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2015-2016 PGSS executive reviews

by McGill Tribune Editorial Boad on

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The McGill Tribune Editorial Board reviews the 2015-2016 PGSS executive on its performance. Click on one of the pictures to get started.

 
 
Brighita Lungu

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Mina Anadolu

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Devin Mills

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Danielle Toccalino

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Behrang Sharif

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Bradley Por

 

 

 

 

 

 

(pgss.mcgill.ca)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Members Services Officer, Brighita Lungu
 

Brighita Lungu has held the position of PGSS Member Services Officer for two consecutive years. This year, Lungu has taken on many initiatives including the completion of a “Mental Health in Grad School” video, depicting testimonials of students addressing the stigma of mental health issues—a project initially started by Lungu during the 2014-2015 academic year. Lungu was involved in the hiring of a new family care resource position within the Social Equity and Diversity Education Office (SEDE) and contributed to the memorandum of agreement negotiations with the SSMU Daycare. During council meetings, Lungu was a very vocal contributor to all discussions.

A student fee surplus led to an available $40,000 in the PGSS budget, presented in February. Lungu advocated for the immediate spending of this money, rather than putting it towards the $600,000 deficit that the Special Projects Fund had run, claiming that because the money came from current students, it should go towards directly benefitting them. Lungu was an acceptable Member Services Officer. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Internal Affairs Officer, Mina Anadolu

 

 

 

Despite entering the position in Winter 2016, Anadolu brought innovation, and determination to her portfolio, and succeeded in carrying out many projects throughout her term. Anadolu successfully reached out to various clubs and services, engaging them in new ways with PGSS, and promoted inclusivity in the events that were hosted. She demonstrated initiative in planning these events, and even went outside of her portfolio to establish programs such as the one-on-one peer support hours at Thomson House. 

Anadolu could have improved communication with the Post-Graduate Student Associations in order to facilitate greater collaboration and consultation. Although greater efforts to communicate to the PGSS student body and inform these constituents about the events taking place have been made, Anadolu ultimately achieved her goals of engaging a larger group of students with PGSS. Anadolu has had a successful semester as Internal Affairs Officer, and already has plans in place for how to move forward in the position next year, to host inclusive events, and to promote institutional memory within the position.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Academic Affairs Officer, Devin Mills

 

 

 

Devin Mills, PhD Education, has worked on the thesis progress tracking procedure for graduate students, throughout his tenure as Academic Affairs Officer (AAO). Following an incident where a graduate student was sued for the destruction of his thesis, Mills has worked to incorporate students’ intellectual property rights into formal policy. At McGill’s Senate, Mills has discussed the issue of professors at McGill who receive monetary compensation for their work as consultants or in companies outside of McGill, and the conflict of interest that may ensue between a professor’s responsibility to their outside work, and their responsibility to students they are supervising. 

Mills has also organized events where graduate students can discuss their relationship with their supervisor, as well as listen to panel discussions on the topic. Mills performed his duties as AAO adequately throughout the year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Secretary-General, Danielle Toccalino

 

 

 

As Secretary-General of the Post Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS), Toccalino had to work with a more ambiguous portfolio that required behind-the-scenes work on matters of day-to-day operations. Toccalino focused a lot of her work on improving information accessibility and updating certain policies, some of which were not completed and will have to be resumed by the incoming secretary-general, Victor Frankel. The information policy currently being developed outlines the general public’s rights to access certain documents, such as budgets. The code of conduct and ethics forms were also newly implemented this year. Her changes to certain policies will hopefully be beneficial to future PGSS members’ understanding of the workings of council.

Although she was a visible presence in council, Toccalino should have focused on improving communication with other PGSS staff, by making herself more available. Additionally, more work could have been done to improve transparency for non-PGSS members, as currently, no council documents are available online to be viewed by individuals outside of PGSS, or campus media.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Financial Affairs Officer, Behrang Sharif

 

 

 

Throughout his term, Sharif was a constant presence and should be lauded for his dedication, hard work, and commitment to the Financial Affairs Officer (FAO) portfolio. On issues of transparency and collaboration, however, he has been less successful. For example, during the Feb. 17 PGSS Council meeting, PGSS Members Services Officer Brighita Lunghu and Sharif presented two differing accounts of the society’s financial situation.

 

 

 

Heading into his term as the PGSS’ FAO, Sharif was faced with a deficit of about $300,000 that was directly associated with the society’s years-long legal battle with the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS). Midway through the year, it was reported that the society as a whole faces a deficit greater than $600,000. Given the PGSS’ precarious financial situation, Sharif’s goal was to keep the current year’s finances balanced by implementing fiscal restraint; however, Thomson House continues to run a yearly deficit. Sharif was also responsible for promoting and campaigning a fee levy that addressed the deficit and would have helped reduce the time frame of eliminating the deficit from 15 years to five or six years. This fee did not pass, a clear failure on his part.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

External Affairs Officer, Bradley Por

 

 

 

As External Affairs Officer, Bradley Por aspired for quality over quantity. He dedicated the majority of his time in office  to the new provincial students federations, the Association pour la Voix Étudiante au Québec (AVEQ) and the L’Union Étudiante du Quebec (UÉQ). Given PGSS’ tumultuous history with such organizations, his attention to detail with them is commendable. The fact that the society has yet to vote on membership in either is a disappointment. Por also drafted and passed a much anticipated indigenous territory acknowledgement, and also helped in the successful lobbying of the Société de Transport Montréal (STM) for removal of the age limit on student Opus cards. 

