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a, Arts & Entertainment

POP RHETORIC: Separating art and the artist

by Max Berger on

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“Do you want to like the artists you study?”

That was the question posed on the first day of class by the professor who teaches my T.S. Eliot course. He went on to explain that those who weren’t already familiar with Eliot would almost certainly find it impossible to like him after becoming acquainted with the facts of his life. In addition to being one of the preeminent literary minds of his generation, Eliot displayed public anti-Semitism and had a reputation for being a generally unpleasant person. For me, the warning was another reminder of something I already knew: we’re not obliged to admire the artists responsible for the art we admire.

The weekend following that class, Woody Allen was honoured with a lifetime achievement award at this year’s Golden Globes ceremony. In the wake of that presentation, there’s been a heavy stream of discussion concerning the moral justification for giving the award to Allen despite the accusations of sexual assault that were brought against him by his adopted daughter, Dylan Farrow—for which there wasn’t enough evidence to convict Allen with when an investiagtion was conducted by the state of Connecticut 21 years ago.

Farrow herself has been largely responsible for the renewed attention towards the situation. After opening up about her feelings in a Vanity Fair piece published last November, she’s continued to share her side of the story with the media in light of Allen’s Golden Globe award. On Feb. 1, Farrow published an open letter in The New York Times detailing her grievances and ongoing struggle. The notoriously private Allen responded last Friday with an op-ed of his own in the same newspaper, denying her claims and promising that the article would be his final public comment on the matter. Later that day, Farrow released another accusatory response through a spokesperson, vowing at its conclusion, “I won’t let the truth be buried and I won’t be silenced.”

The entire saga is disheartening; the resurfacing speculation casts a dark shadow over Allen’s public image, regardless of whether or not Farrow’s accusations are true. However, the larger question that it begs us to ask ourselves is essentially the same one that my professor put forth to his class: How should we feel about an artist’s work when we’re offended by their behaviour? Although there’s a temptation to want to scorn everything they’ve produced, appreciating their art doesn’t have to be seen as a validation of their actions or views.

The connection between an artist and their work is so strong that it’s often easy to forget that a separation can exist between the two. For example, when we read a piece of poetry that isn’t distinctly marked as being the thoughts of a character, our gut reaction is to experience it as if the poet were speaking directly to us—which they are in many cases. But the possibility also exists that the voice we’re hearing is that of a subtle persona developed by its author, which they may want us to view ironically rather than sympathetically. But ultimately, there’s still a connection between an artist and their craft that makes us wonder just how much the latter is a reflection of the former.

Because of this inherent bond, we come to grow attached to artists based on what they’ve produced. Especially in a visual medium like TV or film where an actor can make a name for themselves with a signature role, it’s hard to imagine aspects of their personality not matching up with their on-screen counterparts—like when Michael Richards, who portrayed Seinfeld’s happy-go-lucky Cosmo Kramer, went on a racist tangent while performing a comedy set at the Laugh Factory in 2006.

In Farrow’s open letter, she begins by asking her reader, “What’s your favourite Woody Allen movie?” and closes the piece by assertively rephrasing the question into “Now, what’s your favourite Woody Allen movie?” in an attempt to make us feel guilty for enjoying any of his work. I sympathize with Farrow for the plight she’s had to endure all these years—because no matter the truth behind the events, she’s suffered greatly—but I can’t say that it will change the way that I feel about any of Allen’s films.

That’s not to say that if Farrow’s allegations were true, I wouldn’t disapprove of Allen—I would think considerably less of him as a person. But knowing the uncomfortable truths of an artist’s personal life isn’t an excuse to boycott everything they have produced.

Long before I knew of T.S. Eliot’s racist inclinations, I had read “The Waste Land” and “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” and was absolutely captivated by their messages and the scope of their composition. Knowing what I know now, I still consider them to be some of the most impressive works of literature I’ve ever read. Eliot on the other hand? I respect his genius but pity him for whatever unnecessary hatred was inside of him.

It’s ideal when an artist can represent the same greatness as their art; but when they don’t, it doesn’t mean we have to shut our eyes to their work—we just have to view the artist through a harsher lens.

a, Opinion

The case for boycotts

by Helin Azizoglu on

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With the Winter Olympics beginning and the Super Bowl just behind us, the spirit of sports is in the air. Along with increased attention to the players and teams themselves, the events have brought further awareness to the commercialism behind the athletics. Specifically, several commercials and social media messages have generated controversy and adverse reactions, including boycotts.

