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Art, Arts & Entertainment

Decolonizing Redpath Museum

by Nicholas Raffoul on

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In the past year, The British Museum and other European institutions have come under scrutiny for continuing to display artifacts that have been acquired through colonial violence and military intervention. In response to this global controversy, French President Emmanuel Macron commissioned a national report calling for the restitution of the artifacts to their place of origin. According to the report, written by French art historian Bénédicte Savoy and Senegalese academic Felwine Sarr, 90 to 95 per cent of Africa’s material cultural objects are held outside of Africa by major museums, validating Macron’s suggestion that European museums should no longer hold control over African heritage.

While the restitution of culturally-significant artifacts has become a media flashpoint among larger European museums, it is easy to ignore smaller institutions that perpetuate the same form of colonial appropriation of heritage objects, including McGill University’s own Redpath Museum.

The World Cultures Collections at the Redpath Museum features approximately 17,000 archaeological and ethnographic objects from a wide array of origins including Africa, the Middle East, Oceania, and South America. The collection includes over 2,500 objects from Africa, specifically Angola, Egypt, and the Congo which were collected circa 1900. Of the Redpath’s African collection, two thousand more objects originate from Egypt and the Redpath Museum currently holds and displays three human mummies, as well as other religious and decorative cultural items. While it is admirable that McGill is showcasing so many of these works, many of the artifacts, including the mummies, were acquired through theft or illegal trading.

In 2016, Barbara Lawson, who previously held the position of World Cultures curator at the Redpath Museum, published an article in Fontanus McGill discussing how McGill chancellor James Ferrier illegally obtained the mummies in 1859. Ferrier likely acquired the artifacts from Mustapha Agha Ayat, a well-known trader who was also a major figure in the illicit antiquities market.

Due to the dubious exchanges surrounding the acquisition of the mummy and other items, it is unlikely that Redpath Museum will ever determine the source of the mummies, making their potential return much more complex. Thomas Roddick donated one of the three mummies in 1895 after his travel to Egypt to participate in a colonial British military mission following his participation in the Anglo-Egyptian War of 1882. Similarly, the exact origin of the mummy is unknown.

Khalid Mustafa Medani, graduate program director and associate professor in the Department of Political Science and the Institute of Islamic Studies, explains that the way the museum displays its artifacts is unethical, and propagates an imperialist experience that advances the notion of Western superiority. In an interview with The McGill Tribune, Medani drew particular attention to the texts that accompany the mummy display.

“[Artifacts] are displayed out of context,” Medani said. “They are displayed in ways that diminish and devalue the people who made the artifacts, giving little historical context.”

On the third floor of the Redpath Museum, the descriptions accompanying the mummies vaguely cite how the works were sourced, presenting an incomplete and hazy history of the provenance of Redpath’s collected human remains.

“The mummy was brought to Montreal from Thebes in 1859 by James Ferrier,” one of the texts reads. “[It was] brought back from Egypt in 1859 and donated to Montreal Redpath Museum.”

Despite trying to clarify the artifact’s history, the text still leaves much unclear. The plaque does not detail Ferrier’s motivations for his trip, nor does it provide information about the illegal transactions that allowed him to take the mummy.

Medani also discussed Western curation practices, many of which reflect a belief that the West has the right to display culturally-significant objects from around the world.

“It is a philosophy that it’s Western museums and the Western world that can curate world art,” Medani said. “One of the trustees of the British Museum said very affirmatively ‘We are a world Museum for the world.’ [Western museum] understanding is that the epicenter, the most-elevated and advanced population, resides in the West and that [museum curators] have a legitimate right to curate art of the [entire] world.”

However, even if viewers take the initiative to look beyond exhibitions and search for artifacts’ contexts, obtaining such information is no easy feat. Annie Lussier, the current World Cultures curator at Redpath, described the process of finding more details about the origins of certain objects as extensive.

“Archives related to the collections are accessible to researchers only by request,” Lussier said, noting that researchers can only contact the Redpath Collection Manager, the Director of the Museum, or herself.

While research is possible, there are frequent barriers to accessing information, especially for the majority of Redpath visitors who do not have the necessary credentials to gain admission to the Museum’s archives.

“[The Redpath Museum] has a sensitivity to the ethical issues related to preservation, exhibition, and restitution of cultural heritage,” Lussier said.

According to Lussier, the Redpath Museum is currently working on updating their collection management policy, which will include a new section on restitution and will be available online. She also noted to improve cultural awareness, curators and historians should consult with relevant communities prior to the exhibition of objects.

“It’s a conversation we need to have as people from museums, but also with communities too, to find out what their needs are, and so listening is very important for us, especially listening to different voices,” Lussier said.

However, the Redpath Museum has not contacted any of the communities for which their displayed objects have cultural significance, nor do they have any concrete plans to do so.

