness Hub, which attempts to provide basic mental health services as well as peer support programs to students at both the Macdonald and downtown campuses. However, the Wellness Hub is plagued by long waiting times, lack of staff, and absence of long-term support plans.
Other obstacles also further prevent students from accessing these services. Poor time management, already a stressor for those with anxiety, often results in students prioritizing pressing deadlines, pushing mental health concerns to the wayside. Moreover, 90 per cent of people with SAD often have comorbidities resulting in them suffering from an additional mental illness such as depression or a different anxiety disorder. These compounded symptoms and avoidance behaviours constitute serious obstacles for students in need of support.
The university needs to increase access to mental health services, but professors can also ease the burden on anxious students by improving classroom accommodations.
“I have always appreciated any effort to include anonymity by professors [in class participation],” Ashley wrote. “Simple awareness and recognition by professors would also be helpful, such as having multiple options so students aren’t forced into assignments or positions that will induce an anxiety attack.”
I love walking. From taking in the sights and sounds around me, to feeling the fresh air on my skin, I have fond memories of my walks, both by myself and with others. I often insist on walking home from wherever I may be, even if it means walking alone. The journey itself is almost always preceded by some inner turmoil about how late it is or how safe the route to my destination is—but I am stubborn and almost always end up convincing myself that I will be alright and that there is nothing to be afraid of. Vanessa Richardson, U1 Arts, shares my love of going on walks.
“Walking around downtown Montreal was one of my favourite activities to do while I was on campus last year,” Richardson said in an interview with //The McGill Tribune//. “It was nice being able to walk from my residence to a café to study or get some fresh air to de-stress.”
When I’m alone, I listen to podcasts, my current favourite being Modern Love by //The New York Times//. Otherwise, I will shuffle a playlist that I specifically curated to boost my mood during my solitary walks. I often purposely match my steps to the rhythm of the music, feeling like the main character. When I am walking alone, I usually start off feeling calm. Unfortunately, this feeling does not last long.
The decision to walk alone triggers a recurring cycle most women and female-presenting individuals experience on a regular basis: We overthink our actions out of a need to ensure our safety in a time where gender-based violence continues to skyrocket. While Montreal is fairly safe compared to other major cities, women’s safety is a perpetual predicament. In the past eight weeks, eight women have been killed in Montreal.
Stage 2: The onset of fear
It is usually when I look around and notice that there are few pedestrians that I become painfully aware of my vulnerability. As a 5-foot-2 woman of colour, it does not take much to feel unsafe on the street whether it be a car slowing down near me or a group of men that are on my path. Richardson noted that she was taught to expect the worst from a young age.
“I have always been concerned about safety while travelling as a woman,” Richardson said. “I was taught to keep my guard up at night, so that is what I did. Knowing [that] cases [of gendered violence] are even more common for women of colour has amplified my own fears.”
As I continue on my way, I feel my adrenaline building, the sun has set and my mind is suddenly occupied by statistics and stories. One in three women in Canada experience unwanted sexual advances in public, and in Montreal, several women have been assaulted while walking in the Plateau. I tell myself I should have taken the bus, yet buses are enclosed spaces and even waiting at a bus stop can be dangerous. Taking an Uber also does not comfort me: The company’s own 2019 safety report included over 3,000 claims of sexual assault from clients.
This is where the regret sets in. All the joy and excitement I felt before embarking on my journey home dissipates, and in its place is a feeling of dread. I wonder if anyone will be around to help me if something awful were to happen. The recent case of Sarah Everard, a U.K. woman killed by a police officer on a walk home in March, plagues my mind. For students like Sophie Arsenault, U1 Arts, Sarah’s story is just the latest reminder of the constant threats women face today, when even those who are supposed to keep us safe can harm us.
“Sarah Everard’s story is one which depicts an abuse of power,” said Arsenault “It is difficult not to assume the fear of repetition in incidents when women are found missing on such a regular basis.”
By the time I realize that no mode of transportation can assure me, the pedestrians who initially prompted my anxieties have long passed by. The looming feeling of discomfort, however, does not fade until I arrive home. The cyclical nature of this feeling on every walk is a reflection of what women are taught to deal with from a young age: Discomfort is expected.
Stage 3: Contingency planning
Plagued with horror stories about the dangers of being a female-passing person out and about, we are often taught to plan ahead to avoid the worst. Richardson stays in contact with friends so they know her whereabouts—a practice often foreign to men.