The Israel-based company SodaStream, which produces home carbonation systems, released a Super Bowl ad featuring the actress Scarlett Johansson, also an ambassador for the multinational organization Oxfam. The latter group, which disapproved of the location of SodaStream’s factory near settlements on the West Bank, parted ways with Johansson after she maintained her affiliation with the company. This incident has spurred varied reactions across the globe, with some expressing outrage and a desire to boycott SodaStream, and others praising Johansson’s resilient stance.

In another incident, Coca-Cola released a commercial featuring the song “America the Beautiful” in several languages, including English, Spanish, Arabic, and Hindi. This incited rage for some spectators, who felt that the patriotic song should be performed exclusively in English, and some on Twitter suggested boycotting the company. This was met with a counter-reaction which criticized the angry tweets, calling them racist and contrary to the multicultural nature of modern America. Yet another major controversy surrounded the Sochi Winter Olympics. Critics of the treatment of the LGBT community and various other human rights violations in Russia  have advocated a boycott of the games.

These events raise the question of the true value and virtue of boycotting in the modern world. Historically, boycotts have been hugely influential in communicating important messages about social justice campaigns, such as the monumental Montgomery Bus Boycott during the civil rights movement in the 1960s. One critical criticism of modern boycotts, especially in the U.S. and Canada, is that they often draw attention to the industry of commercialization and thus are somewhat superficial in nature. However, they also have substantial advantages as effective advertisements and have a peculiar ability to frame larger contexts and messages using specific, narrow events. Also, the profundity of these movements cannot be exaggerated in the developing world; the 2010 Muslim Brotherhood boycott of parliamentary elections was a hugely influential event in the timeline leading up to the Arab Spring a few years later, which drastically transformed the country’s political and social landscape. Even this year’s most prominent boycotts have framed important issues in the modern world, including racism and LGBT rights.

Boycotts have a renewed importance in the modern world. The influence of technology, which allows for the faster spread of information, has increased the efficiency and effectiveness of modern boycotts and thus their global impact. Moreover, if boycotts are to be encouraged out of pure virtue, one must refrain from picking and choosing which issues merit their attention and which don’t. Due to their ability to spread messages with potential to perpetuate massive global impact, these tactics continue to remain viable in a modern context.

a, Features

Considering your impact

by Jacqueline Galbraith on

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With reading week fast approaching and midterms in full swing, many students are—for better or worse—turning their minds away from their studies and towards their travel plans instead. Some students take spring or summer break as an opportunity to participate in a different kind of trip by volunteering abroad.

International volunteerism—in some cases known as ‘voluntourism’—serves as a unique opportunity for students to explore a different part of the world and immerse themselves in new cultures. Usually lasting one or two weeks, these specialized programs provide the chance to travel internationally, combining adventurous activities and ‘exotic’ locations with some sort of volunteer project. The programs assert that participants will be able to make a difference in the world and have a little fun while doing so. However, the debate arises around these assumptions about what kind of a difference these trips really make, and to whom.

Organizations like International Student Volunteers (ISV) run “educational volunteer and adventure travel programs for more than 30,000 students and young adults,” according to International Education Director Deanna Mathewson.

“Our program is unique in that it combines two weeks of volunteering as part of a team, followed by two weeks of travel through the most spectacular areas of the host country to experience the natural and cultural wonders therein,” Mathewson says.

90 per cent of ISV’s volunteers are students and recent graduates. According to Mathewson, although participants work in the host communities for just two weeks, a steady stream of new volunteers keeps the projects ongoing.

“While […] projects are only two weeks long, there can be anywhere from eight to 30 people in a group working towards a common goal, and there are successive groups at each project during a season. We build lasting partnerships with our hosts to ensure that the project goals are achievable and the efforts and progress made by each group are sustained,” she writes.

Other groups, like the Foundation for International Medical Relief of Children (FIMRC), look for volunteers from a diverse range of backgrounds. However, their programs attract a younger demographic, especially those looking for experience in the medical field, according to Abigail Proctor, the FIMRC operations specialist overseeing the internship and chaptership programs. Proctor emphasizes the benefits for volunteers looking not only to improve their medical exposure, but also to engage in a cross-cultural experience.

“There’s a strong clinical focus but there’s also a very strong preventative focus as well through health education efforts,” Proctor explains. “What’s cool about our organization is that we’re able to host something for [the] professional development [of volunteers] in the medical field; they’re able to gain experience in the field of global health, but also culturally because they’re able to stay in homestays in the community.”

