Issue 3, Vol. 151, The Brunswickan

VOLUME 151, ISSUE 3, NOVEMBER 2017

The Brunswickan Editorial Board

About us

Editorial Policy

Letters to the Editor

Editor-in-Chief Emma McPhee

The Brunswickan, in its 151st year of publication, is Canada’s Oldest Official Student Publication.

While we endeavour to provide an open forum for a variety of viewpoints and ideas, we may refuse any submission considered by the Editorial Board to be racist, sexist, libellous or in any way discriminatory.

Letters must be submitted by e-mail to editor@thebruns.ca.

Include your name, since letters with pseudonyms will not be printed or posted online. Letters must be 500 words at maximum. Deadline for letters is Friday at 5 p.m.

Business Manager Katie Kim News Editor Emma MacDonald Arts Editor Ryan Gaio Sports Editor Caroline Mercier Art Director Book K. Sadprasid Copy Editor Tristan Hallihan Multimedia Editor Cameron Lane

Staff Assistant Art Director Maria Araujo Reporters Erin Sawden Tiziana Zevallos Brad Ackerson Photographer Maria Araujo Book Sadprasid Ad Manager Pouria Poursaeid

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We are an autonomous student publication owned and operated by Brunswickan Publishing Inc., a nonprofit, independent body.

We are also a founding member of the Canadian University Press.

Now a magazine, we publish monthly during the academic year with a circulation of 4,000. We publish weekly online at Thebruns.ca.

The opinions and views expressed in this publication are those of the individual writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Brunswickan, its Editorial Board or its Board of Directors.

All editorial content appearing in The Brunswickan is the property of Brunswickan Publishing Inc. Stories, photographs and artwork contained herein cannot be reproduced without the express, written permission of the Editor-in-Chief.

@Brunswickan

Letter from the Editor Words by Emma McPhee What is a fact? And who gets to decide what constitutes a fact? Is truth value-free?

in my last editorial, “Vaccines never cause autism?” What happens when the truth—the facts—become uncomfortable for some?

We all need to start thinking about these questions.

Last month, there were many instances of the media trying to assert their credibility against the backdrop of Trump’s presidency. Both The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal released an updated version of their social-media policies to the public; both newspapers banned their reporters from posting “partisan opinions” on social media platforms in an attempt to convince the public that their reporters aren’t biased. (By the way, this is a really backwards way of trying to gain credibility because no human is without bias—and it’s a farce to pretend otherwise. But I’ll leave that topic for another day.)

More recently, CNN launched its “Facts First” campaign. If you’ve been on Twitter lately, you’ve likely seen the video, or at least the photo of the apple. I’ve written down the video’s transcript for context: The video begins with an image of an apple on a white screen. A voice says, “This is an apple. Some people might try to tell you that it’s a banana. They might scream ‘banana, banana, banana’ over and over and over again. They might put banana in all caps. You might even start to believe that this is a banana, but it’s not. This is an apple.” It ends with the words “Facts First” written on the screen.

I get the point—CNN is trying to show that facts are indisputable truths. The problem is, it’s one thing to assert definitively that an apple is an apple. An apple is an apple is an apple is an apple. It’s always going to be. People are not likely to dispute this. But what about other statements? What about statements like “Trump tells lies” or, as I brought up

Let’s take the statement “Trump lies.” This is a fact that has been proven time and time again—yet it is still often reported in the press as if it is an opinion, and it is statements like this that could apparently be seen as “partisan opinions” if tweeted by a reporter from the NYT or WSJ. When CNN covers stories about Trump’s lies on their primetime shows, they often cover it as a forced debate.

They hire Trump pundits like Jeffrey Lord—people who are paid to defend Trump at all costs— and put them on a political panel against experienced political analysts. What usually unfolds is a mess of an argument and there is rarely a resolution.

This doesn’t achieve truth and it certainly doesn’t put the facts in the spotlight. Instead, this type of entertainment television gives Trump’s misleading information more airtime without outright acknowledging that it is a lie. The thing is, just because a fact makes a portion of the population uncomfortable doesn’t make it less of a fact. Just because a portion of the population screams bias doesn’t mean a statement is biased.

Through their Facts First campaign, CNN is attempting to gain credibility, but they’re missing the mark. It’s one thing to call an apple an apple to prove that you’re going after the facts first—but when it comes to tricky topics like Trump, CNN, at least on primetime television, has trouble calling a spade a spade and stopping the spread of misinformation.

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Letter from the Editor

by Emma McPhee

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News Briefs

by Emma MacDonald

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Fredericton without an Aquatic Centre

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Thoughts from the Arts Editor

by Ryan Gaio

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Artsy Things to Do This Month

by Ryan Gaio

by Erin Sawden

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Masculinity & Mental Health

by Emma MacDonald

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UNB Around World

the

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by Tiziana Zevallos

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Fall Fashion

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Sports Calendar

by Alex Landine

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Inclusive Sport Clothing

by Caroline Mercier

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Bruns Crossword

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News Briefs Words by Emma MacDonald | Photo by Bradley Parker

Students launch online student journal focused on health research Earlier this month, two UNB students launched the Atlantic Student Research Journal—an online-only peer-reviewed journal that focuses on health research.

Jeremy Slayter and Andrew Ward began working on the journal after Ward was inspired by a need for increased awareness among university students about the opportunities available for them within the health research field.

Both science students obtained summer positions within

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their field this summer, and after realizing the availability of opportunities, but lack of students, they gathered a group of volunteers to bridge the gap.

Slayter and Ward will be posting two to four articles a month at the beginning, and according to the press release sent out by the New Brunswick Health Research Centre, are collaborating with entities such as the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, the New Brunswick Health Research Foundation, past and present students and many health-related researchers at UNB.