Gloria Bell, an assistant professor of Indigenous Arts in the Department of Art History and Communication Studies at McGill, has visited the World Cultures exhibit in recent months, and believes there’s room for improvement.

“[The Redpath Museum] has a historicizing, outdated, primitivizing display [and employs] a very old school strategy,” Bell said in an interview with the Tribune.

Bell noted that the museum is understaffed and in dire need of more employees to begin the extensive process of reconstruction. Bell also discussed the possibility of the Redpath Museum asking contemporary artists to display their work in order to highlight up-to-date works rather than showcasing world cultures of the past.

Medani presented a variety of different solutions to remedy the issue of stolen objects: The immediate restitution of cultural objects, and the possibility of loans to African museums. The advantage of loans is that objects can be returned, and with less red tape.

“It is a temporary resolution, but it has already been happening in museums in Benin City and the Nigerian National Museum,” Medani said.

Medani also evoked the Benin Dialogue Group (BDG), which was established in 2007 to address restitution claims, as a possible solution to loan objects. The BDG is a consortium of representatives from a handful of European museums, the Royal Court of Benin, Edo State Government, and Nigeria’s National Commission for Museums and Monuments.

“That is a way to curate these exhibits in a joint-fashion, where you have the full participation of curators of African museums,” Medani said. “I believe that this is a first step.”

Medani cited Savy and Sarr’s pivotal report when discussing the spiritual-cultural implications of keeping heritage objects in Europe and North America for African youth.

“The report said that this issue led to the spiritual impoverishment of Africans themselves, alienating them from their own culture and history,” said Medani. “African actors are emphasizing a very important note: It is crucial that a continent where 60 per cent of the population is under 20 to have the opportunity to have their own history exhibited and to own the exhibit.”

Engaging communities in the exhibition of their cultural artifacts is pivotal for the Redpath Museum going forward.

“These are arguments that Africans have been making for a long time,” Medani said. “Now, they are gaining traction because there is a global consciousness that this issue is important.”

Arts & Entertainment, Music

Maggie Rogers gives more than a little

by Solomon Friedman on

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Some artists shine the brightest on their records and others on stage. On March 22 at MTelus, Maggie Rogers did both, breathing new life into her performance of the songs from her major label debut, Heard It In a Past Life, further electrifying the already impressive recorded tracks. In this triumphant concert, the Maryland artist had thousands sweating and dancing until they were sore.

The show opened with a set by emerging Tennessee-based artist Melanie Faye. Despite having only officially released one song, Faye has already played with the likes of Mac Demarco and Noname. Faye captured the attention of the giddy crowd for the entirety of her set. She began on stage alone, playing her guitar as if there weren’t thousands of eyes on her, highlighting her talent as an instrumentalist. She moved seamlessly from strumming playfully to shredding intensely, delivering each note with a look of determination and passion.

When Rogers finally appeared, she did so while her band played the shimmering opening notes to “Give A Little.” Dressed in a zebra print jumpsuit because, in her words, “it’s Friday,” Rogers jumped around the stage outshining even the bold vocals showcased on the studio version. Rogers’ second song “Burning” proved aptly descriptive of both the temperature and the energy in the venue. Following the theme of moving past pain and darkness, Rogers introduced  “Retrograde,” by announcing that the song is “about being in your deep dark shit,” and that, thankfully, “Retrograde is almost over.”

At times, Rogers’ album sounds a tad over-polished, but performed live, ruggedness and energy broke through its sheen and invigorated the songs. Rogers approached “On + Off” with a new drama and animation. “Back In My Body” felt complete with the roars of the crowd in the background and a stream of hundreds of bright white lights bursting out behind Rogers. She then introduced the single “Light On” as a song about finding the space on stage to escape and embrace her overwhelming life.

Constant dancing and a sense of freedom characterized the night. The undeniable groove of “The Knife” turned fans into a dizzy mess of flailing limbs while the jangly bliss of “Dog Years” caused everyone to sway in unison. Each coo in “Alaska” seemed to erase any stress carried by audience members and allow them to feel liberated. “Say It,” which Rogers sang while bathed in a lilac light, cast a spell over the crowd. The spellbinding quality of the song and the tranquil atmosphere were enough to make any viewer fall for Rogers’ charm. During “Overnight,” fans proved their adoration-bordering-on-obsession by wearing masks of Rogers’ face, causing the singer to laugh throughout the second verse. The set’s only misstep was a faceless and uninventive cover of Taylor Swift’s “Tim McGraw,” though it was easily overshadowed by the show’s innumerable highlights.

In contrast to the uncontrollable dancing during most songs, Rogers commanded the room with ease during “Past Life” and her a cappella version of “Color Song.” The latter was performed as an encore, which fans demanded by jumping and chanting in unison. Rogers’ ability to entrance each concert goer and push them to experience liberation and catharsis to the sound of her voice shows that she was born to be onstage.