According to Mathewson, most of the feedback ISV receives from its participants is extremely positive, claiming “If they were to change anything it would usually be to stay longer,” which leads us to wonder: Why don’t they?

Does length of the program matter?

Rebecca Tiessen, an associate professor of International Development and Global Studies at University of Ottawa, has conducted in-depth research on international experiential learning, looking in part at the different lengths of trips in which volunteers can participate. She explains that the kinds of week-long trips that we’re used to hearing about really aren’t even considered short term by scholars.

“We looked specifically at a certain kind of program which we called ‘short term’ and those are three to six months,” says Tiessen. “The whole field has changed remarkably. People consider that long term now, when in fact long term is one to two years [.…] The one to two week programs, to me [are] ‘voluntourism’; that’s not volunteering abroad.”

“Six months—that’s enough time to really start to understand enough of a culture, about a place, about an organization; to fit in and start to be productive and feel at ease and have a routine and be able to be a good contributor in that community,” she explains.

FIMRC offers placements that can range from just one week to several months. Proctor explains the desire some volunteers have to remain in a community for a prolonged period of time.

“Obviously if you stay for a longer amount of time, you develop more in-depth relationships with community members, and you can take on special projects that can make a sustainable impact on the site long after you leave,” she claims.

Tiessen also draws attention to some of the issues with week-long programs.

“The exposure one gets in a week or two weeks to a culture—you’re not even hitting the tip of the iceberg in those cases, particularly when you’re traveling in a fishbowl,” she explains. “When you’re traveling with a group of other Canadians, what you have then is […] voluntourism. It’s a holiday—you might be building a school; you might be doing all sorts of things—but it’s an adventure holiday. It’s not cross-cultural immersion.”

Who really benefits?

Some of Tiessen’s work with Barbara Heron, director of the school of Social Work at York University, focused on interviews with participants from host countries who receive volunteers on a consistent basis. According to their findings, host participants argue that six months is the absolute minimum that a volunteer needs to commit to have any sufficient impact. Other findings showed that participants value the cross-cultural experience they take part in as hosts, as well as the energy and creativity of young volunteers. There were, however, some challenges that host participants identified.

“Some countries felt that Canadians and people of European descent came to their host countries and acted like the boss,” Tiessen explains.

“Before we send people abroad [we] often […] teach them that they’re going to experience culture shock.” She continues. “[Host participants] found that actually very offensive—that we’re preparing people to be shocked by their culture. But at the same time, they also made references to some of our cultural practices as being shocking, about how people dress, how people act, how people disobey widely-accepted rules within the organization.”

“The final criticism that they talked about was the lack of reciprocity,” says Tieseen. “And the fact that while they value the cross-cultural exchange, the one-way flow of volunteerism is incredibly disheartening and frustrating [.…] Sometimes we even use the language of ‘exchange’ when in fact, they’re not exchanges, they’re one-directional. [In] the host countries, […] the benefits accrue most significantly for the volunteers, and [the host partners] recognized that.”

Considerations before volunteering

According to Tiessen, research, planning, and critical thinking are all key components to a successful international volunteering trip.

“One of the things that I’m starting to explore now is the whole wave of young people who are going abroad on these programs in high school,” she says. “And the difference I think that makes for people who are under 18 who haven’t had the chance to develop a critique of privilege and inequality and social justice that one would get in university.”

Though age and the ability to think critically about global issues are not necessarily correlated, there are advantages to taking time to study these issues in a university setting.

“I think the lack of facilitated education that goes with those programs, compared to the sort of programs we offer in university [is clear],” says Tiessen. “[In universities], students do a course before they go abroad, where they read about post-colonialism—[that] challenge people to think critically about whether this is the right thing to do, and […] whether they can justify their experiences.”

According to Tiessen, students and prospective volunteers can best prepare themselves by simply reading before they make the decision about what kind of trip they’re going to take.

“[International volunteer programs have] become increasingly privatized, so a lot of organizations are doing this for profit,” says Tiessen. “We can’t really reign it in, so […] I think we need to inform young people as best we can about how they can make the most of their experience both for themselves and for the people they encounter abroad.”