Despite these accomplishments, Bradley failed to lobby at the provincial level, instead focusing on forming alliances with the federations that would lobby on behalf of PGSS in the future. This decision has meant a lack of representation this year for PGSS constituents. Additionally, Por was not as visible and accessible as most External Affairs Officers, leading to a perception of lack of advancement within his portfolio among councillors and constituents.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

An earlier version of this article incorrectly did not have feedback for Toccalino. It has been updated with the approriate review. The Tribune regrets this error.

Student Life

Home Brewing 101

by April Barrett on

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For beer drinkers, a specific brand often holds a special place in one’s heart. For students, this brand is usually available at any depanneur. It is reliable, delicious, and—most importantly—cheap. For those looking to forgo the label, do-it-yourself brewing is becoming increasingly popular. Equipped with an at-home brewing kit and a bit of determination, even students can create their own personal brand of beer.

Sam Dalton, U1 Bioresource Engineering, got into home brewing because of his original interest in cooking.

“It’s actually a lot [cheaper] to do home brewing than to buy beer in stores,” Dalton said. “It’s also really rewarding to create something of your own.”

Starting the process is as easy as searching online for a home brewing store in Montreal. Stores such as Chope A Barrock on Saint-Dominique, Mosti Mondiale 2000 on Rue Jean-Talon Est, or La Cachette Du Bootlegger near Macdonald campus, can sell you all parts needed for a reusable kit for a total of $80 to $90.

Ingredients depend on the method. Some home-brewers opt for the all-grain beer method. This involves crushing and rolling barley grain (also bought from the brewing store), then steeping the barley in hot water, which converts the grain starches into fermentable sugars. Subtle differences in this technique, in addition to the amount of hops added, allows brewers to control the taste.

The simpler way to brew is to buy “super batch” from the store—a pre-hopped malt extract that brewers can then boil and put in a fermenting bucket. The super batch method, along with the purchase of yeast, costs about $30 per batch, and the all-grain method is even cheaper. While the total cost of equipment and ingredients at first may seem steep, one batch of homebrew will give you around 53 beers. Excluding the initial purchase of the kit, this comes to about 56 cents for a 375 mL beer.

“Home brewing gives you beer that is dep quality or better, for a much lower price,” Dalton emphasized.

The process is not without time and effort. After purchasing the brewing kit, and consulting sworn-by brewing website howtobrew.com, Dalton stated that sanitization, boiling, mixing, fermenting and bottling, took him about five weeks, which means a lot of waiting time and little action.

“Bottling was probably the most interesting part,” Dalton said. “I sent out a message on Facebook asking all my friends to collect their used beer bottles [then] I went from house to house picking those up.”

Bottling also involved renting a capper from the brewing store. Dalton stated that from La Cachette Du Bootlegger he was able to buy 150 caps for only $4 and rented a capper for about $5.

“It’s actually a pretty environmentally friendly way of drinking beer,” Dalton said. “Now that I’ve recycled bottles from friends, after sanitizing, I can save and use them again for all the batches I make.”

Although home brewing certainly requires an added effort, there is a great satisfaction in dictating the products you consume.

“Brewing connects you more to the food you consume and how it’s made,” Dailton said. “Making my own beer made me respect what goes into the creation of food a lot more.”

Opinion

The media on life, death, and the late Rob Ford

by Norman Yallen on

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The media has a habit of praising public figures upon death, even—and perhaps especially—when they were criticized in life. Media coverage of Rob Ford’s death has been markedly different from how he was covered as mayor of Toronto. Ford was caught smoking crack cocaine, denied it, and then finally admitted it, saying it probably happened in one of his, “drunken stupors.” The Toronto media was very hard on Ford while he was alive and during his term as mayor. But after his passing last week at age 46, suddenly, media coverage of Ford was far more positive than it had ever been before.

When Ford was alive, he was an embarrassment to Toronto, but now that he is dead, many in the media are saying that Ford was a good man who must be honoured. Edward Keenan of the Toronto Star wrote an obituary where he said in spite of everything, he believed that Rob Ford meant well. Keenan’s colleague, Daniel Dale, had previously sued Ford because he called Dale a pedophile—in this instance, Ford clearly did not mean well. Yet soon after his death, City News ran a story online asking whether Rob Ford should have a statue or a park built in his honour.