Co-curricular program adds new ambassador program UNB’s co-curricular program now has student ambassadors to promote the program to other students and act as mentors for other participants.

Gillian MacLean, who created and facilitates the program, hosted a meet and greet with some of the ambassadors on Oct. 19.

During the meeting, there was discussion around the barriers to active involvement—although 350 students are enrolled in the program, the number of students who regularly participate is much lower.

McLean drew attention to the value of the program and the importance of communicating that to students.

“Research shows that the more engaged students are in educationally purposeful events and experiences, the better they do academically,” she said.

Financial update provided in last month’s town hall meeting A financial update that included a discussion of the resource-intensive Why UNB? campaign, an upcoming MOU with the provincial government and UNB’s plans around their future budget balance was held at the Wu Conference Centre on Oct. 26.

Karen Cunningham, vice-president UNB’s finance and administration, relayed the update by video conference from UNB Saint John’s meeting. The nursing staff from Moncton also participated in the town hall by teleconference.

Cunningham began with results from the 2016-2017 financial year, which UNB ended in a $2.3 million net operating deficit.

UNB’s Board of Governors approved a deficit budget for 2017-18, which included transfers from internally restricted net assets of $2.5 million to reduce the budgeted structural deficit from $4.8 million to $2.3 million.

Topics of interest included the potential continued funding for the Why UNB? campaign, which is in its final year of its pilot; a final draft version of a 3-year MOU with the provincial government and plans to balance the budget by the fiscal year 2020-2021.

A more detailed version of this story can be found on our website.

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Words by Erin Sawden | Photo by Book Sadprasid

With the decommissioning of the Lady Beaverbrook Gym—and the Sir Max Aitken Pool (SMA) within it— planned for 2018, Fredericton will become the only capital city in Canada without a competition pool.

Although the university and the city have known the building needed to be closed for a while, there is no pool ready to take on the numerous swimmers and user-groups that will be displaced next year.

There are currently three pools in Fredericton: the SMA in the Lady Beaverbrook Gym, the Fredericton Indoor Pool (FIP) and the YMCA’s pool; however, the SMA is currently the only competitive one of the three—the FIP is too shallow and the YMCA has only four lanes compared to the eight required for competitions.

Moreover, the SMA Pool is the only one with a diving tank deep enough for synchronized swimming competitions, as well as the only one with blocks that can be used for competitive swimming.

It’s not as if the SMA Pool isn’t being utilized by the people of Fredericton; it sees over 200,000 user visits per year—and there are numerous teams and user-groups that call the SMA home, including the UNB swim team; the Fredericton diving and synchronized swimming teams; a senior’s swimming group, the Silver Dolphins; and the Fredericton Aquanauts Swim Team (FAST), which is the youth swim team.

Synchronized swimming coach Gabrielle Pearson says that despite the different teams all working to accommodate each other, it can be difficult for them to share one

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pool—especially since the pool is limited in its competition use anyway.

“The amount of practices we have to cancel, the amount of rescheduling that we have to do that often we can’t make up for… it’s pretty crazy. So we end up losing, on average, one or two practices a week,” said Pearson. “If you look at just the past month, there’s been three times where we’ve cancelled Saturday practices because of other meets or other things that were booked up. It’s often double-booked as well, so we’re very very packed.”

Pearson said she heard rumours of the pool needing to be closed down fifteen years ago.

“I know when I got here in like 2002, they were saying they were going to close it down pretty soon because of how much it was costing to upkeep.”

The most recent (2015) building assessment for the LB Gym confirms what Pearson said. The assessment shows a deferred maintenance cost of about $7.5 million, but the number has likely risen over the two year period since.

The building assessment also categorizes every single “Requirement”—such as roofing renewal, windows renewal, insulation renewal—as “Beyond Useful Life.” Many of the requirements are listed as currently critical or necessary.

“The changing rooms are very outdated, a lot of the things are broken, a lot of hazards on deck. I know that the lifeguards do a really good job to make sure they pick up [the tiles], but a lot of tiles are broken,” Pearson said.

While Pearson agrees that the building needs be decommissioned, she doesn’t think it should be decommissioned until another competition pool is ready to replace it.

In March 2017, UNB president Eddy Campbell released a message regarding the future of the Lady Beaverbrook Gym, the current kinesiology building, which will be replaced by the Centre for Healthy Living.

“Our effort to build a new kinesiology building began in earnest in 2004, when we developed a vision for a ‘healthy living village’ at UNB Fredericton,” said Campbell in the statement, which was posted on the UNB website.

“Our vision included a state-of-the-art athletics and recreation facility, a new home for our Faculty of Kinesiology, and a new aquatics facility.”

These efforts have so far resulted in the creation of the Currie Center in 2011—which does not have a pool—and a new Kinesiology building set to be finished in 2018.

After thirteen years, there doesn’t appear to be any concrete plans for a new aquatic centre.

This isn’t to say that UNB is entirely to blame for this issue, however. Despite the pool’s heavy use by non-UNB community members, it appears as if a new competition pool has not been a priority for the city—even though the need for a new aquatic centre was acknowledged by the university in 2004.

Vice-president academic George MacLean said that the university has been in communication with the city for a while about a new pool, but that the new performing arts centre—a replacement for the current Playhouse—has

been the city’s number one priority. However, MacLean said that current delays in the construction of the performing arts centre could create an opportunity for the city to collaborate on building a new pool.