“I [make] sure to text my friends my location,” Richardson said. “[I] let them know how I’m doing throughout the night, and let them know [when] I got home safely.”
I, on the other hand, usually forget to do so until I am prompted by a message. I scan my brain, trying to remember who I shared my location with. The list includes my sister, my boyfriend, and my roommates, but I am not sure if they would check my location if I did not let them know in advance that I was walking home.
I regret laughing off a self-defense course offered in middle school, realizing I would not know what to do if I was confronted by harm.
Stage 4: Self-soothing
Eventually, my walk brings me to campus. Even if it means taking the long way home, arriving in the area always makes me feel better. The familiarity of the fairly-lit Y intersection and the sight of the Arts building brings a sense of comfort I do not feel on Parc or Sherbrooke. Many women, including Arsenault, consider McGill’s campus to be safe.
Whether they know it or not, all sports fans, even casual ones, have probably encountered data analytics, from Sportsnet graphics to a player’s batting average or save percentage. The sheer amount of data used in sports analysis can be intimidating for someone unfamiliar with analytics, but gaining a basic understanding of this data and how they factor into games is easy to learn.
Analytics is the collection and use of statistical data to help teams and individuals measure their performance and improve upon it. These statistics can be basic, like a basketball player’s rebounds, or more advanced, like a football team’s intended air yards per pass attempt. Three major types of analytics are often used simultaneously: Descriptive analytics gather information about previous games, predictive analytics predict outcomes of future competitions, and prescriptive analytics recommend how to improve performance.
Although the use of analytics is now standard across most sports leagues, the practice has only recently become mainstream. Billy Beane, the General Manager of Major League Baseball’s Oakland Athletics from 1998 to 2016, is believed to be the first sports executive to build their team’s lineup and strategy based on data analytics. The Athletics’ successful 2002 season, which culminated in a West Division title, was chronicled in the 2003 book and the 2011 movieMoneyball.
In the two decades since, many other sports have started to use analytics to monitor player data and a wealth of information has been available to the public. Dr. Timothy Chan, professor in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto, has followed the increased use of analytics in hockey for years.
“Back in 2009, when we were starting our hockey work, the data and the statistics that were being captured were still very simple,” Chan said in an interview with TheMcGill Tribune. “In the 10 years since, there has been an explosion of data that leads to advanced stats that we can calculate. The interest [has grown] from pro all the way down to amateur and other levels of sport.”
The applications of analytics in professional sports are endless: Teams use prescriptive models to call plays and create player profiles to decide who to sign or draft. These profiles are often used in contract negotiations and when forming game lineups.
Despite the benefits of analytics, they are not without their troubles, as sports are by and large a “boys’ club,” and analytics is no exception. An estimated 85 per cent of attendees of the 2015 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference were male, and only 22 out of 153 speakers were women. Chan is currently working on a project that aims to provide empirical data on the demographic makeup of the sports analytics community.
“We are trying to get a baseline of what is the state of diversity and inclusion in the field,” Chan said.
According to Stephen Gill, BCom ‘20, founder of the football analytics blog twitrsports, and master’s student at Northwestern University’s Analytics graduate program, the inaccessibility of data can also be a barrier to understanding them.
(twitrsports.com)
“There is a pretty big knowledge gap between the practitioners and the audience,” Gill said. “The practitioners don’t try as much as they should to make [information] accessible, and the audience sometimes can be resistant to change.”
McGill Athletics has started to use analytics for some of its varsity teams, including the men’s ice hockey team. Gianfranco Giuliano, the Director of Analytics for the Redbirds Hockey team, uses analytical data to strategize for games. Their statistical database contains over 75,000 data points, ranging from information about zone entries and exits, to expected goals, and passing networks. Giuliano said he creates post-game reports by analyzing video footage from games and then provides coaches with the data.
“The most important part of my job is communication,” Giuliano said. “Being able to relay these concepts in some form of a digestible, actionable kind of way is the most imperative. [You want to] give [coaches] something they can implement, whether it be a strategy, a lineup change, a concept, […] something where they can find some kind of a positive impact.”
In addition to game reports, Giuliano creates player profiles to better understand how players perform together on the ice.
(McGill Athletics)
“Once you have enough of those profiles amassed, 12 forwards and six [defence], then you can figure out why guys should be playing together, why they should not be playing together, and what works and what does not work,” Giuliano said.