 

Science & Technology

Stress: A living nightmare

by Abeer Almahdi on

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In Old English folklore, a ‘mare’ is a mythological demon that disturbs and haunts people while they sleep, giving them bad dreams. Adding the word ‘night’ before mare gave people further association of this phenomenon as occurring during sleep. Even the Universal Etymological English Dictionary, a text published throughout the 1700s, defined nightmares as a ‘disease’ imposing a ‘great weight’ on people while they rest. Many cultures around the world have their own versions of a night or sleep demon. What these myths have in common, though, is a resemblance to the unnerving, immobilizing phenomenon known as sleep paralysis.

“[Sleep paralysis is] a discrete period of time during which voluntary muscle movement is inhibited, yet ocular and respiratory movements are intact,” Brian Sharpless and Jacques Barber wrote in their study in Sleep Medicine Reviews.

The condition manifests differently in each person. The three basic types of hallucinations are the imagined presence of an intruder, chest pressure, and feelings of levitation or other out-of-body experiences. More rare manifestations include the feeling of falling and fear of dying. For some people, like sexual violence survivors, sleep paralysis can evoke memories of past traumatic experiences, which makes the experience even more horrifying. Although most people report extreme fear, some describe experiencing pleasant feelings during a sleep paralysis episode.

Rapid eye movement (REM) is a normal part of the sleep cycle during which the brainstem paralyzes the body by inhibiting motor neurons; since people are usually unconscious for this, the paralysis passes unnoticed. However, if the REM cycle is interrupted in a sleep paralysis episode, an individual will experience the dreaming and paralysis of REM sleep while fully conscious, sometimes resulting in vivid hallucinations. These episodes can even be multisensory hallucinatory experiences.

Initially thought of as solely a symptom of narcolepsy, sleep paralysis is now understood as also occurring in individuals without sleep disorders. According to a study from 2011, sleep paralysis is not rare among the general population, with 7.6 per cent of study participants having experienced at least one episode in their lifetime. However, the researchers found the condition to be much more prevalent among students, with 28.3 per cent experiencing the phenomenon at least once.

Stress and sleep disorders are closely interrelated: Each amplifies the other in a positive feedback loop. With the Candian Organization of University and College Health reporting almost 90 per cent of students reportedly feel overwhelmed and more than 50 per cent express hopelessness, it is unsurprising that students are particularly vulnerable to the effects of sleep paralysis. One possible reason for this correlation is that students, due to their stressful lifestyles, experience regular sleep disturbances. Many students find it difficult to maintain regular and consistent sleep schedules because of sporadic class times and intense academic pressure. In a study published in Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, student respondents reported several triggers for sleep paralysis, including stressful events, lack of sleep, fatigue, watching horror movies, and daytime naps.

With students in Canada increasingly overwhelmed by the stresses of academic life, it is important to recognize that, while sleep paralysis may be a strange sensation, it is not an uncommon one. It also serves as yet another reason to promote social and mental well-being on university campuses.

Art, Arts & Entertainment

MUPSS 2019: A tour de force of student art

by Kyla Ion on

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On March 21, the McGill University Photography Student Society (MUPSS) hosted its 2019 Annual Exhibit at Gallery Parfois. MUPSS’s exhibition aimed to encourage an exploration of art and expression by highlighting a diverse selection of student works. The photographs on display varied in subject matter and tone, ranging from ethereal landscapes to portraits, and effectively communicated both human fault and vitality.

Submissions to the exhibition were not restricted to MUPSS members or McGill students, allowing for a wide range of pieces on display. This year, the exhibition did not revolve around a specific theme; instead, photos were selected based on their artistry and impact.

“We [received] a thousand or so submissions and [chose] according to what we thought had a message, or [what] we found had very powerful imagery,” Margot Chambon, Vice-President (VP) Communication of MUPSS, U2 Arts said. “We always try to find new photographers and new kinds of eyes, extending our reach on the types of art we show.”

The exhibition was well received and expertly presented, and, despite no overarching theme, the photographs were arranged based on either their colour palette or the tone of their intended message. Though there was no overarching ideology behind the exhibition, the arrangement of the works within the space provided the room with a sense of cohesion. Since the intention of the gallery was left to the viewer’s interpretation, the photos on display acted as an exploration into the self. The thematic open-endedness of the exhibition allowed the viewer to interpret each photograph at first as an independent work and then again as a piece of the whole. Over the course of the evening, viewers would often return to their favourite pieces. According to Chambon, the social quality of the gallery was a priority in its development.

“We tried to create a space that’s for conversation, for discussion of the artwork,” Chambon said. “Not just coming to look for a few seconds and then [leaving], it’s more about meeting each other, talking, and discovering new works and new people.”