The McGill chapter of Borderless World Volunteers (BWV) facilitates a number of international trips each summer, usually lasting between six and eight weeks. VP International Project Development Rhea Bisaillon, along with Louise Moulié, who is BWV McGill’s chief-of-staff for the international committee, share Tiessen’s view on volunteer preparation. Summer trips are planned and developed over the course of two semesters, and prospective volunteers spend that time educating themselves on the issues they anticipate facing on their trips, as well as learning to work together as a team.

Bisaillon and Moulié point to the importance of a well-developed critique when researching and planning for future trips.

“Some Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) have fees,” Moulié notes. “Mainly the bigger NGOs. Just to participate […] you have to pay a certain fee on top of the volunteering fees, and that money is […] not necessarily [used] on the projects.”

“What you do during the year is prepare [for] your trip, choose the [NGO], you work with the NGO throughout the year to figure out […] what they need from you, and what kind of project you could put in place once you’re over there,” Moulié says. “But a lot of the work is on the field. Once you get over there you’ll probably have to adapt your project because it’s easier to understand what they need once you’re there.”

“We teach them what to expect,” Bisaillon continues. “You have to really respect the locals in the area and work with [them]. We do a lot of team-building exercises before the volunteers [go].”

“That’s what we tell our volunteers,” Moulié says. “We’re not a trip agency; we’re here to prepare them.”

Many students decide to participate in a volunteer trip without a thorough understanding of what exactly they have to offer, or even what they hope to gain from the experience. There are any number of different motivations young people can have to volunteer, from skills and language acquisition to cross-cultural exposure, but arguably one principal influencing factor is the sheer amount of promotion that targets the student demographic.

“I really support students who want to do these kinds of programs,” explains Tiessen. “But we are bombarded with all sorts [of] messages around us, whether they’re posters or television commercials, or the discourse that’s used by the agencies [.…] And often those images are of black children, or of brown-skinned children, and so it perpetuates a number of neo-colonial ideas about what our role is, what our relationship is going to be with the people that we encounter when we go abroad.”

Tiessen explains that this imagery can play a role in shaping our discourse and perceived cultural relations.

“So if we constantly see these images of white people helping black children in Africa, we reinforce and normalize a certain kind of power relationship that we think is appropriate and representative,” Tiessen explains.

The desire to volunteer your time and energy to help others is commendable, but what needs to go hand in hand with that desire is a willingness to educate oneself—not just in preparation for a trip, but continuously, about the issues and intricacies of any volunteer undertaking. A certain level of critical thinking is absolutely essential as far as international experiential learning goes, but it’s also important to realize that there are lots of different styles of travelling. Thinking carefully about what exactly you hope to accomplish, both for yourself and for others, is a vital step in any successful trip.

“[Working on your CV is] not a reason to do it,” Tiessen says. “Be honest […and] say ‘I want to have an adventure. I want to go and I want to be able to do something that doesn’t involve sitting on a beach for two weeks. I’d like to go and do something that is a bit productive.’ [But] be honest about the experience.”

 

a, Basketball, Behind the Bench, Sports

The evolution of the Raptors

by Dan Gilbert on

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When DeMar DeRozan steps onto the court at the New Orleans Arena on Sunday, Feb. 16, it will be the first time in four seasons that the Toronto Raptors will have one of their own players in front of the bright lights on All-Star Sunday. The Raptors—like all other Toronto sports teams since 1993—are a study in disappointment and false hope. This year was supposed to be different. This year we were supposed to be good, yet the squad opened the season with a sluggish 6-12 start.

The wildly inconsistent 18-game stretch was enough to show that the Rudy Gay experiment wasn’t panning out. Masai Ujiri, hired as the Raptors’ general manager this past off-season, took it upon himself to bring change. Cue the night of Dec. 9 when Gay was shipped off to Sacramento, and the Raptors seemed to plunge themselves back into their perpetual state of rebuilding.

At least that’s what they thought. Today, the Raptors are nestled snuggly at the top of the Atlantic Division as the third best team in the Eastern Conference. This hope was glimmering, and it was real. The new-look Raptors are breathing new life into a moribund franchise, and are offering a refreshing brand of basketball that focuses on the simplest of philosophies: ball movement and teamwork. It wasn’t long before the skeptics came out to question whether or not this current group is legitimate, but based on the eye test, this is anything but fool’s gold.

On this team, every player understands his role, and as a unit, the team plays a grind-it-out, unselfish style of basketball. Once under-valued players that came over through the trade are now allowed to play to their strengths and look like solid complementary pieces on a playoff roster. Younger players such as DeRozan and Terrence Ross are taking on more responsibility and are developing without the need to appease Gay’s star cache. Due to their selflessness on offence, the Raptors are trusting each other on the other side of the ball. They are a defensive force that ranks seventh in the league in terms of points allowed per possession—a previously unfathomable achievement.