Rob Ford is not unique in receiving criticism while alive and accolades after death. Michael Jackson was primarily in the news for his scandals and allegations of sexual misconduct with children. It was only once he had passed away that the narrative shifted back to how he was an incredibly talented and innovative musician. In a similar vein, Amy Winehouse was mocked and scandalized for her behaviour when she was alive; posthumously, she was widely celebrated as a beloved and tragic icon.

Ford was not a demon when he was alive, and he is not a saint in death.

The media should act in the public interest and hold politicians like Rob Ford accountable for their actions. The Toronto media was therefore right to scrutinize Ford as mayor and criticize him when he abused his power and acted inappropriately; but for that very reason it is disappointing to see the media glorify him in death. If the media really believed thatFord was a good man when he was mayor, it certainly did not cover him that way or give him the benefit of the doubt. It seems cheap and even exploitative to only highlight someone’s positive qualities when that person is dead. Ford’s negative qualities did not go away when he died, and it is only fair to remember him as the person he was.

Ford’s passing demonstrates why it is important for the media to remember the humanity of the subjects they cover. It was only in death that Ford’s humanity was recognized. Being dead does not retroactively make Ford a better person or a better mayor. Ford was a complex man. He said boted things about the LGBT community and visible minorities, and he often did not live up to the responsibilities of his elected office. But this is not the only side to his story. He also tried to help any constituent who needed him. Ford was not a demon when he was alive, and he is not a saint in death. Ford was a flawed person—as many people are.

 

 

Norman Yallen is a U3 history major.

@McGillTribOp | [email protected]

 
Martlets, Men's Varsity, Sports

10 Things: McGill in the Olympics

by Morgan Alexander on

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  1. 121 McGill students and alumni have competed in the Olympics. The first was Percival Molson, who represented Canada in track and field at the 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis, MO.
  2. McGill athletes have been mainstays at the Olympics since the 1988 Seoul Winter Games. In the past 28 years, McGill has captured over half of  its medals. 
  3. The 2004 Athens Summer Games saw the largest McGill representation, with 17 McGillians competing in eight different sports.
  4. McGill athletes have earned a podium finish more often during the Summer Olympics than the Winter Olympics, with 20 winter medals versus 15 in the summer games.
  5. McGill’s winter Olympians, however, are far more likely to have earned gold. Of the nine athletes who have won gold medals, eight came in winter sports.
  6. McGill’s real Olympic powerhouse is it’s hockey team. 13 of McGill’s 15 winter medals were won by hockey players.
  7. One of those hockey medalists is Mélodie Daoust, who currently plays centre with the McGill Martlets.
  8. Daoust is not the only Olympic representative currently in McGill athletics. Rachèle Béliveau, head coach of the Martlet Volleyball team, played for Team Canada in the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Games.
  9. Along with students and alumni, one McGill Professor, Percy Nobbs, a renowned architect who designed multiple buildings around McGill’s campus, competed in the 1908 London Olympics in fencing.
  10. Dr. Phil Edwards, who graduated from McGill Medical Faculty in 1936, is not only McGill’s most decorated Olympian, but also the first black athlete from McGill to compete in the Olympics. Edwards won five bronze medals while competing in track and field in the 1928 Amsterdam Games, the 1932 London Games, and the 1936 Berlin Games.
Opinion

Student activism taking the front seat at McGill

by Albert Park on

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Last week, McGill students were faced with a sense of déjà-vu when they were greeted by a congregation of Divest McGill speakers camped outside of the James Administration Building. In response to the McGill Board of Governor’s (BoG) decision to reject fossil fuel divestment, Divest McGill organized a sit-in, which ultimately culminated in a meeting between Principal Fortier and members of Divest McGill.

It has been a big year for Divest McGill. While the long-term effects of its campaigns are uncertain for now, one thing that is beyond question is that the group has generated conversations. On top of the ongoing debates between groups that are in favour of or against their agenda, there are also many students that openly dismiss their goals, pointing out the low likelihood of them actually impacting administrative decisions. Regardless of whether its actions lead to immediate changes in the school’s policies or not, Divest McGill has demonstrated the importance of student mobilization to encourage transparency by the administration.

A key issue that Divest McGill aimed to address with its latest campaign was the lack of student engagement the BoG sought in their decision-making process, along with their failure to be transparent. The BoG’s verdict to reject divestment was made in a closed meeting, with the identities of the members of the Committee to Advise Matters of Social Responsibility (CAMSR), which released a report on the issue, left anonymous. This is not the first time the administration has failed to engage students in its decision-making process. Last year, it abruptly shut down the discussion about women’s-only hours at the Fitness Centre, despite the fact that there were talks of compromise underway between students and McGill Athletics.

 

 

The conversation on campus must be shifted from whether the school should take a stance on divisive issues, to how the student body can better reach a consensus so that the issue is no longer considered divisive.

As a consequence of the pressure exerted by Divest McGill last week, an agreement has been reached to hold a series of open forums to discuss CAMSR’s recommendations. This is a good start to ensuring that the voices of McGill students will be a bigger factor in the administration’s decision making process in the future.