“Both the city and the university have recognized that sometimes a second or a third-tier priority can also be pushed up a little bit where you have an opportunity to partner. And I think what’s changed for the city is that now the city recognizes fully what the university is offering. Because what we’re offering, I think, is the best deal for the city in terms of a new aquatic centre,” MacLean said.

The city’s current stance on the pool is a bit vague. The most recent statement from mayor Mike O’Brien is that no offers have been made, that there is no impending announcement, but discussions with UNB will continue.

Wayne Knorr, the city’s communications manager, provided more details: “Councillors indicated they would take a leadership role, and there have been meetings going on with the city and UNB to look at the issue further. Some of the things that are in consideration are what can we do to accommodate any of the displaced swim programs in our current facilities, and then to talk about what the future looks like in regards to another aquatic centre.”

In the meantime, the swimming community has made efforts to lobby for a new aquatic centre. Jennifer Andrews is a professor in the UNB Department of English and a member of the Capital Region Aquatics Facility Team (CRAFT).

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CRAFT was formed in 2006 to 2007 to lobby for the SMA pool to stay open—and to ensure that the new facility’s construction would be meet each group’s requirements.

To do this, they have been working with the #MakeWaves campaign.

“We have a petition with over 7000 signatures, asking for action to be taken to building a new pool, and I think there have been some really good indications of support,” Andrews said. “Make Waves has delivered that petition to provincial, federal, UNB and city staff, so it’s been given to all of those constituents to say ‘this has wide community support, it deserves funding, and it deserves prominence on the agenda at the city and in the region.’”

Andrews also expressed concern about the potential losses that could emerge from not having a pool—including an exodus of coaches and swimmers. Furthermore, it could result in a drop in the number of retirees emigrating to the city, as many rely on pools for their health and wellness.

Although Andrews is a professor at UNB, she joined CRAFT as a former competitive swimmer and as a parent who is concerned that her daughter may lose something very valuable in the SMA. Andrews said that being a part of synchronized swimming has given her daughter great self-esteem, good body image and role models. Now that the pool’s future is uncertain, Andrews is concerned her daughter might lose those benefits.

“It pains me to think about what would happen if she didn’t have that, because I think for a lot of kids it teaches them really great values—but it also gives them a way to focus on their lives, and to have a purpose when there’s a lot of stuff going on for teenagers that makes life really

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hard,” Andrews said.

Swimming is a sport that people can do for their whole lives. The SMA pool, which sees kids start young in the FAST program and seniors who are part of the Silver Dolphins, is proof of this. But with the future of a competition pool in the city uncertain, FAST has seen a decrease in the number of kids joining—meaning that kids are missing out on the start of a lifelong sport.

Bea Lougheed, who swam and now coaches for FAST has noticed the decrease.

“If you swim, you can swim for the rest of your life. It’s pretty sad to see that kids are choosing other sports and not getting those essential swimming skills at a young age, [...] but we have been noticing that there’s been a large decrease and parents have been coming up to us and asking what our plan is to continue with the team,” she said.

Both the university and the city have known since at least 2004 the Lady Beaverbrook Gym would need to be decommissioned. Despite ongoing talks between the city and the university to construct a new aquatic centre, it appears it may be some time before one is built in Fredericton—leaving the future of numerous competitive and noncompetitive groups that utilize the SMA pool, in up to 200,000 user visits, uncertain.

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Most everyone can agree that once you arrive at university, mental health becomes a hot topic. But when it comes to mental illness, there is a difference between how males and females perceive and deal with their mental health. The reason for this is complicated, but it appears to be rooted in concepts of masculinity.

Student Union president Herbert Bempah believes there is a gap between men and women when it comes to dealing with mental health, which is why the UNBSU is once again running a campaign on Breaking Stereotypes, only this time their theme is masculinity and mental health.

“This year we were just discussing ways as to which we can create events for Movember and we realized Breaking Stereotypes is just really a great opportunity to start conversations on mental health and masculinity, hence why we chose it to be our theme this year,” Bempah said.

This year’s campaign video promises to be more light-hearted and conversational than last year’s, and students will be answering questions around their thoughts on masculinity, on mental health and on how society can do a better job of making men feel more comfortable and open discussing their mental health.

“When you look at masculinity, men are always advised to feel a certain way. And I feel that truly suppresses emotional well-being—hence the reason men are not accessing mental health services...and men are suffering more with mental health issues and are dying way earlier than they’re supposed to as opposed to women,” said Bempah.

According to Rice Fuller, UNB’s director of Counselling Services, Bempah is right—men are less likely to access mental health services, at a rate that Fuller speculates is about two to one, “maybe even a little higher.”

That isn’t to say that men don’t need to access these services. According to Statistics Canada, the suicide rate for males is three times higher than it is for women.

“We know that females are more likely to make suicide attempts, men are much more likely to actually be successful at killing themselves,” Fuller said.

Fuller said that while women are more likely to be di-

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agnosed with mood disorders such as depression, men experience more issues with substance use and impulsivity related disorders.

This is backed up by Stats Canada data, which found that approximately 10 per cent of Canadian women are diagnosed with mood disorders compared to approximately 6 per cent of men. By contrast, 5.8 per cent of men suffer from substance use disorders compared to 1.9 per cent of women. Further data shows that substance use disorders are more prevalent in younger age groups.

What does masculinity have to do with this?

What is it about males that makes them less likely to seek help when they’re going through difficult times?

Fuller says it has to do with the different way males and females are socialized, and that the social construct of masculinity perpetuated by a lot of males can actually contribute to negative mental health outcomes.

Despite the widely-recognized term, the word masculinity can still cause some confusion when trying to define precisely what it is.

And maybe that’s because masculinity isn’t precise, it can mean different things to different people and present itself in different ways.