Constructive debate and involved conversation act as a fundamental part of the creative process, especially for McGill students who lack access to a fine arts program. Student organizations and initiatives, like the exhibition put on by MUPSS,  represented one of the few opportunities in which students get to hone and showcase their craft. Chambon was also featured as one of the exhibiting artists and finds that such an environment can dramatically improve the quality of future work.

“To share work with others and get some insight in the form of both harsh and constructive comments helps your work get better and helps you see what you should keep doing and what you should change,” Chambon said.  

MUPSS’s 2019 Annual Exhibition allowed for the exploration of student talent and for engagement within the artistic community. It represents an essential part of the McGill student body, rewarding the hard work and dedication of the artists exhibited.

 

McGill, News

AUS Council members working to overturn availability of POLI 339

by Ezra-Jean Taylor on

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Following the McGill administration’s decision to list POLI 339 on Minerva, the  Arts Undergraduate Society (AUS) claimed that it was working to revoke the move during its Legislative Council meeting on Mar. 20. Additionally, the AUS Equity Commissioners presented their 2018 Frosh Report, which overviews the accessibility and safety of the most receny Arts Frosh.

 

POLI 339 now being offered on Minerva, despite vote dispute

POLI 399, the controversial Political Science course that spurred debate in AUS Council sessions and led to the resignation of two Executive Committee resignations, is officially considered approved by the McGill administration. Originally, the course fee was turned down by a majority vote during AUS Legislative Council. However, executives held an “emergency vote” over Facebook Messenger, approving the course fee without calling a Legislative Council session. The course approval then went to the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Board of Directors (BoG), which ratified it and sent it to the Deputy Provost Student Life and Learning (DPSLL). Soon after the emergency vote was announced, though, the approval was put on hold and Secretary General Sophie Zhao and Deputy Secretary General Nathan Mendel began an investigation into the constitutionality of the vote.

After  Zhao and Mendel’s investigation concluded that the vote was unconstitutional, POLI 339 was unfrozen, allowing DPSLL to approve the course and post it on Minerva for registration. According to AUS President Maria Thomas, the AUS is working to overturn the class’ approval, but the logistics of doing  so are unclear. SSMU President Tre Mansdoerfer does not believe AUS has the ability to do so after the course has already been opened for registration by the Deputy Provost.

 

Frosh Report Extends Beyond Basic Safety Concerns

Equity Commissioners Maheen Akter, Meera Raman, and Evren Sezgin formed a committee to observe Arts Frosh events’ compliance with equity concerns. Their report summarizes and analyzes their observations from each event, and includes a series of recommendations for Frosh organizers.

The Equity Commissioners noticed that the inaccessibility of Frosh venues  continues to be a problem. Most of the bars and clubs which Frosh events take place at have multiple floors, many stairs, and no elevator access, while overcrowded boat cruises may also be cause for accessibility-related concerns.

“AUS Frosh [should] seek more event venues with limited or no separated platforms,” Raman said.

The Equity Commissioners also alleged that Frosh leaders and Orientation-staff (O-staff) were negligent with their responsibilities. They cited examples from the “Explore Camp” portion of Frosh, during which groups walked to restaurants, bars, and clubs around Montreal.

“There was excessive drinking by O-staff and Frosh leaders,” Sezgin said. “Most of the people that were drunk and unable to perform their jobs were employees of AUS, mainly Frosh leaders and O-staff that were there to [do their jobs] and work on harm-reductive [tasks] which they weren’t able to do due to their excessive drinking.”

The Commissioners also noticed that staff drank excessively during the inter-faculty events.

“O-staffers were so drunk [at L’Olympia] that they [were] at one point ushering Froshies into the club and screaming ‘shots,’” Akter said. “Frosh leaders were also getting bottle service and we wondered where the money for this came from.”

Overall, Sezgin added that they tried to address the intrinsic problems of Frosh.

“We really wanted to make [clear] this year that equity isn’t just [about] water and stairs,” Sezgin said. “It’s more about […] interpersonal relationships and positions of power and the different ways in which that perpetuates cultures of Frosh that are flawed and make Frosh a bad environment.”

In pursuit of this, the Commissioners made recommendations about Frosh leaders relating to power dynamics and creating a harm-reductive environment.

“We also recommend that AUS address the various questions around the misuse of power,” Sezgin said. “[They should also address the] failure to acknowledge […] the power dynamic [between…] the Frosh leader and the Froshie. We recommend that during their training, Frosh leaders and O-staff must understand the AUS’s expectations of them which should involve educating employees on creating a harm-reductive environment.”

The Commissioners also recognized the logistical challenge of executing Frosh, and stated that, despite the concerns they raised, they felt that Frosh staff did well overall.