Furthermore, these most recent events have once again raised discussions as to how the university should approach political issues. Fortier’s response to the failed Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement motion made it clear that the administration does not believe McGill should take a stance on divisive political topics. This is a sentiment that is echoed by many students as well, which culminated in the proposal to give the steering committee the ability to ban the proposal of “divisive” and “external” motions at the General Assembly. Such dissatisfaction is reasonable; however, setting aside the debate about whether it’s in the students’ best interest for McGill to take a political stance, Divest McGill has demonstrated that the university can make a substantial impact when it does decide to do so. Even as an individual group—albeit one that is backed by many faculties, the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU), and the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS)—Divest McGill has been able to make a notable external impact with its campaigns, receiving significant attention as well as endorsements from various sources and organizations.

In order for the McGill community to fully mobilize the kind of influence that was demonstrated by Divest McGill, the student body must rally together to put pressure on the administration to make concrete steps in support of a political goal. To this end, the conversation on campus must be shifted from whether the school should take a stance on divisive issues, to how the student body can better reach a consensus so that the issue is no longer considered divisive. Just as it is in everyone’s right to reject certain political ideas, it is also the right of student activist groups to continue to present arguments to change their views. In many ways, Divest McGill has had considerable successes in regards to communicating their mission. Over the years, the group has earned endorsements from many different faculties, staff, and students. This year, the group was able to gather enough support to create a concrete—albeit small—impact on the administration. Continuing this trend, Divest McGill may be able to set the blueprint for successful student activism at the university.

 

 

Albert Park is a U2 student in Microbiology and Immunology. He is passionate about world issues and has been a volunteer with the Canadian Red Cross for 5 years

@McGillTribOp | [email protected]

 

 

 

 

Student Life

Finding room for faith

by Liz Willcock on

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In 2005, McGill decided that due to space shortages it needed to evict the Muslim Students Association (MSA) and the Sexual Assault Centre of the McGill Students’ Society (SACOMSS) from their previous space. SACOMSS found a new home, but the MSA students were left without a space for daily prayers and ablution. They were forced to protest for a new home, conducted mass prayers on the field outside of the McLennan Library, and even went so far as to take the university to the Quebec Human Rights Commission. In the interim, the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Building provided the hundreds of Muslim students making five daily prayers with a small room in the basement as a ‘temporary solution.’ Ultimately, the MSA lost both the case and it’s space. Flash forward more than 10 years later, and unfortunately nothing has changed. 

Vice President Communications for MSA and third-year Economics and Accounting student, Zain Syed, points to the bureaucratic deadlock that has arisen not only with MSA, but also with student groups such at Divest McGill and Midnight Kitchen.

“It’s important to put it out there that the administration has a lag when it deals with the student groups,” Syed said. “[Whereas] we change council members every year, the administration is [less transient].”

In February of last year, the plight of McGill’s MSA garnered national attention with an article in Maclean’s. Over a year later and the MSA has had no further developments with prayer spaces on campus. Every day, over 100 Muslim students continue to make use of the small room in the SSMU basement beside Gerts. Though most students making daily prayers will mention how thankful they are for the room in SSMU, the space is clearly lacking. The room itself fits 20 people at best, and loud music streams in from nearby rooms. 

Saima Uddin, a History and Islamic Studies major who usually prays three times a day on campus, says that although she is grateful for the space, the SSMU room is not ideal.

“Every day around four when people finish class, there are long wait times to pray—around 10 to 15 minutes,” Uddin said. “Sometimes it’s a little loud, but we have to accommodate because the fact that we have a room is good.”

While there is a common misconception that the lack of prayer space at McGill is simply a problem for Muslim students, Syed draws attention to the fact that McGill’s refusal to accommodate their Muslim student population stems from a general inability to create spaces that promote faith, engagement, and mental health on campus. 

“Prayer for Muslim students is not only something that is mandated that they have to do five times a day, but a practice of mental health,” Syed said. “Most students use prayer as an opportunity to meditate and reflect, and take a break. McGill is an incredibly high-stress environment and these spaces simply do not exist on campus.”

Sara Parks, the director of the McGill Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, notes that there is a scientific correlation between the positive effects of mindfulness, prayer, religious community, meditation, and relaxation on student mental health. She says that encouraging religious diversity on campus is essential to the prosperity of the University. 

“The more diverse voices, the healthier and more relevant the the academic community,” Parks stated. “Not providing a campus where students who identify as religious can flourish and belong is an equity issue, and a serious one. I believe that any R1 institution worth its salt should actively participate in the celebration and encouragement of a diverse student body.”

Syed is optimistic that the university will start to tackle this equity issue, and soon. He notes that recently an interfaith collective of many student groups, including the McGill Interfaith Student Council and the MSA assembled a proposal to the Library Improvement Fund for the inclusion of a prayer/meditation space in the new designs for McLennan library. In the research for this proposal the Syed and members of the proposal assembled a full page list of North American universities that have prayer spaces in their libraries while operating as secular institutions.