Jesse Reid, a computer science student, is one of the Breaking Stereotypes participants who talks about these definitions.

“Questions that ask about winning, the drive to win— to be first; questions that ask about emotional control, risk-taking, violence, dominance; a concept called playboy, which has to do with kind of the importance of sexual conquests, self-reliance, primacy of work, power over women, disdain of homosexuals, pursuit of status,” are only some of the questions, according to Fuller.

However, what’s interesting is that some subscales exhibit traits that are more likely to lead to negative mental health outcomes than others, says Fuller. Self-reliance, the playboy, and power over women are the three subscales most associated with “negative mental health outcomes and a decreased likelihood of seeking help.”

Although most men are probably unaware of the CMNI, Reid mentioned similar traits—ones that make it difficult for men to deal with mental illness—being discussed during the shooting for the campaign.

“Not showing weakness I guess is really a big one, not being open about when you have a problem... I guess from an early age I would think the whole ‘boys don’t cry,’ and that kind of stuff is really pushed on to most guys,” said Reid.

Bempah shared similar sentiments to Reid: “You know there’s this fear of judgement...and that is a terrible feeling, to bottle things inside of you and to essentially be advised to suck it up and just not let it out, and sometimes you just really want to be able to talk about it.”

Communication is different for men (it’s difficult)

“I’m a big stickler for dictionary definitions, and like masculinity is just a bunch of traits—qualities and traits— that are typically associated with men,” he said.

The conformity to masculine norms inventory (CMNI) is a reputed research tool used to measure masculinity, with the understanding that it’s made up of a number of different aspects. As a result, CMNI uses of 11 subscales for measuring masculinity.

Fuller said that the CMNI asks 94 different questions relating to these different subscales, and the result is an overall score of masculinity, which can be associated with a lot of negative physical and psychological outcomes.

A key factor in the association between masculinity and mental health is that men are less likely to be socially engaged than women, which is a problem considering social connection is cited as “the most important predictor of good mental health” according to Fuller.

“I think that it has to do with this socialization that men and boys don’t do that type of thing—to seek support from other people is to be a sissy or a wuss—and [it’s] something that women do. That might explain why we’re more likely to talk to a female about it than another man,” Fuller said.

Reid finds this to be true. He said he talked more about

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his mental health with his female friends than male.

“There are some stuff that I talk to guys about, but I’d say definitely just in general, like overall, no topic specific or anything…[girls are] more approachable, I would say.”

This concept of self-reliance that male internalize is what can lead them to feeling isolated in their problems and like they can’t reach out.

“This isn’t to say self-reliance is a bad thing—self-reliance is a good thing. But taken to a point where you don’t depend on other people or have connections with other people that can provide support to you, that is a bad thing. There’s no question about that,” said Fuller.

Fuller believes that promoting more social connection is one of the ways mental health can be improved on-campus, which is exactly what Bempah hopes the Breaking Stereotypes campaign will facilitate.

“We should be able to create an atmosphere where people are comfortable with all aspects of wellnessphysical, emotional, mental…[Breaking Stereotypes] is just really an opportunity to create that discussion and normalize men being able to express their emotions in different ways completely,” said Bempah.

Although Reid participated in the campaign, he said personally the concept of masculinity hasn’t had much effect on his mental health—from the beginning, he has always been open about seeking help for his ADHD, which he was diagnosed with a couple of years ago in the middle of his degree.

Reid sought medical help after he started taking some of the writing courses required for computer science and he realized he was having a lot of difficulty reading and concentrating for long periods of time.

“It was really frustrating before and it was just like, ‘what is wrong with me? I have no idea why like I’m sitting down really trying to focus and not getting any results’…it was just really hard to think about anything for a consistently long time,” said Reid. “[The medication] has slowed down things—but not in like my brain’s slow or anything—just like it helps you focus.”

After his diagnosis, Reid participated in the #MyDefinition campaign that was facilitated by former UNBSU vice-president internal Lee Thomas during their time at university.

“I’m pretty easygoing and open about my stuff but I know a lot of guys aren’t, so I’m more than happy to step forward and that,” Reid said.

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However, Reid believes that more guys should be more open about their mental health, especially if something seems off, because of the great improvement it can have on your overall life satisfaction.

“Being diagnosed was probably one of the best things that ever happened,” said Reid.

Reid said that through his role as a proctor and his service on the Student Union, he tries to take opportunities to promote using services like counseling because it makes a big difference, especially when you’re struggling to understand exactly what’s going on.

“I just want [to talk to] someone who is really knowledgeable...when I talk to my friends I don’t always want to talk all about my problems, so it was like, ‘go to a professional; we can get straight to the point,’” said Reid.

“Just like I go to the gym to work out, I can go to counseling to like work out brain stuff.”

It starts early The socialization of men in terms of these masculine ideals is something that Fuller said starts at an early age.

“It has to do with the way we raise our kids,” said Fuller.

“We talk a lot about doing things at university to teach people about consent to teach people about preventing rape, teach people about being a bystander,when I think that we may be too late in trying to do that… we’re having to reteach people at this point things they have already learned.”

“So that begs the question: what have they already learned, why have they already learned it and who are they learning it from?”

Reid echoed Fuller’s sentiments: “It starts so early. Like, I’ve been in Superstore and there’s a little boy crying and

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You know there's this fear of judgement...and that is a terrible feeling, to bottle things inside of you

a girl in the cart who isn’t and the parent says ‘your sister’s not crying, toughen up.’”

Role Models in sport a potential solution?

In his explanation of ways to reduce the stigma around masculinity and mental health, Fuller indicated role models through sport as a potential solution.