After delving into sports analytics, finding a foothold to produce and share one’s work can be daunting. Some specific knowledge needed—expertise in math and programming languages—and where to find information is not made immediately clear. While one can understand descriptive graphics online without deep knowledge of math and programming, specific skills are needed to produce original analytics data.
A few key steps will go a long way toward appreciating analytics, but the most important is understanding the sport. Reading about Jonathan Drouin’s offensive zone deployment is not without knowing the difference between a power play and penalty kill.
The next step, Gill recommends, is to read as many books, blogs, or Tweets as possible.
“There are a lot of people who have written stuff in the past about every sport,” Gill said. “Twitter is a good spot to get a feel for the lay of the land, and from there, you can tell that there are [websites] that specialize in specific sports.”
Creating original analytics work, however, does require specific coding skills that can only be developed with time and effort.
“Entry-level analysts really need […] good programming skills, so probably Python or R, and a good grasp of basic statistics,” Chan said.
While a formal education in statistics or computer science is helpful, many of the skills needed for analysis can be learned through websites like Coursera, Khan Academy, and Harvard Online Courses that offer free classes on statistics, programming, and data science. For those less mathematically-inclined, however, Giuliano recommends exploring data visualization tools like Tableau or PowerBI—programs that generate interactive graphics and reports—as well as Excel.
Chan, Gill, and Giuliano all emphasize that the most crucial step to embarking on an analytics journey is to begin proactive learning. The process starts by thinking of a question and finding data to provide an answer. Next, publicize the data in any way possible by starting a blog, using Twitter, or attending conferences, and talking to people in the sports analytics community. When it comes to becoming involved in analytics, Giuliano stressed the importance of asking for opportunities.
“Honestly, just ask,” Giuliano said. “It sounds so naive and utopian just to say it out loud, but […] people will always appreciate the help.”
Innovations in analytics are made every day, and conferences and contests like the NFL Big Data Bowl and the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference encourage new ideas. As the world of analytics evolves, there are several new opportunities to learn and collaborate. With a clear picture of the tools available and how to access them, there is nothing stopping anyone from giving analytics a try.
The editorial below, published on April 7, 2021, referred to an anonymous complaint that had been made against Declan McCool in 2020 shortly after he was elected to the position of Vice-President Internal of the Students Society of McGill University
Despite reports in other media that the complaint had been dismissed on appeal, the Tribune failed to seek access to the appeal decision of the independent investigator Ms. Anaïs Lacroix. The Tribune failed to refer to those reports and also failed to contact McCool for his comments.
In fact, Independent Investigator Lacroix dismissed the complaints and concluded that “more likely than not, both parties had the capacity to consent to the sexual activities and that both parties gave continuous and affirmative consent to the activities…” Furthermore, that “there was less than a 51% chance that the incidents described in the complaint occurred.”
The Tribune apologizes for omitting the findings of Ms. Anaïs Lacroix’s as well as her dismissal of the entire complaint against Mr. McCool.
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Content warning: Discussion of gendered and sexual violence.
McGill students are constantly forced to grapple with gendered and sexual violence perpetrated within the community, and this year was no exception. In April 2020, accusationsemerged regarding then-incoming Students’ Society of McGill University VP Internal Declan McCool, and in December, survivors spoke out about rampant sexual violence within residences––an environment meant to be safe. Over the course of the pandemic, rates of gendered violence have skyrocketed, with public health measures posing significant barriers to escaping unsafe living situations. All the while, support from the university has been sorely lacking, with student groups attempting to bridge the gaps wherever possible by engaging in advocacy and providing important services. McGill’s failure to prioritize women’s safety places an enormous burden on students––one that they should not have to alleviate on their own.
The university has been slow to enact sufficient measures against sexual violence on campus. Despite recent revisions to the university’s sexual violence policies, its efforts have proven to be inadequate. McGill’s reporting procedures for sexual assault are burdensome and convoluted, and navigating the endless layers of bureaucracy is acutely stressful for individuals experiencing traumatic aftermath from assault. But issues with McGill’s approach start long before the reporting process. For instance, its Policy Against Sexual Violence does not guarantee protection from legal consequences to those who have consumed illegal drugs before being assaulted, an approach to handling disclosure that can discourage survivors from coming forward. Also troubling is the way the university failsto hold predatory professors accountable, despite numerous scandals regarding inappropriate conduct.