“UofT is a secular institution, Western is a secular institution,” Syed said. “These universities have huge multi-faith prayer spaces [….] In fact, I’ve been to the UofT multi-faith building—yes they have an entire three-floor building. At the end of the day these are supposed to be the safe spaces universities need.”

In an effort to create similar multi-faith spaces at McGill, the McGill Office of Rligious and Spiritual Life (MORSL) has endorsed numerous student proposals for prayer and meditation space, not only for Muslim students, but for all students. Aside from the increased cultural diversity and health benefits, Parks stresses that these multi-faith spaces are of the utmost importance in our current political environment.  

“It’s my dearest hope in this time of rising religious extremism, Islamophobia (at times right here on campus), and oversimplified media caricatures of the depth and richness of human religious experience, that religious literacy and a real flourishing of pluralism will prevail at McGill,” Parks stated. “On a campus like McGill, which is touted as ‘world-class’ and which has such a strong international contingent, prayer space is simply non-optional.”

Somehow McGill’s brand of secularisation has become akin to a marginalization which leaves Muslim students waiting 15 minutes for space in a crowded room in SSMU basement, a corner of McLennan library, or under stairwells. The basement room which was once suggested as a short-term solution, has spanned over 10 years with little prospect of accommodation on McGill’s part. The MSA and MORSL are optimistic that the McGill administration will start working to improve the multi-faith services on campus, however it is evident that change is slow coming. That there has yet to resolve the events in 2005 which left the MSA displaced is a testament to the work ahead. 

Science & Technology

Exploring insects as a viable food source

by Natasha Michaeloff on

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In North America, insects are traditionally seen as pests rather than food. In certain communities in Africa and Southeast Asia, consuming insects for nutritional value is a part of a normal diet. In the western world, there are certainly plenty of candy shops that sell chocolate-covered grasshoppers—mainly as a novelty—but there has not been any real push to bring edible insects into the mainstream western food industry.

In May 2013, the United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization sought to change this norm by publishing Edible Insects: Future Prospects for Food and Feed Security, a report outlining the benefits of eating insects, especially as a solution to the problem of feeding a growing world population, which the UN predicts will reach 9.7 billion by 2050.

“The concentration of population growth in the poorest countries presents its own set of challenges,” Director of Population Division John Wilmoth explained in an interview with UN News Centre. “[This makes] it more difficult to eradicate poverty and inequality [and] to combat hunger and malnutrition.” 

With greater pressure to increase food production, it seems only natural to look for an alternative food source. According to Arnold van Huis, entomologist at Wageningen University in the Netherlands and co-author of an insect cookbook, it takes 1.7 kg of feed for a group of crickets to gain 1 kg of body weight, in comparison to 2.5 kg of feed for a single chicken, 5 kg for a pig, and 10 kg for a cow. Farming insects also creates fewer greenhouse gases, like CO2, and uses less land. With 2,000 species of edible insects containing high levels of protein, iron, calcium, B vitamins, and omega-3 fatty acids, insects have enormous potential as a food source.

An article published in Psychology & Marketing this past February, looked to address this question by analyzing the psychological and sociological roots of prevailing western perceptions of insects. Indeed, there is a degree of unfamiliarity associated with the practice of eating bugs, often seen as ‘gross’ and ‘creepy.’ Because snacking on insects is thought to be unhygienic and even uncivilized—the latter of which supports the propagation of negative stereotypes—consumers are discouraged from choosing foods that may reflect poorly on their character or social status. 

It takes 1.7 kg of feed for a group of crickets to gain 1 kg of body weight, in comparison to 2.5 kg of feed for a single chicken, 5 kg for a pig, and 10 kg for a cow.

The presentation of the product influences consumer behaviour, so a simple way to circumvent any feelings of discomfort or self-consciousness about entomophagy—the scientific term for eating bugs—is to disguise their appearance to better resemble something closer to western notions of food. Cricket and mealworm flours are available as well, in both powder form for baking and as an ingredient in protein bars.

The case for edible insects continues to be strong, although the challenge in convincing Western consumers to rid any lingering hang-ups they may have about finding fried crickets—which, apparently, have a shrimp-like taste—on their plates remains. With the summer fast approaching, it might be time to throw a mealworm on the barbecue. 

Diction: Readings by Gay Men
Arts & Entertainment, Books, Theatre

From the Viewpoint: Diction: Readings by Gay Men

by Alfie Crooks on

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I entered Stock Bar, one of the premier male strip clubs in the Gay Village, just after 7 p.m. to see Diction: Readings by Gay Men Jazz music played throughout the bar, which was lit by soft red-and-pink lights. The centerpiece of the establishment was the stage about three feet off the ground, boasting a runway and a shining pole at its centre. When I first took my seat, I felt a level of discomfort that began to turn into a feeling of intrusion. As a heterosexual man, this event wasn’t directed at me, and I felt as if my presence there was an attempt at immersion into a culture that I could never truly understand.