“I think that [varsity athletes] are potentially good role models for this, the male ones in particular, because people may look to them more as being closer to these male ideals,” Fuller said.

“It’s been pretty powerful on the few occasions over the past couple of years where male athletes have spoken out against partner violence and sexual assault, and so I think that’s a potentially powerful avenue for change.”

Spencer Dawson is a fourth year business student who plays on V-Red’s basketball team. He has been involved with some of the mental health initiatives coming out of the athletics department the past couple years, and he says masculinity can definitely be perpetuated through sport.

“You feel like there’s like a certain way you’re supposed to act—you know being like a man who plays sport—and then it just kind of carries with you for a long time,” he said.

Dawson said his coaches really emphasize communication, and learning how to do that with their teammates both on and off the team really helps him and his teammates stay mentally healthy.

“The closer you get with your friends on the team, the more you talk to each other, the easier it is to just be yourself,” he said. “You don’t have to act a certain way because you think it’s how you’re supposed to be, like you can just be yourself.”

Dawson’s teammate, WIll Legere, said that while he doesn’t personally utilize services like counseling, he’s not opposed to the idea.

“Everybody goes through the same thing, feels the same experiences. But if we don’t talk about it, it’s easy to feel alone and isolated in your experience.”

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Words by Ryan Gaio “Are you there, God? It’s me, a Leafs fan.” Such is the prayer that many TML devotees have uttered since 1967—the last time the team won a Stanley Cup. I’m no longer much of a sports fan, though I had a stint as one in my younger and more vulnerable days.

My mother even dyed my hair blue before I attended my first game. More accurately, though, the local Shopper’s Drug Mart did not actually have blue hair-dye and she brought home the next-best-thing: “blue-black,” a colour combination which had very little blue. I turned out looking like Elvis—and I swear my hair never fully went back to its pre-dyejob shade.

Besides this unfortunate and unintended new ’do, my most distinct memory of my days a hockey watcher comes from a 2002 playoff game against the Carolina Hurricanes. That year, the Leafs had a deep run, advancing to the third of four rounds—a feat they had only achieved a handful of other times in the decades since their last championship. Game six was a mustwin for The Boys In Blue, as they attempted to stave off elimination on home ice. The game went to overtime, where a Hurricane-r scored to end the Leafs’ season. I remember the goal being greeted not with noise and cheers, but a spooky, surreal silence—they were playing in Toronto, remember, so the audience struggled to accept this disappointing, anticlimactic finish. My ten-year-old brain could not comprehend what had transpired. This was an outcome I had not even once considered.The Leafs couldn’t be out, could they? The game—the season—had not actually ended, had it?

I turned back to look at my father—a diehard supporter—for some clarity and comfort or some words of wisdom with which to understand this nightmare.

But what could possibly be said? With a tear in his eye and a shrug, he offered all there was to offer: “Maybe next time.”

Maybe next time. It’s a mantra that Leafs fans in particular—but sports fans in general—know all too well.

Each year, they pledge their allegiance to their club, invest so much time and energy and hope, with the statistical likelihood of crushing disappointment far outweighing the slight probability of a happy ending.

And yet each year, people like my dad continue to cheer. They do not waver.

I’ve been thinking about this devotion now that the NHL season is once again in full-swing. I admire the loyalty sports fans display—the willingness to stand

by something even when it is not doing well; it’s a type of blind faith I felt almost jealous to be missing out on—until I realized that such devotion exists not just from sports watchers, but in Arts Fandom, too.

See, my absolute, all-time favourite band is Weezer.

They have been ever since Grade 7, when I found a cracked copy of their first CD at a nearby yard sale and bought it for a toonie because it had the song “Buddy Holly”—a tune I only knew because its music video features Fonzie.

For the next several years, I was obsessed with the band. I bought every album and eagerly anticipated each new release. I went to every concert whenever they passed through town, sometimes arriving hours early just to get a good spot on the General Admission floor. At one show, I was so close I was able to give frontman Rivers Cuomo a high-five, which I followed up by kissing my own palm.

For those of you unfamiliar with Weezer’s career arc, it basically goes something like this: Their first two albums are almost universally-regarded as brilliant—but each of their subsequent releases is terribly inconsistent and mostly just frustrating, including an ill-conceived collaboration with Lil Wayne, albums with titles like Raditude and one very questionable moustache. Yet each of these releases also contains sporadic moments of greatness, and these are the glimpses into genius that Weezerheads cling to. Most of the album might suck—but that one song, man. That song is a great one and that song makes it all worthwhile; that song makes you elbow your friend and say, “See? I told you they still had it in ’em.”

As I write this, I am three days away from the release of Weezer’s latest album, Pacific Daydream. From the singles I’ve heard, I don’t have very high hopes.

(Autotune? Really, Rivers?) Yet thinking about Leafs devotion has gotten me thinking about my relationship to this band—and I have decided that when it comes out on Friday, I am going to go buy a copy. I have to. Not just because I have all the others, but because this is what you do when you’re a fan of something: you stand by whatever it is you love, even when it’s not doing well. My dad still cheers for the Leafs when they’re losing and in last place, so I’ll still listen to Weezer, even if they’re using Autotune.

Who knows? The album might be great and if it totally sucks, there’s always next time.

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Ten Artsy Things to Do in Fredericton This Month Words by Ryan Gaio These ten listings are hardly—hardly!—the only Artsy Things To Do this month; while I have selected ten that I think are interesting and eclectic, always remember that there are many other wonderful things happening in and around the city all month long. To let us know about an upcoming Artsy Thing To Do, email arts@thebruns.ca—we may feature your Thing in an upcoming issue! For more information about any of the following listings, please use your social media lurking skills and/or consult Google. All Artsy Things can be very easily found.