It may not be a stretch to compare this year’s rendition of Canada’s team to the 2004 NBA Champion Detroit Pistons, but similarities do exist. Neither team had a superstar but still found ways to win by showcasing strong collective play and discipline on both ends of the floor. Point guard Kyle Lowry is the equivalent of 2004’s Chauncey Billups. He’s tough, versatile, clutch, and most importantly has a huge chip on his shoulder after being given up on by so many teams. DeRozan, while not the defender Rip Hamilton was, can create his own shot and has the potential to average 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists a game. Ross has freakish athleticism, which, combined with his length and lateral quickness, can be deployed as a defensive stopper in the mold of Tayshaun Prince. Finally, you have young big men, Amir Johnson and Jonas Valanciunas, both of whom can stretch the floor and are learning to play the same team defence with which Rasheed and Ben Wallace anchored the back line for the Pistons.

The Raptors are structured, focused and poised to make a statement come playoff time. As long as they maintain their potent level of chemistry and play as a team, they should be able to push even the best of teams to seven games. The players are well aware of how they have to continue playing in order to keep the machine running smoothly, but only time will tell if that will happen. As a loyal fan of the franchise since childhood, I certainly hope they can keep it up.

That being said, regardless of where they end up come April, Raptor Nation can finally be proud of the fact that its squad has made significant strides in the right direction. In Year 19, the franchise has finally developed a meaningful identity, and maybe, just maybe, a recipe for long term success.

a, News

EUS pilots equity presentation in mandatory first-year Engineering class

by Chelsey Ju on

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A new presentation on social equity and safe spaces in the Faculty of Engineering piloted last week with guest lectures in a mandatory first-year course on Feb. 6 and 7.

The guest lecture is a result of an idea brought up last November at an open EUS discussion regarding sexism, racism, and other issues within the faculty. FACC 100 was chosen to host the presentation because it is a mandatory first-year course frequented by guest lectures.

“[In this class] there have been guest lectures from all departments of the Faculty to introduce students to all the different disciplines in Engineering,” said Christopher Tegho, the Engineering Undergraduate Society (EUS) Equity Commissioner. “After the EUS Safer Space [meeting], Josh Redel, Carlos (the EUS President), and I met with Professor Jim Nicell, Dean of Engineering, and discussed options to raise awareness about Safer Space, including the idea of giving a presentation in an engineering classroom. Nicell supported all our initiatives.”

The presentations were given by Tegho; Fiona Ross, a recent McGill Arts graduate; and Nampande Lande, a current Concordia student. Ross and Lande both have previous experience giving presentations on social topics.

“We have experience facilitating sexual health workshops; that’s why [Tegho] wanted someone who had experience,” Ross said. “We sat down with him, went through the workshop material, and talked about what was most important to get across and how we should get across it.”

“[This presentation] was made specifically for engineering students,” Lande added.

Approximately 150 people attended the presentations each day. The presentation stressed the importance of having a safe space within the Faculty, and reviewed identity discrimination based on class, sexual orientation, and race. In addition, the presentation also evaluated how to address scenarios of microaggression and discrimination.

Professor Joseph Matt Kinsella, who is teaching FACC 100 this year, expressed support for the in-class presentation. He said the social aspect of being a professional engineer is equally important as the academic aspect.

“The concept behind the course is to teach students how to behave professionally as they move out of school,” Kinsella said. “We’re introducing them to how they need to behave as engineering students and as they go out into a career as an engineer.”

Mathilde Marcoux, a U1 Engineering student who attended the class, said that although presentation was entertaining, it could have been more informative.

“The information presented is interesting, but I don’t feel like it’s anything that I wasn’t aware of before,” she said. “It treats very serious subjects, but the presenters aren’t very serious in their comments and manner of presenting. I don’t really see why this workshop is relevant and why it is part of my curriculum as a mechanical engineering student.”

Marcoux also expressed indifference towards the portion of the presentation addressing microaggressions and sexism in the faculty.

“I don’t feel like [being female] affects me in any way; most of the time I actually feel like it’s an advantage,” Marcoux said. “I receive a lot of encouragement from my peers and professors. When I’m experiencing difficulties in a class […] my classmates are happy to help me. They don’t make fun of me or discriminate because I’m a girl.”