Hockey, Sports

Charting the history of les Canadiennes de Montréal

by Zoe Babad-Palmer on

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On March 24, Les Canadiennes de Montréal, affectionately nicknamed the Fabs, lost 5-2 to the Calgary Inferno in the Clarkson Cup championship game despite McGill alumna Ann-Sophie Bettez’s two goals. With four Cups, more than any other team in Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL) history, the disappointing loss does not threaten Montreal’s place at the forefront of professional women’s hockey. While the CWHL was only founded in 2007, the Canadiennes’ history stretches back over 80 years.

In 1933, the Canadiennes were established as the official francophone women’s hockey team in Montreal. Early on in their history, they formed a rivalry with the Maroons, the local anglophone women’s team. Despite the fact that all players were amateurs, their rivalry was as fierce as the one between their male counterparts, the Canadiens and Maroons of the NHL. Twenty years later, however, the advent of TV broadcasting solidified the public’s conception of hockey as a male sport, and women’s leagues all but disappeared.

Approximately 50 years later, the Canadiennes re-emerged in the National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL). The team was called the Montréal Wingstar until 2003; they then changed their name to the Montréal Axion until the league disbanded in 2007. Several Axion players are still involved in the Canadiennes’ organization: Forward Caroline Ouellette is a member of the coaching staff, while forward Karell Emard is still an active player.

After the NWHL disbanded, the CWHL immediately took its place as the only professional women’s hockey league in North America until a new, U.S.-based NWHL emerged four years ago. Then called the Montréal Stars in the NWHL, the team saw immediate success from the league’s inception.

Through the years, Les Canadiennes, who settled on their current name in 2015, count several Olympians in their history including goaltenders Kim St. Pierre and Charline Labonté as well as current captain Marie-Philip Poulin, Hilary Knight, and former McGill Martlet Mélodie Daoust.

While the Canadiennes’ history is one of overall success, they have faced significant resistance. In the earliest days of women’s hockey, popular opinion asserted that by playing rough sports like football and hockey, women were harming their families. Detractors still claim that women’s hockey is less interesting and shows less skill than men’s hockey. There are fewer opportunities for female players to develop, and they generally have shorter playing careers, as nearly all of them have day jobs to supplement their minimal CWHL salaries.

In bringing attention to this divide, one of the most critical moments in the Canadiennes’ history was the establishment of the partnership with the Montreal Canadiens. Following the Calgary Flames and Toronto Maple Leafs’ lead, the oldest and most storied NHL franchise announced in March 2015 that it would back the Canadiennes. Support came in the form of social media promotion, financial assistance, and the ability to use the Canadiens’ larger venues. They also had the Canadiennes match the men’s team name for better brand recognition.

In promoting the sport, it helps that the Canadiennes act as incredible role models for young girls. Players put in efforts, such as staying after games to sign autographs and hosting learn-to-play events and camps, to inspire the next generation of female hockey players. They show girls that they can aspire to be the next Marie-Philip Poulin, rather than the ”Sidney Crosby of women’s hockey.”

Student Life

Tribune Tries: Dumpster diving

by Leyla Moy on

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One event stood out among the typical offerings at the SSMU Environment Committee’s Sustainable Eating Week, held from March 17 to 23: A Dumpster Diving 101 workshop led by McGill student Emma Melis, U0 Arts & Sciences. Melis was introduced to urban scavenging when she learned to reclaim discarded food and cook sustainably from people who dumpster dived their way through school. She grew to embrace the opportunity of offsetting food waste and now emphasizes it in her environmentalist lifestyle.

Promotion for the event underscored infrastructural issues that contribute to excess food waste and individual measures to reclaim unused food that would otherwise go to waste. A report by food rescue charity Second Harvest showed that almost 60 per cent of all food produced in Canada is wasted. This constitutes a net loss of over $49 billion per year, which would be enough to feed every Canadian for five months.

Melis introduced the workshop to attendees as a way to lift the stigma attached to urban food foraging. The workshop’s unconventional nature attracted more than 20 individuals who followed Melis through rush-hour underground traffic from campus to the Sherbrooke metro station. From there, we walked down back alleys, searching for promising bins.

Though our first bin was a bust, Melis encouraged us to stay hopeful—dumpster diving is inherently unpredictable. Many stores change their pick-up schedules, keeping divers guessing, and bins are often locked. Given all of the variables at play, finding unlocked bins at the optimal time to find the freshest over-packaged produce is an art in itself. Melis told workshop attendees that grocery store bins are best and are more likely to have untouched produce, while those from restaurants and personal homes likely only have scraps.

Our successful stops yielded mostly small furniture items, art, and home goods. Reclaiming these perfectly-usable pieces was gratifying; however, Melis focused on food items as a way to combat broader infrastructural issues that contribute to waste such as sell-by dates that cast off usable produce. She also emphasized the need for compassion while dumpster diving as an environmentalist.

“Rather than approaching this issue with an attitude of greed, [we should] consider this systemic problem of food waste from a place of compassion and humility,” Melis said. “Although a full dumpster means you’ll have some great finds that day, it also shows how much food waste is going on.”