Nov. 9: Kenny vs Spenny Comedy Tour.

Nov. 2: The Capital Project Presents: Awesome; I Shot That!

Local filmmakers Tim Rayne and Arthur Thomson have been hard at work on The Capital Project, a documentary and web series examining New Brunswick’s music scene.

This special gala event will be held at the Boyce Farmers Market, and will combine screenings of film segments with performances from the featured bands. What makes the night unique is that the event will itself be filmed and will ultimately serve as the documentary’s ending; to this end, the filmmakers encourage attendees to take pictures and videos for possible inclusion in the final product. Are you ready for your close-up?

Boyce Farmers Market, 665

Nov. 6: Grownups Read Things They Wrote As Kids.

Nov. 2-5: Silver Wave Film Festival.

Now in its 17th year, the annual festival returns, again promising something for everyone: multicultural representation; youth screenings; French and English programming of various genres and lengths; plus a comprehensive industry series, which brings experienced producers and filmmakers together.

Friday night’s screening event will even offer “Killer Ducks & Zombies.” Roll out the red carpet!

Various locations.

The popular podcast and radio series comes to Fredericton for an open-mic evening of embarrassment as adults read their cringiest book reports, love letters, poems and journal entries to a room full of laughing (but supportive) strangers. Dear Diary: please don’t let anyone find my old diary.

Charlotte Street Arts Centre, 732 Charlotte Street. Doors open at 7:30 p.m., show

Join Canadian comedians Kenny Hotz and Spencer Rice, creators and stars of Kenny vs. Spenny, at the Fredericton stop of their cross-Canada tour. At each show, Hotz and Rice will present rare and unseen footage from the KvS vaults—including footage broadcasters previously deemed too graphic and outrageous to air!

Delta Fredericton Ballroom, 225 Woodstock Road, 7:00 p.m.

Nov. 13: Monday Night Film Series presents An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power.

Ten years after Al Gore’s Oscar-winning An Inconvenient Truth, the politician and environmentalist offers a follow-up, presenting new research which demonstrates that fourteen of Earth’s hottest years in recorded history have been since 2001; the film is essential viewing— now more than ever.

Tilley Hall 102, 7:30 p.m.

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Nov. 26: Walrus + WHOOPS-Szo + chillteens + DJ Dizzy Kitten.

Nov. 22: “Oh What A Night!” Christmas Show.

Nov. 16: A Passage to Bollywood.

Navdhara India Dance Theatre, a contemporary dance company based out of Mumbai, bring a vibrant performance full of foot-tapping music, colourful costumes and a gripping plot to Fredericton in time for Diwali—the Hindu festival of lights.

Expect classical Indian songs as well as the latest Bollywood hits in an exciting blend of music, dance and theatre.

The Fredericton Playhouse, 686 Queen Street, 7:30 p.m.

Straight from Las Vegas, the cast of “Oh What A Night!,” an internationally-renowned tribute to Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, will celebrate the Christmas season with a new show paying tribute to two classic American performers. In addition to bringing thirty of the legendary Four Seasons tunes to life, the performers will also pay tribute to Andy Williams (aka “Mr. Christmas”). In the 60s and 70s, Andy Williams’ television show was a household staple, particularly his annual Christmas shows. Come witness the crew recreate the iconic sounds of such holiday staples as “The Christmas Song,” “White Christmas” and more! (Yes, it is Christmastime already.

I know!)

The Fredericton Playhouse, 686 Queen Street, 7:00 p.m.

Nov. 23: Wannabe! A Tribute to the Spice Girls.

With live vocals, original choreography, British accent and platform shoes, the five ladies and their six-piece band promise a serious dose of 90s nostalgia as they bring one of Canada’s premiere Spice Girls tributes to Fredericton. From backup dancers to flash-mobs to gospel choirs to celebrity guests, each show offers a surprise twist—so stop right now, thank you very much, and grab your tickets!

Charlotte Street Arts Centre, 732 Charlotte Street. Doors open at 7:00 p.m., show

To celebrate the release of their debut full-length album, “Family Hangover,” Halifax-based band Walrus is heading on an East Coast tour with some of their favourite musical friends. Joining their stop at the Capital Complex will be WHOOP-Szo, returning to town after a triumphant Pre-Pop show in October—alongside local favourites chillteens and DJ Dizzy Kitten.

The Capital Complex, 362 Queen Street. Doors at 9:00 p.m., show at 10:00 p.m.

Nov. 30: In Conversation: Lecture on Canadian art.

Join Beaverbrook Art Gallery’s chief curator, Jeffrey Spalding, and art historian and curator Dennis Reid for a free highly-animated conversation on Canadian art entitled “Viewing some impressive examples of mid-twentieth century abstraction in Canada.” Take the time to explore the Beaverbrook’s newly-unveiled pavilion. Admission to the entire gallery is always free for UNB and STU students!

Beaverbrook Art Gallery, 703 Queen Street, 7:00 p.m.

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Words by Tiziana Zevallos

Although students may start their UNB career in Fredericton, their studies may end up taking them somewhere far beyond the Maritimes.

In the summer of 2015, Alysha-Rae Weekes, a 2017 BBA graduate, went on a three-week study program in France; this gave her a taste of what studying abroad would be like, and so she decided was ready for a more immersive experience. The following semester, Weekes applied to go to Heilbronn University—a UNB partner school in Germany.

Initially, she was only going to be there for six months— but the school semesters in Germany had different annual schedules than those in Canada; because the fall semester started at the beginning of October and ended early February, Weekes said she “couldn’t come back to UNB as a student for the winter, so I decided while I was there, to look for an internship so I could stay for the whole year.”