For the future, Kinsella mentioned the possibility of expanding guest lectures to FACC 400, the upper-year professional practice course.

“It’s always good to hear things twice [….] Whereas this presentation was catered towards being a student, [one for] the workplace, I think, would be possibly helpful,” Kinsella said.

Next year, organizing these presentations will be the responsibility of the Equity Comissioner.

While Tegho was satisfied with how the presentation went, he said there is still room for improvement in the future.

“I would like to have more examples relevant to the experiences engineering students would live,” Tegho said. “This would require to have a committee work on the workshop. This time, due to time limitations, I could not reach to other people in the EUS or in Engineering to help me with the project. After the presentations, multiple people expressed their interest to join the committee.”

a, News

Justin Trudeau calls for youth engagement in politics

by Anthony Milton on

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Justin Trudeau, leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, answered McGill students’ questions about Canadian politics, his leadership style, and issues facing the next generation of voters on Feb. 6.

Hosted by Liberal McGill, the event was part of Trudeau’s 2014 Campus Tour, which has brought Trudeau to universities across the country to speak with students. He spoke at Concordia University and Université de Montréal on the same day. Approximately 250 people at McGill turned out to hear Trudeau speak.

“Getting young people […] interested and involved in the political process isn’t just about getting a few more people to come out and vote against the current prime minister,” he said. “We need to start thinking about getting young people to speak up, to be involved, to make your voices heard, [and] to become powerful agents of change.”

Trudeau criticized the nature of present-day Canadian politics, arguing that parties have been less open to compromise and more interested in playing off of differences in opinion. He stressed the importance of finding answers that work for everyone and listening to all points of view.

“Politics has become about division; it’s become about obtaining power, about finding the right wedge issues, about contrasting yourself with your opponents,” he said. “It’s supposed to be about a group of us […] coming together in Ottawa to try and figure out the best way forward.”

One attendee, who could not be identified, inquired about the state of Indigenous affairs in Canada.

“If I’m looking at the Canadian system, one of the groups that is throughout the system not represented fairly is Aboriginal Canadians, and I know a lot of this is because of systemic oppression,” the student said. “When you are prime minister, how will you address this issue?”

Trudeau stressed the importance of education in improving conditions for the country’s Indigenous peoples, citing the sharp decline in suicide rates in communities where education systems have been improved.

“The fact that the dollar spent per student in First Nations communities is far below the dollar spent per student in all other areas of education in other provinces and places across the country just makes no sense when you look at the challenges these communities are going through,” he said.

Trudeau also expressed opposition to tax increases.

“I am certainly in agreement with simplifying the tax code significantly,” Trudeau said. “The tax code [is] much more complex and inefficient than it needs to be [….] But I do not believe that we need to increase taxes anyway, anywhere. The government takes in plenty of money from Canadians; we just need to be a lot smarter about how we spend it.”

According to Nadia Kadri, president of Liberal McGill, Trudeau’s prior experience in connecting with students has been beneficial for this event.

“We know that from his tours across Canada, he has collected a lot of information from students,” Kadri said. “He’s really been able to tailor a message that captures and engages the student body.”

Iain Childerhose, U2 Arts, praised Trudeau’s sincerity in responding to questions.

“Obviously his strength is his charismatic speaking ability, and that showed today; I really enjoyed what he said,” Childerhouse said. “He definitely tried to come from a non-partisan standpoint and encourage political engagement in youth, which is something I think is extremely important.”

a, Men's Varsity, Sports

Basketball: Dufort dominates in Redmen rout of UQAM

by Aaron Rose on

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After clinching a playoff berth with back-to-back wins against the Bishop’s Gaiters last week, the CIS no. 8 ranked McGill Redmen (9-2) returned home with control of first place in the conference to face the struggling UQAM Citadins. McGill jumped out to an early 18-point lead in the first-quarter, but a questionable substitution pattern left the door open for the desperate Citadins who brought it back to a five-point game in the fourth. UQAM—playing the part of the pesky underdog—refused to back down all game, but the Redmen hit crucial shots down the stretch and never relinquished the lead en route to a 90-72 victory.

The Redmen offence was sizzling hot from the field, shooting a new season-high of 59 per cent. Veteran forward Vincent Dufort had a tall task in front of him trying to compete with the reigning scoring champion of the RSEQ, UQAM forward Alexandre Bernard. While Bernard topped Dufort in scoring with a game-high 30 points, Dufort put on a shooting clinic, making three of every four shots—including two from behind the arc en route to a team high 24 points. Dufort was everywhere for the Redmen, as he recorded his fifth double-double of the season with a team-high 11 boards.