There are many important student initiatives in place to help make up for McGill’s ongoing failure to support female-presenting students and survivors of sexual violence, including WALKSAFE and DriveSafe, for instance, Both operations help students go home safely after late nights studying at the library or after a night out––situations that can be particularly terrifying for female-presenting students. While meaningful, these services may not work for everyone. For example, students who have experienced sexual violence in the past may be hesitant to trust just anyone with their safety, especially at night. There is no question that these organizations provide important services, but they alone cannot solve systemic issues of gendered and sexual violence.
McGill students have been clear that the university’s current approach to student safety is insufficient. Beyond providing support and proper education to student groups who are trying to support survivors, the university’s policies need to be further updated within a survivor-centric and intersectional framework, no matter the context in which they experience assault, rather than placing barriers to access based on factors like consuming illegal substances. Moreover, administrators must implement more robust mental health services to students who are put in harm’s way due to the lack of preventative measures. And as many areas of McGill’s campus are poorly lit, spatial changes are far past overdue as well. In light of its current fundraising campaigns, the university should have no problem funnelling resources to these essential student-run services, which are currently filling gaps the university has left.
Despite earnest attempts by student groups to make campus safer for their peers, systemic issues require systemic solutions. As a wealthy and influential institution, it is disgraceful that McGill ignores ongoing calls for better protection for its students rather than doing its part to address the ongoing crisis of gendered and sexual violence that festers within its walls and plagues its community.
Women’s achievements and contributions to medical science have long been overlooked. To combat this prejudice and recognize their accomplishments across all disciplines, the annual Top 25 Women of Influence awards highlight Canadian women who have inspired positive change in their field of work. This year, Dr. Lucy Gilbert, a professor in McGill’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Department of Oncology, was recognized as one of 2021’s Top Women of Influence for her work on ovarian and endometrial cancer diagnosis.
Gilbert was drawn to research surrounding the diagnosis of these forms of cancer due to the deadliness of the diseases and the decades-long lack of progress in improving patient survival rates. Gilbert started practicing medicine as an obstetrician-gynecologist (OB-GYN) in the United Kingdom and later worked as the Lead Cancer Clinician for two health districts in England. McGill, which did not have a gynecological research unit at the time, recruited Gilbert in 2001 to expand the university’s work in this field.
Gilbert has been dedicated to researching cancer in women and educating students in the field ever since. She currently serves as the director of both Gynecological Oncology and the Women’s Health Research Centre at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC).
Gilbert credits Montreal women for their participation in research trials, without whom her work would not be possible.
“The women of Montreal are so generous,” Gilbert said in an interview with The McGill Tribune. “When we [recruit] them into a clinical trial and […] we say it may help you or may not help you, but it will help other women, they say, ‘I want to help other women’.”
Women who suffer from ovarian or endometrial cancer often report nonspecific symptoms, prolonging the waiting period before diagnosis. Such delays in diagnosis are a significant factor in the estimated 3,100 and 1,300 deaths caused in 2020 by ovarian and uterine cancer, respectively.
Working with her team at the MUHC’s Women’s Health Research Unit, Gilbert helped develop the DOvEEgene test, a screening test that enables doctors to detect early forms of these cancers. Although the pap test is commonly used to detect the genetic traces of cervical cancer, the DOvEEgene test expands its diagnostic power to cancers of the endometrium, Fallopian tubes, and ovaries. DOvEEgene is capable of detecting such cancers with a 70 per cent sensitivity and 100 per cent specificity rate, meaning that false positives—and their great emotional toll—are avoided altogether.
Although researchers have made progress toward improved healthcare for women, there is still a large gender gap in the care that they receive. Gilbert recognized that many battles are still being fought—both by the doctors working to improve the quality of medical care and the patients seeking it. She emphasized that female patients, in particular, benefit from receiving care from female healthcare providers.
“When [women] go to the doctor, […] they are apologetic and [try] to explain away some symptoms,” Gilbert said. “They are not listened to and they are not taken as seriously as men.”
Despite the daily challenges of confronting illness and death, Gilbert is committed to supporting her patients and their well-being. She affirms the importance of taking the time to understand each patient’s unique lived experience—regardless of how difficult it may be to step into their shoes.
“Of course I get sad, but you can do a lot of good, and that makes me very happy,” Gilbert said. “It is not just about [fighting cancer], it is also how you live and how you die that matters. There is a great deal to be said [about] making the quality of somebody’s life good and the manner of their dying [comfortable].”