The campus Weekes attended was located in a small city of about 120,000 people that reminded her of Fredericton; it even had a river running along the centre. “I think it was nice starting in the smaller town, getting a bit better at speaking German and then going [to a larger city],” she said.

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campuses in Trinidad.

After spending a year abroad and realizing she didn’t feel as homesick as she expected, Weekes decided she was ready to challenge herself and visit a developing country next.

“I think for me—and for a lot of other students, maybe you just need the progression—and it’s nice to have those shorter term trips available, just to see what you can handle and work up from there,” Weekes said.

In May of this year, Weekes and eight other UNB students spent a summer abroad in Malawi, a landlocked country in southeastern Africa.

One student on the trip, a fourth-year Biology student named Lua Samimi, learned about the opportunity while scrolling through her Facebook feed. A picture of Malawi caught her attention, and she soon found out that the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Scholarship program selected and sponsored students to go on an internship for three months.

After two days of travelling and countless others preparing to fly across the world, Samimi said she was “really excited to get all the logistics out of the way so we could actually start our internship and meet the people in Malawi.”

Each intern had a job in a different area, as well as a goal to achieve through the program. Samimi was placed at the Africa University for Diplomacy, Counseling and International Relations. Her main goal was to help them start up a clinic and expand on their current services. She ended up doing a lot more.

“I [ended up] expanding my internship and working with the University of North Carolina on a research project [that helps prevent] mother-to-child HIV transmission,” said Samimi.

Through this additional role, she got to participate in pediatric rounds at the local clinic. For her, it was insightful to see how healthcare worked in Malawi and to learn firsthand from the doctors there. She also got to witness how a lack of resources can sometimes be the main reason a patient isn’t able to recover—despite the doctor’s expertise and efforts.

“The whole summer in general taught me to not plan out my life out so much. I hadn’t planned to go to Malawi and it changed my plans for the future, [...] so it helped me relax and become more flexible,” she said.

As Samimi was getting ready to return to Fredericton, Michaelene Toussaint was preparing to start her UNB Bachelor of Education at one of the university’s satellite

Growing up in the Caribbean, Toussaint knew from a young age she wanted to be a teacher. Even as a child, she would line up her dolls and pretend to be a teaching a lesson However, when it was time to choose a career, she felt confused as the pressure to study law or medicine—“careers deemed important” by her family and community—increased.

“But I knew deep down that I wanted to be a teacher.

And then it dawned on me: a teacher makes a lawyer; a teacher makes a doctor. So I was, ‘Okay, this is what I should choose,’” she said.

She followed her gut and joined the 13-student firstyear BEd class at the University of West Indies in September.

Toussaint believes that if she can help a child realize that they have the potential to become what they aspire to be, she would be contributing to her community to the best of her ability.

Toussaint also aspires to be a motivational speaker and has begun to write a column for The Brunswickan. She hopes that by doing this, she will get to experience more from the Canadian culture without leaving home—and believes this will help prepare for a semester abroad at UNB Fredericton in the future.

As Kelly Berg, UNB international programs advisor, says, one of the primary benefits of an international experience is the ability to challenge oneself and learn what you can do on your own. “[Students] return with so much self-confidence; they are proud of their new skills, their experiences and friends from all over the world, and it’s such a joy to see their development throughout their involvement in the program,” she said.

Berg also noted that UNB has short and long-term study and work programs in big and small cities around the world. The destinations can be English or non-English-speaking countries in Europe, Oceania, Asia or the Caribbean—as well as in North and Latin America.

“We feel that we are able to accommodate most requests from students,” she said. Berg acknowledges that her own international experiences have given her the ability to be comfortable working with people from various cultural backgrounds.

“I think this is a very important skill to have in the 21st century.”

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1. Prioritize shape and cut. No matter how much you like a bright colour or a certain fabric, if the cut of a garment does not suit your body type it is hard to justify purchasing it. Some people prefer clothes that are form-fitting, while others prefer something looser. Whatever your preference, just be careful about the extremes: clothes that are extremely tight or extremely baggy are harder to pull off, and it’s less likely you’ll wear these clothes as often.

2. With tip #1 in mind, ALWAYS try stuff on. Even if you know your size at a specific store, every garment has a unique fit and you need to make sure the cut sits properly on your body.

3. Choose a couple of fashion icons. They could be celebrities, Instagrammers or other students you see on campus. If your fashion icons share your body type, you can keep their style in mind when you’re shopping for new clothes. The goal is not to completely copy their look—you still want to be you! But it’s nice to find sources of inspiration whose style choices make you go, “Hey, I never thought of doing that but it looks great, I should try that!”

4. Set a clothing budget each month. This will give you the freedom to purchase a few new items without worrying about how much you’re spending, but it will also help stop you from going overboard. You’ll be forced to look at your budget and decide which pieces you’ll actually wear, and which pieces just looked nice in the store. Honestly, budgeting is actually an awesome way to cut down on the clutter in your closet, since the only clothes you’ll be purchasing are the ones you really, really enjoy wearing. And when your closet is filled with clothes you want to wear, it’s way easier to piece outfits together. If you hate shopping for clothes, a monthly clothing budget is an easy way to update your look every once in a while without having to sacrifice an entire Saturday at the mall. One last important note about this one: do NOT create a separate clothing budget for online shopping. If you order online, don’t bother going to the mall: your clothing budget is gone for the month.

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Words by Caroline Mercier | Photo Submitted by Nike

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Throughout history, athletic attire has usually reflected new advancements in science and technology that have allowed athletes to perform at their highest potential. Early next year, Nike is looking to launch their newest addition to the world of athletic attire that is centered on advancements in inclusivity and equal opportunity: the Nike Pro Hijab.