“I’ve been working on my shot and I was fortunate enough that it was dropping tonight,” Dufort said. “I just tried to find what advantage I had, whether it was in the post or on the perimeter.”

Strong shooting from the perimeter has been a trend for the Redmen all season. Sharpshooter Thomas Lacy came off the bench to tally an efficient 10 points in limited playing time, while freshman Michael Peterkin’s strong defensive play was accompanied with an equally efficient 11 points in just 18 minutes.

The Redmen dealt with foul trouble all game as they tried to stop Bernard and point guard Richard Addai as the two combined for 53 of the visitors’ 72 points.

“Our scouts say they only have three guys that can score,” said Head Coach David DeAveiro. “Our job is to shut those guys down, and we didn’t do a very good job of that today.”

McGill has struggled to put together four complete quarters of basketball this season, and Thursday night’s game was no different.

“I don’t know if there is any other team in the country that dresses seven freshmen every night,” DeAverio said. “These guys have never done it before […] a full 40 [minutes] is going to take some understanding and a high level of concentration.”

On Saturday, the Redmen were forced to put more than 40 minutes of effort in against UQAM in a rematch at the Centre Sportif. McGill clawed out a 78-76 victory in an overtime thriller that saw star point guard Simon Bibeau hit a game-tying three-pointer at the end of regulation. Bibeau stuffed the stat sheet and led the team by example, finishing with 17 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals.

While the Redmen are now in control of their playoff destiny and are in the running to finish first in the RSEQ, there may be a disadvantage in finishing the regular season on top of the conference. The RSEQ tournament is set to be played in Quebec City, home of an underrated Laval team that handed the Redmen their first loss earlier in the season.

“There’s really no advantage to winning the conference for us because [we] don’t get home court advantage,” DeAverio said. “So at this point we’ve got to […] try some new things [.…] We tried to do some of that today, and unfortunately it didn’t work for us.”

The Redmen have four more games to work out all the kinks before the playoffs start. Look for DeAveiro to mix up the lineup, and for the team’s freshmen to see increased playing time in the next two weeks as the squad gets geared for the madness of March. McGill’s next game will take place on Thursday, Feb. 13 at 8:00 p.m. as the Redmen look to take on the Laval Rouge et Or at Love Competition Hall.

a, Basketball, Football, Hockey, Soccer, Sports

Around the water cooler – Feb. 11

by Mayaz Alam on

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Snowboarding (Men’s Slopestyle) — Only two weeks prior to these Olympics, Mark “Mr. Clutch” McMorris, fractured a rib at the Winter X Games. Presumably fuelled by the power of Canadian wheat, the Regina native made a speedy recovery in time to become Canada’s first medalist of Sochi 2014. In all three rounds, McMorris’ first run was lackluster, but the 20-year-old consistently posted second runs that lived up to his nickname. If only we all got a second chance to make a first impression.

(Ruby Xia / McGill Tribune)
(Ruby Xia / McGill Tribune)

Figure Skating —  In a wild twist of events that reminded the Olympic world of a colder time marked by détente, a French media outlet reported judge vote-fixing by the Russians and Americans. As it turns out, all the superpowers needed to get along was the impending threat of Canadian supremacy in the ice dancing event; allegedly, the Cold War rivals were colluding to ensure that the American ice dancing pair finished before Canuck skaters Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir. In return, all the Russians wanted out of the backroom dealing was a gold medal in the overall team trophy. Eerily enough the Canadian figure skating team won a silver medal—placing behind the Russian team, while Virtue and Moir finished second behind none other than our southern neighbours.