Despite this, the kind of statements that the stories made and the images they painted were hypnotic. From the tongue-in-cheek humour of Brian O’Neill’s fictional tale of an awkward threesome in Paris, to the candidly analytical nature with which Vincent Doyle spoke about dealing with a reviled homophobe, the readings consistently impressed. The vastness of the varied styles, perspectives, and subject matters in the relatively sparse number of only five readers made for for a fulfilling range and depth of readings. 

The ability of the readings to be implicitly political was also markedly impressive. Puelo Deir’s reading of “Old, Fat & Fucked! Now What?”—a one man play that details the strains of aging—explored the nature of his sexuality as an aging homosexual man, with the aid of dark humour and a buff male stripper story. Deir notes the humiliation that follows the search for “cheap romance” as he is forced to pay part of his overdue credit card bill to the straight stripper who watches over his shoulder as he plucks $20 notes from the ATM. 

H. Nigel Thomas read from his book, No Safeguards, choosing an excerpt about two gay men who are caught having sex on the beach in St. Vincent and are put in jail. The concept and the subject matter were far cries from Deir’s reading that had come 10 minutes before, yet the profound ability to turn a politically-charged issue into a form of entertainment remained. Thomas and Deir’s statements on the positions of gay men in our contemporary society exemplified the range of the show as a whole. The inclusivity of gay voices and attention paid to a series of issues made the show a rich showcase of voices without being disjointed in any way. 

After all of the readers had finished I had a quick chat with the organizer of the event, Chris DiRaddo who was donned in mock sailor attire. 

“I wanted to do something outside of the box,” DiRaddo explained. “I wanted to attract people who might find traditional readings too stuffy. I wanted something in a bar where you can also get a drink and socialize a bit more. I wanted it in the Village, because I wanted to reach out to gay men and lesbians.”

Diction, for all of its literary brilliance, was an event that exceeds simply a reading. It  succeeded in promoting the hugely underappreciated gay and lesbian literature scene that thrives in this city. For a group of people that have been so disenfranchised, Diction feels like part of a movement that continues to strive for queer empowerment in the arts. 

Basketball, Men's Varsity, Sports

End of the Bench: The reality of redshirt players

by Arman Bery on

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Ego is an unavoidable character trait for any human. What differentiates cocky assholes from self-confident success stories is an ability to walk that tightrope between unbridled confidence and cockiness. In basketball, self-assurance is not only encouraged, it is also required for an athlete to be successful at the highest levels of competition. 

What happens, however, when you take high school stars, full of brash conviction for so many years, and tell them to sit on the sidelines and simply cheer on their teammates? Many cannot handle the ego-check of going from being a star in high school to riding the bench in college. What is interesting to note is that too much ego can get you in trouble when you’re on the end of the bench, but a dearth of ego can also spell your demise. This is because players must always have the confidence to believe in their skills and abilities so that when their time comes they’re ready to lay it all out on the court in their attempt to move from the bench to a starring role on the basketball team. This is especially significant for redshirting players, college athletes who are withdrawn from competition, and only practice with the team for one year in order to develop skills, and extend their period of playing eligibility by an additional year.

McGill Redmen basketball redshirt freshman Berk Genel acknowledged the difficulty of moving from high school to a top level collegiate varsity team. 

“I went from being the best player on my high school team to the exact opposite in terms of roles,” Genel said. “It’s sort of like starting all over again.” 

Proving yourself to a whole coaching staff and group of teammates is as taxing physically as it is mentally. This is especially true in college basketball, as players are still growing into adults, and finding themselves under the mental pressure that comes with developing their academic interests. The hope is that this will foster the development of greater mental toughness. 

Players who redshirt their freshman campaigns must possess self-awareness and humility. Since they arrived at McGill, these players have experienced an internal transition from a youthful outright love for basketball, to more of an appreciation of the few years they’ll have playing on a collegiate team. They have to be more realistic about their limited role on the team. For freshman guard Parker Joyce, self-perception can influence whether a player accepts their role.

“Depending on how you view yourself as a player, if you know you’re not as good as the other person, it’s easier to accept,” Joyce said. “If you know you’re better than the other person, then it can mess with your mindset, and you struggle with it because you know if it came down to the wire, you could do better.”

Experience is key to handling this situation, as Joyce explained, when speaking about a player who had learned to truly accept his role within the team.

“The older guys are consistent,” Joyce said. “For example [Sebastian Beckett], he accepted his role, he’s a third year, he was brought in, and worked his butt off and is still the hardest working guy. He bullies the bigs and centers that play, he knows his role, and [Head Coach David] DeAveiro has told him multiple times that he’s there to bully guys in practice. He’s consistent and a team guy.” 

The other side of this humble approach to varsity sports is the focus that players give towards their academics. As Joyce articulated, the schools in the NCAA that he considered, unless they were Ivy League, are not on par with McGill academically. 