“If you have a body, you’re an athlete,” said Nike in their press release for the upcoming product.

The brand stays true to its motto with the new garment, designed to open doors for Muslim women in sport. The Nike Pro Hijab is the result of nearly two decades of hard fought development and the work of smaller companies to push a sports hijab into the international market. Nike is building off of the need in the existing market to create a product that is accessible across the globe.

The Nike Pro Hijab has been developed by Nike along with vetting by female Muslim athletes. The process started with a prototype made out of existing innovations in textile and synthetic material. This prototype was then altered to the physical and cultural specifications of the Muslim athletes from all over the world that tested it.

“As each country has its own particular hijab style, the ideal design would need to accommodate variances,” said a Nike press release.

Their testing continued and included the addition of size ranges and modification to the way that the garment remains snug around the face. The final product, set to be released in 2018, is constructed using polyester and contains opaque venting holes that do not affect the coverage of the garment.

The elasticity of the hijab allows for variance in tightness, making it adaptable to different sports and cultural and personal preferences. Nike will be offering it in black, “vast gray” and obsidian colours in order to accommodate what the company says is the “athletes’ desire for dark neutrals.”

Nike has been supplementing the development of the garment with the addition of its stores in the Middle East, wich the company says will hold “collections inspired by Nike’s roster of elite female athletes, women’s races, Nike Run Clubs and the NTC App in Arabic.”

The effort has not come without resistance. The “#BoycottNike” trend online started soon after mention of the new product earlier this year. Participants of the trend have spoken out against Nike with the intention of framing them as supporters of women’s oppression.

Amna Al Haddad, is an olympic weight-lifter and one of the main contributors in the creation of the Nike Pro Hijab. She has addressed the pushback on social media.

“It is a recent phenomenon where more women have expressed a need for it and more professional athletes have fought for rights to compete with a headscarf, and have an equal playing field,” Al Haddad said. “I support Muslim women with or without hijab, and how they dress is their choice. [The] Nike Sports Hijab [will surely] encourage a new generation of athletes to pursue sports professionally, and without us athletes who fought for this right and made it happen, Nike wouldn’t ‘just do it.’”

In the past five years, rules in sports from boxing to soccer have been changed 28

If you have a body, you’re an athlete.

to create a more inclusive environment regarding religious garments. In 2014 FIFA, the international governing body of soccer, lifted its ban of headscarves authorizing any individual to wear a head cover for religious reasons. Earlier this year, US boxing officials clarified its ruling on headgear to ensure that religious garments would be exempt. FIBA, the international basketball association, has made steps towards implementing similar exemptions, but they have not been confirmed yet.

In contrast, some sports have taken steps away from this inclusion in the past decade. FINA, the international ruling body for the sport of swimming, changed the requirements for competitive swimsuits after the controversy over the full-body polyurethane racing suits used in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the 2009 World Championships in Rome.

Because the full-body suits assisted swimmers, many questioned at the time how much of the high level of performance in those years was attributed to the suits rather than the athletes themselves.

As a result, FINA abruptly changed the rules concerning competitive attire. New rules implemented in 2010 state that men can only race in suits that are above the knee and below the belly button. In addition, women’s suits now have to be above the knee with limited covering of the shoulders and no covering of the neck.

Though this decision was based solely on the performance enhancement of the high tech suits, it has implications for Muslim women in swimming. The sport is already inaccessible due to its co-ed practicing nature and the revealing attire that is usually associated with it. However, with the ruling from 2010, the restrictions are even more severe and currently do not have any exemptions for religious garments.

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Women’s Basketball Nov. 3 @ 6 p.m. CBU Nov.4 @ 1 p.m. CBU Nov. 25 @ 6 p.m. MUN Nov. 26 @ 1 p.m. MUN Men’s Basketball Nov. 3 @ 8 p.m. CBU Nov. 4 @ 3 p.m. CBU Nov. 25 @ 8 p.m. MUN Nov. 26 @ 3 p.m. MUN Men’s Hockey Nov. 3 @ 7 p.m. UDEM Nov. 10 @ 7 p.m. STFX Nov. 11 @ 7 p.m. DAL Nov. 24 @ 7 p.m. UPEI Football Nov. 4 @ 1 p.m. DAL

Men’s Rugby Nov. 4 @ 5 p.m. TBA Nov. 11 @ 5p.m. TBA Playoff Women’s Rugby Nov.4 @ 11 a.m. STU Playoff Men’s Volleyballl Nov. 2 8@ 7 p.m. DAL Women’s Volleyball Nov. 4 @ 7 p.m. ACA Nov. 5 @ 1 p.m. ACA

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How closely have you been reading the Bruns in the past month? Test yourself with this crossword puzzle, featuring answers from the past month’s online stories and this month’s magazine.

Submit your completed crossword to the Brunswickan’s office (Room 35 in the SUB) to win a prize! The first person to submit a correct puzzle will automatically win a free pizza from Domino’s. Everyone else will be entered into a draw for another free pizza, which will be held on Nov. 27. We will draw four winners.

Best of luck!

Accross 3 LB Gym pool name; abbr.

5 UNBSU campaign, Breaking _______ 6 Canada, Mexico, U.S.A agreement; abbr.

Down 1 Fredericton swim team for youth; abbr.

2 This meal hall was closed for the day because a sprinkler went off; abbr.

3 Percentage of students who voted in UNBSU by-election 4 UNBSU’s big announcement

If no one’s in the office, please slip your crossword under the door with the date, time, your name and your email written on it. Thank you!

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