This compassionate approach is evident in dumpster-diver etiquette—out of courtesy for those who empty the bins, their owners, and future divers hitting the same spot, Melis advised the group not to leave a mess behind. When diving, it is bad form to tear bags; rather, foragers should open them manually and tie them back up when finished. Along our route, Melis also noticed trash mixed in with recycling and vice-versa and encouraged us to move these misplaced items when we could.

Throughout the course of the workshop, we gained a wealth of dumpster-diving knowledge, but, for posterity, members of the community have collaborated on a map which gives potential divers a sense for the lay of the land. The emergence of these sorts of online dumpster-diving forums are a relatively new phenomenon and allow regular divers to share tips and adapt to the fickleness of garbage pick-up.

Many attendees asked about the legality of dumpster diving. Dumpster diving in Canada is legal as long as the garbage in question is not on private property. Melis advised us to stay calm, stop, and comply if confronted by law enforcement given that diving itself is not a punishable offence.

Melis hoped that the workshop would serve as a starting point to help participants feel more comfortable searching in their areas for promising dumpsters. As the weather warms up, she is looking to organize another similar event through the SSMU Environment Committee: A ‘Dumpster Diving 102’ may be on the horizon for those interested in honing their skills and diving through the bounty of spring produce yet to come.

 

Sports

10 things: Female athletes who inspire us

by Miya Keilin, Kaja Surborg, Chiso Ufondu, Micah Angell, Zoe Babad-Palmer on

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Angela James

Zoe Babad-Palmer

Few hockey players embody perseverance like Angela James. Despite opposition at every stage of her 20-year professional career, James has left a monumental mark on the hockey scene. Along with Cammi Granato, James was one of the first two women inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2010 and continues to inspire by coaching young girls.

Clara Hughes

Kaja Surborg

Clara Hughes won a total of six Olympic medals between 1996 and 2010 in both cycling and speed-skating. A rare all-season athlete, she is tied with speed skater Cindy Klassen for the most Olympic medals earned by a Canadian. She also is a spokesperson for Bell Let’s Talk and is an excellent role model for young athletes. In her 2015 book Open Heart, Open Mind, Hughes opened up about her struggles with mental health issues and explained how sports helped her build a better life.

Manon Rhéaume

Zoe Babad-Palmer

Manon Rhéaume shattered countless barriers over the course of her career: She was the first woman to play in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League’s regular season, the first and only woman to suit up for an NHL team in an exhibition game, and the first woman to play in a professional men’s league, the International Hockey League, during the regular season. Now, the hockey legend coaches a U12 girls’ team and helps young women in sports get scholarships through the Manon Rhéaume Foundation.

Serena Williams

Chiso Ufondu

Serena Williams redefined what it meant to be a female athlete in modern society: Her athletic prowess, coupled with her dominance and longevity in tennis, propelled her to the top of the game and made her an international icon. Growing up as a young black girl, Serena Williams showed me that someone like me can achieve greatness despite the barriers placed in front of them.

Christine Sinclair

Kaja Surborg

Since her debut for the Canadian women’s national soccer team in 2000, Christine Sinclair has become the face of women’s soccer in Canada. Captaining her country to back-to-back Olympic bronze medals in 2012 and 2016, she is currently second in all-time goals scored in international play with 179. Sinclair has led by example throughout her career and will long be remembered as a Canadian sporting legend.

Jessica Mendoza

Miya Keilin

The power-hitting outfielder made her Team USA debut in 2004 and has since become a household name in softball. Mendoza is also paving the way for women in sports broadcasting: As a baseball analyst for ESPN, she sits alongside her male counterparts and challenges the antiquated notion that women cannot work in men’s sports media.

Pandelela Rinong

Micah Angell

At the 2012 Olympics, Pandelela Rinong inspired an entire generation of young female athletes in Malaysia when she won a bronze medal in the 10m diving event. She became the country’s first female Olympic medallist as well as its first medalist in any sport other than badminton. With her success on the world stage, Rinong made a future in sports for Malaysian girls truly tangible for the first time.

Sam Kerr

Kaja Surborg

Australian soccer star Sam Kerr is a name soccer fans should get to know. She represents the growth of women’s soccer outside of the historically-dominant European and North American spheres. Her signature backflip goal celebration has made her easy to recognize on the field, and her dominant offensive presence has marked her as a key member on both her national team and club teams over the years.

Elena Delle Donne

Micah Angell

Boasting an awe-inspiring combination of post moves, outside shots, and ball-handling skills, Elena Delle Donne is everything that young female basketball players aspire to be. When Delle Donne announced her engagement to her long-time girlfriend Amanda Clifton in 2016, she became an idol for the LGBTQ+ community, too.