“I’m realistic, in the sense that I’m not going to play pro basketball,” Joyce said. “My future goal has always been to be a lawyer, and I also just wanted to be closer to home.”

Playing CIS basketball is highly competitive, and demands a high level of commitment from its athletes, but the majority of its players don’t have a professional future in the sport. Therefore, players must  balance their basketball goals with academics, to prepare them for their long-term future. 

“The rookie experience on a varsity team in one word?” said Genel. “Grind, it’s just a grind. Just gotta remain positive.”

For players such as Genel and Joyce who are redshirting, the success the Redmen had this season was sweet, but also left a bitter after-taste in their mouths. It’s difficult to not dress for games, arguably be expected to  practice harder than anyone else, and then sit on the bench every game and observe. Genel stressed the increased value of practice for players, to not only gain confidence in themselves, but also assert oneself in front of the coaches and teammates.  

“It’s a process, you have to wait for your time because you can’t make an impact right away,” Genel said. “You look out on the court and see the players are mostly upper years. You just gotta gain the coaches trust.” 

Joyce said that parts of the year are brutal, especially when you are devoting hours of your time to basketball near mid-term and finals seasons, while knowing you are not going to be playing.

“My mindset wasn’t as much about playing a lot,” Joyce concurred. “I was just focused on keeping my head above water, school wise, basketball wise, health wise.” 

It was refreshing to hear Joyce discuss the relevance of academics to CIS athletes. 

“Everyone here at McGill knows that academics are important,” Joyce said. “Everyone knows, for the most part, that basketball is more or less not gonna sustain you till you retire.” 

Listening to a 19-year-old speak about approaching retirement  highlights that student-athletes often have to start making difficult decisions about their futures much faster than average university students. 

In many ways, the players discussed in this article are at the bottom of the top—the bottom of the team’s hierarchy in one of the top levels of athletic competition. However, to paraphrase rapper and Toronto deity Drake, you have to start from the bottom to get to where you want to be. Where that might be differs from player to player, but every athlete nonetheless desires to make the most of their time at McGill, both as a student, and as an athlete. 

SSMU McGill
McGill, News, SSMU

2015-2016 SSMU executive reviews

by McGill Tribune Editorial Board on

More in McGill:

The McGill Tribune Editorial Board reviews the 2015-2016 SSMU executive on its performance.  Although these blurbs intend to review the executives' entire term not all information received regarding each executive was published due to space constraints in the paper.

The Tribune reached out to all SSMU councillors for anonymous feedback on the executives and received four responses from 30 councillors. Councillors were asked to give a score from 1-10 about how they perceive the executives have performed. The Editorial Board also gave each executive a score from 1-10 based on how we felt the executives performed. The grades are an average of the feedback from councillors and the Editorial Board's assessment of how each of the executives performed. The grades were converted from a percentage into a letter grade based on the McGill grading system. Under this grading scale a "C" is a passing grade that meets expectations, a "B" exceeds expectations, and an "A" refers to an outstanding performance. 

Click on one of the pictures to get started.

 
 
Kareem Ibrahim

 

 

 
Zacheriah Houston

 

 

 
Kimber Bialik

 

 

 
Chloe Rourke

 

 

 
Omar El-Sharway

 

 

 
Emily Boytinck

 

 

(McGill Tribune)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

President, Kareem Ibrahim: 7.63/10 = B+
 

As President of the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU), Kareem Ibrahim has made great strides in behind-the-scenes work which assured that SSMU could function successfully, cohesively, and inclusively. He organized the largest General Assembly in the past 30 years, spearheaded an overhaul of the Constitution, re-established the First Year Undergraduate Network, contributed to the Executive Restructuring Project, as well as collaborated to draft both a Family Care Policy and a Human Resource policy.

Despite Ibrahim’s accomplishments, his performance suffered from his lack of visibility and student engagement throughout the year. Aside from #McGill24—a one-day challenge aimed to unite students, alumni, and staff—and Centraide he was generally absent from the public eye . This may be a reason that much of his accomplishments have gone unnoticed, and some students feel disconnected from SSMU.

On the other hand, Ibrahim can be commended for ensuring SSMU’s  sustainability and smooth sailing throughout the year despite many resignations. For example, Ibrahim managed the SSMU Daycare in the absence of its manager, oversaw the election for VP Internal in the second term, and developed a transition report for incoming SSMU presidents in order to ensure smooth integration into the position. SSMU did not fall apart this year and he should be commended for his leadSSMU stayed afloat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

VP Finance and Operations, Zacheriah Houston: 8.50/10 = A

 

 

 

 

As the last VP Finance and Operations, Houston worked hard to increase the institutional memory of both his position  and numerous committees that his office oversaw. This included his management of the digitization of the Funding Committee’s application records as well as the revision of their by-laws. Houston also helped to create the Ad-Hoc Health and Dental Review Committee, which resulted in the approval of a referendum question adding  mental health coverage to the SSMU insurance plan. The committee, now a permanent part of council, will continue to be involved in consultative efforts with students in order to improve SSMU’s Health and Dental Plan. 