Speed Skating (1500m short track) — “It’s not my best distance,” Quebec native Charles Hamelin explained following his gold in the 1500m short track. The medal, Hamelin’s fourth of his Olympics career, puts him second on the list of most decorated Canadian male Winter Olympic athletes. The Olympics were a family outing for the Hamelins; Charles’ father, Yves, is the Canadian speed skating national team director while his brother François, finished second in the B-final earlier that night. François probably apologized for bringing dishonour to his family by not medalling; the only thing more Canadian than a humblebrag is an apology

Freestyle Skiing (Moguls) — Justine Dufour-Lapointe became Canada’s first gold medalist of the 2014 Winter Olympics when she posted a score of 22.44. Fans in Sochi began seeing double-trouble when Chloe Dufour-Lapointe—Justine’s older sister—took home the silver medal in the same event. Two days later in the men’s event, Vancouver 2010 gold medalist Alexandre Bilodeau proved to be more than a one-hit-wonder, while Mikael Kingsbury, came in as the runner-up. All four athletes hail from La Belle Province, giving the nation of Quebec three golds and two silvers, good for third best at Sochi 2014.

a, Editorial, Opinion

Equity policy needs more clarity, transparency

by McGill Tribune Editorial Board on

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The Students’ Society of McGill University’s (SSMU) Equity Policy has come under sustained criticism from both students and members of SSMU Council in the wake of its application against SSMU VP Internal Brian Farnan, resulting in a public apology. As was reported Feb. 4, changes to the policy—some of which had been in the works before this controversy—are on the way. As various proposals are considered, the priority must be to make the policy clearer and more accessible to students.

One of the major issues regarding the equity policy arose this past Wednesday at the Winter General Assembly (GA). The final resolution debated that night was on the “Guarantee on the Freedom of Dress in the SSMU Building,” which proved mostly to be a stalking horse for settling a longstanding dispute between the Plumbers’ Philharmonic  Orchestra (PPO) and SSMU. Based on an executive decision, the signature lab coats of the PPO had been banned from the SSMU building on grounds derived from the equity policy.

One of the many issues that were debated was the extent to which the SSMU Equity Policy even has jurisdiction on the matter. The current policy specifies applications to staff, executives, and clubs that are of, or funded by SSMU, plus activities and events hosted by SSMU and affiliated clubs and services, as well as any events, activities and promotions in the SSMU building itself.

Those clauses left the PPO lab coats in a sort of jurisdictional no-man’s land. As a non-SSMU organization, it was not directly accountable to the Equity Policy. However, the coats were deemed by members of the SSMU executive to contain writings that were in contravention of the Equity Policy, leading to both their ban in the building, and a host of other sanctions against the group as a whole, such as prohibition from booking rooms in the SSMU building. One change to the Equity Policy that would improve its application in these kinds of situations is to clarify how it can be used in relation to a student group that is not actually under the umbrella of SSMU.

In addition to jurisdictional issues, the Equity Policy also suffers from a general inaccessibility to students. The actual policy­­—at most recent revision—weighs in at 22 pages. While that may be a necessary level of detail to include in a full-form document, there is currently no simpler way for a student to become acquainted with the policy. The landing page on the SSMU website that discusses Equity lists “Read the SSMU Equity Policy” as the first step to resolving an equity-related situation. Though the page contains a bare-bones outline of situations that could be equity-related, a better service to students would be an “executive summary” of the policy. This­—in a page or two at maximum—would outline both what the policy can remedy and what it prohibits in a form that allows a student to easily decide whether their situation falls within the policy.

In addition, a complaint cited by several SSMU Councillors in the wake of the Farnan situation was the inability for council to suggest changes to the recommendation once it is brought to their attention. The take-it-or-leave-it nature of the remedy presented can cause issues in which the original incident is deserving of a resolution different from that which is suggested by the Equity Commissioner.

The last, and perhaps trickier question that should be asked in reevaluating the equity policy is what even constitutes an equity violation. There is a possible tension between resolving a wider scope of situations  using the policy, and having a definition and scope of the policy that is actually taken seriously by the student body. More to the point, much of the backlash that emerged from the Farnan apology focused on the seemingly insignificant nature of the complaint itself. Continued application of the policy in such a way might make a mockery of the policy, defeating its purpose of educating students, and detracting from cases in which it is truly needed.

The SSMU Equity Policy, while imperfect, is a necessary part of fulfilling the association’s obligations to the student body. However, as recent events have shown, substantial changes are needed to allow it to adapt to the current realities on campus and keep it relevant to students.

Erratum:  A previous version of this editorial contained several factual errors regarding the SSMU Equity Policy. These errors were caused by our reference to a previous (March 2012) version of the policy. The Section 11.5 to which we had referred exists in the new document as Section 9.4, and has been updated to address the concerns we had raised regarding abstentions. It is also worth clarifying that the Equity Policy itself is 11 and a half pages long; the editorial’s previous quote of 22 pages includes appendices and represented the total document length of the previous policy. The Tribune regrets these errors.

Click here to read a statement on the matter.

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