Jen Kish

Micah Angell

When Jen Kish won the bronze medal for Canada in Women’s rugby sevens at the 2016 Olympics, she showed the country that women’s contact rugby is a worthwhile sport. Watching Kish power through tackle after tackle reminded the world that women have a place in contact sports and that they are just as tough as men—if not tougher.

 

fee
Editorial, Opinion

Base fee increase: Too much, too fast

by The McGill Tribune Editorial Board on

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While students usually skim past referendum questions, on the ballot for the Student’s Society of McGill University (SSMU) Winter Referendum 2019 is a proposal for a significant mandatory base-fee increase. President Tre Mansdoerfer has suggested a $30 increase, which would raise the current fee from $44.33 to $74.33 per term for full-time students. The substantial proposition is the first since a failed attempt in 2016, when a now relatively minor proposal of a $5.50 raise failed to pass. One justification for the hike is that SSMU’s membership fee is one of the lowest among Canadian universities. Although SSMU’s current base fee is an insufficient contribution given the services it provides, it is unwise of SSMU to ask for such a sudden and dramatic increase of nearly 70 per cent.

Mansdoerfer presented the proposed fee increase alongside a ‘Master Plan’ for future projects to help guide incoming executives. Some of the plan’s suggestions are valuable; for example, the plan to hire more support staff for SSMU’s overworked executives is one the Tribune has endorsed. However, new staff would not be limited to executive assistants—Mansdoerfer has suggested that SSMU hire a full-time public relations specialist to handle their communications. Paying professionals to manage SSMU’s image is not an appropriate use of students’ money.

The Master Plan also suggests several expensive, large-scale, and likely unfeasible initiatives. For example, the plan proposes the creation of a wellness hub that would house psychologists and other professionals at 3501 Peel, as well as additional renovations to the University Centre. Rather than hiring medical professionals to make up for McGill’s lack of satisfactory student services, SSMU should focus on fulfilling their key mandate of representing students’ interests to the administration. The hiring of two psychologists, one nutritionist, one massage therapist, and one physiotherapist will not solve McGill’s mental health crisis; however, pressuring the administration to reallocate proper funds to student wellness might. While this is a well-intentioned undertaking, founding a wellness hub is likely too wide-scale of a project to foist on executives with single-year terms.

The theme of admirable-yet-unrealistic ambition extends throughout the Master Plan. For example, its suggestion to renovate Gerts to become a more ‘café-style’ bar like SUWU is an impractical goal for a students’ society. The past failure of Sadie’s is proof that investing in a new restaurant may not be the most lucrative addition to the new University Centre.

SSMU faced unprecedented barriers this year, particularly considering the University Centre closure in March 2018. Consequently, SSMU’s finances have suffered the loss of revenue from the Gerts Bar, and the renting of additional off-campus space to house clubs and services. However, these additional costs are temporary and do not themselves justify a permanent fee increase.

The fact that SSMU’s base fee has not increased since 2007 is unacceptable, and SSMU should work toward implementing a fee that is comparable to those of other universities. However, SSMU should not expect this change to happen overnight. Instead, SSMU should ask for a series of incremental fee increases, an option that students will likely find more palatable. Not only is such a large undertaking overwhelming for an already overworked executive, but such a drastic raise poses financial concerns for many students.

Before investing in future projects, SSMU should fix their internal operations. Instead of hiring a public relations staff member, the next Vice-President Internal should consider new strategies to handling communications and outreach. While a fee increase is justified, the amount proposed is not, and neither is the associated Master Plan. For their next proposed fee-increase, SSMU should suggest a more realistic number—not shoot for the moon.

LICM
Editorial, Opinion

SSMU Winter 2019 referendum endorsements

by The McGill Tribune Editorial Board on

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The McGill Tribune presents its endorsements for the Winter 2019 Student’s Society of McGill University (SSMU) referendum period.

Student Services Fee increase: Yes with reservations

In response to the inadequate mental health resources on campus, McGill’s Student Services is investing in multiple large-scale projects and renovations. This includes the Rossy Student Wellness Hub, a multi-million dollar project that will consolidate counselling, medical, and psychiatric services to promote health and wellness. Besides the Wellness Hub, Student Services plans to use the fee increase to hire more counsellors and medical doctors and to resolve current operating costs. To resolve the ensuing $3 million operational deficit, McGill has agreed to contribute an additional $337,000 to Student Services provided that the fee increase passes. Additionally, the Student Services fee has not increased in six years. The likely alternative to a fee increase would be budget cuts within Student Services, especially in areas such as Campus Life & Engagement (CL&E) and McGill’s Office for Religious and Spiritual Life (MORSL). However, if the fee is approved, Student Services must consult students about how the Rossy Wellness Hub can address their needs. An increase in the number of general practitioners, receptionists, and counsellors will better equip Student Services to navigate mental health crises, and the Tribune believes that voting ‘yes’ is a necessary step in the right direction. Still, it is important that Student Services deliver on their promises and continue investing in crucial services like CL&E or MORSL.  