Houston excelled in the financial  part of his portfolio; he created a clear budget that was easily digestible and improved the overall transparency of SSMU by being readily available to answer students’ questions. However, the Operations side of Houston’s portfolio was noticeably neglected, evidenced by the fact that the Student-Run Café (SRC) remains unnamed. Instead, Houston took on the additional tasks of negotiating SSMU’s Memorandum of Agreement with McGill, an ongoing project that will be passed on to the next group of SSMU executives. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

VP Clubs and Services, Kimber Bialik: 8.63/10 = A

 

 

 

 

This has been an extremely tumultuous academic year for SSMU, with multiple resignations and a myriad of organizational problems that came as a result of this instability. Despite this, Bialik has excelled in her role as VP Clubs and Services.

Following the resignation of the general manager in the Fall and the absence of the building director due to paternity leave, Bialik was forced to assume many extra duties. In many aspects she has gone above and beyond her portfolio. One of Bialik’s greatest accomplishments was the creation of a Club Fund Fee, which should create a more sustainable funding structure for SSMU’s clubs. Additionally, she was able to reevaluate the sustainability of the building and created an ad-hoc Space Committee to address issues surrounding the long-term vision of space within the Shatner University Centre. 

Bialik’s plan to reorganize club space on the fourth floor of the SSMU Building was met at the time with resistance, and some clubs have not yet moved out of their former offices spaces. Despite this, Bialik has maintained positive relationships with SSMU’s many clubs; however, her work on the Independent Student Groups section of her portfolio has been lacking. Overall, Bialik has had an extremely successful year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

VP University Affairs, Chloe Rourke: 7.87/10 B+

 

 

 

 

Rourke has been a strong advocate for students at the university level. Unlike the other executive portfolios, the majority of the VP University Affairs position is involved in long-term policy changes for the entire university. As the sole link between SSMU and the upper administration, Rourke has made progress on various components of her portfolio, including sexual assault (although the new policy is not yet complete), mental health, and equity. She has consistently lobbied against the university’s position on tuition deregulation, made strides in working towards a Fall semester reading week, and was involved in the development of the SSMU Happy Lights Lending Program.

According to councillors, Rourke has done well in making headway with the Smoking on Campus Working Group and in her work as a representative on the Senate. Despite various hurdles faced by SSMU over this year, Rourke has moved forward in several policy areas. Her assistance in the review of the wellness strategy, as well as her work with Student Services, were particularly popular with councillors, as was her work in negotiating on mental health policy with McGill.

Although Rourke has done well to balance the various aspects of her portfolio, there were delays in improving the visibility of her portfolio. A website platform, which was begun during this year, will not be launched until Fall 2016.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Omar El-Sharawy, VP Internal: 6.13/10 = C+

 

 

 

 

VP Internal Omar El-Sharawy came into the position in the middle of the year after the previous VP Internal resigned in October. With his late start, El-Sharawy did not have much of an opportunity to shake up the position but nonetheless made some improvements.

After taking input from students, El-Sharawy revamped the weekly SSMU listserv to make it less robotic and more visual. He added features such as a location of the week and a club spotlight. Since he started in January, El-Sharawy had to rush to plan Faculty Olympics, which this year had the highest number of participants in its history. He added more academic and athletic events and a trip to Beach Club, but reviews from participants were mixed. El-Sharawy has done a good job of adding more new non-drinking events, including an upcoming talk with US ambassador to Canada Bruce Heyman.

Overall, El-Sharawy did an adequate job of keeping the position functional and taking care of the roles in his portfolio, admirable given his limited time in office.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

VP External, Emily Boytinck: 7.75/10 = B+

 

 

 

 

Boytinck has put in an impressive amount of work this year into the two new provincial student federations, Association pour la Voix Étudiante au Québec (AVEQ) and the Union Étudiante du Québec (UEQ). Although the motion to associate with AVEQ did not pass. Boytinck went to all of the student faculty association councils to advocate for joining student federations and was very committed to the motion’s passing. It was through issues misrepresented by the “No to AVEQ” committee that the motion did not pass and is through no fault of Boytinck herself.

Some aspects of her portfolio were neglected in comparision, such as Milton Parc community engagement and the Francophone Affairs Committee. Francophone Affairs were particularly overlooked by Boytinck. She put most of her energy into student federation-related work and has had little to say on the matter other than she has worked on improving her French language skills.

During her time as VP External she has straddled line between furthering her own beliefs and causes that she is mandated to support by SSMU Council. This has been apparrent on issues such as the Motion to Boycott, Divestments, and Sanctions (BDS) and divestment from fossil fuels.

By being so present and active, however, she has changed how the VP External position is viewed overall. Her consistent passion in addressing relevant social issues has made the position much more visible to students.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


This article has been updated to add further detail to the grading process

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