Athletics Facility Improvement Fee renewal: No

The Athletics Facility Improvement Fee is designed to improve and update McGill’s athletics facilities, which are operating at near or full capacity. If approved, the money from this fee increase would be matched by the university. On March 19, the Tribune published a commentary by SSMU Indigenous Affairs Commissioner Tomas Jirousek in which he asked students to vote ‘no’ to the fee. Jirousek explained that the men’s varsity team name is derogatory, and that its continued presence inside the athletics facilities isolates and excludes Indigenous students. Although Principal Suzanne Fortier has the final decision-making power with regard to the men’s varsity team name, the fee’s failure would put pressure on the administration to change the men’s varsity team name. A ‘no’ vote is a pledge of support to the Indigenous community at McGill, and to #ChangeTheName. The Tribune believes that the student body should finance these improvements, but only once they are accessible to all students.

Creation and restructuring of the SSMU Space Fund Fee: Yes

The Space Fee would allow SSMU to collect necessary funds to support club operations and student events. The current $10.37 base fee is shared between nine campus resources, and it would be increased by $1 to accommodate a fund dedicated to renting space for campus events. The fee restructuring will give SSMU more money to rent spaces, a necessary provision given the prolonged construction on the SSMU building. Since the SSMU building closure, much of the Campus Life Fund has been depleted to pay for additional space, which is financially unsustainable. Though the reopening of the SSMU building will ultimately alleviate this stress on the Campus Life Fund, additional money is necessary to secure spaces in the interim.

SSMU Health and Dental Plan fee increase: Yes

SSMU’s health and dental insurance plan is an important service for many students on campus, particularly international students, who currently do not benefit from dental care under the Blue Cross International Student Health plan. The proposed Health and Dental plan fee increase responds to the rising cost of health care while expanding coverage for students. In particular, the new fee would increase coverage for psychological services, introduce coverage for massage therapy, and eliminate coverage for naturopathy. Additionally, the increase in the Dental Plan fee will cover the cost of rising dental insurance premiums. A ‘yes’ vote to increase the opt-outable Health Plan fee by $50 and the opt-outable Health and Dental Plan fee by $50 will help SSMU to continue providing comprehensive coverage.

Restructuring of the SSMU Service Fee: Yes

Currently, SSMU collects fees to fund services on campus on an individual basis, with separate fees for 13 student services such as the Sexual Assault Centre of the McGill Students’ Society (SACOMSS), Television McGill (TVM), and the Arab Student Network. For the last several years, SSMU has posted significant bulk of student fees collected for some services, most recently a $325,702 surplus in 2018; while some services, like McGill Student Emergency Response Team (MSERT), still suffer extreme deficits. The question proposes putting such surpluses into a new Student Life Fund, which would be accessible to current services so that they can engage in large capital expansion projects and help pay for administrative overhead costs. The Tribune endorses voting ‘yes’ to the creation of this fund. Creating a mechanism to redistribute surplus revenue across a set of services with highly varied operating costs would maximize the utilization of existing funds and help bring SSMU into compliance with standard not-for-profit accounting practices.

Restructuring of the SSMU Safety Service Fee: Yes

The current $3.97 Safety Network Fee funds the operation of four on-campus safety services: SACOMMS, MSERT, DriveSafe, and WalkSafe. Currently, the fee’s distribution allocates $0.75 to MSERT, $2.50 to SACOMSS, $0.60 to DriveSafe, and $0.12 to WalkSafe. The motion proposes that this distribution be adjusted to account for the services’ respective financial situations: SACOMSS has consistently run surpluses over the past three years, while MSERT suffered an approximately $15 thousand deficit in 2018 and does not have the capital to sustain its operations. SSMU Vice-President (VP) Finance Jun Wang has proposed that the structure of the $3.97 fee be restructured as follows: $1.50 for MSERT, $1.75 for SACOMSS, $0.60 for DriveSafe, and $0.12 for WalkSafe. The Tribune endorses this change to the fee structure to ensure that fees for services to meet their varied needs.

Renewal of the Campus Life Fund Fee: Yes

The Campus Life Fund fee supports projects, events, conferences, publications, productions and athletic teams run by students. Full-time students currently pay $2 per semester while part-time students pay $1 per semester, and it is essential that they continue to support student-run initiatives. The fund allows for the spontaneous development of new projects that may not have been budgeted for at the beginning of an organization’s fiscal year and encourages groups to provide for the community regardless of their financial limitations. The fee is especially beneficial to Independent Student Groups and other groups that do not have club or service status within SSMU and therefore cannot access the Club Fund. The fund has also benefited groups during the University Centre’s closure by prioritizing applications that needed assistance financing rentable spaces.

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