The Eyeopener: Vol. 58, Issue 14

The Eyeopener

Masthead

Editor-in-Chief

Joshua “CEO” Chang

News Editors

Thank you for an adventure of a lifetime

By Joshua Chang KHADIJAH GHAURI/THE EYEOPENER

My first steps into The Eyeopener’s masthead were far from traditional.

Daniel “Now a A News Vet” Opasinis

Jasmine “This Is True” Makar

Jerry “Tariff Sheriff” Zhang

Arts & Culture Editor

Teresa “Megaphone” Valenton

Business & Technology Editor

Anthony “Nonchalant Guy” Lippa-Hardy

Communities Editor

Khushy “Aspiring EIC?” Vashisht

Features Editor

Nalyn “No More Words” Tindall

Fun & Satire Editor

Sarah “Special Issue^2” Grishpul

Sports Editors

Daniel “Now Has To Leave The Office For Once” Carrero

Mitchell “Finalled and Read” Fox

Production Editors

Grace “Productioned” Henkel

John “Served” Vo

Photo Editors

Khadijah “No More School!” Ghauri

Nageen “Not Jet Lagged” Riaz

Saif-Ullah “Family Portraits” Khan

Media Editors

Divine “Duty of Care” Amayo

Lucas “Successfully Winged It” Bustinski

Digital Producer

Lily “Diorama Developer” Han

Circulation Manager

Sherwin “Secret...” Karimpoor

Design Director

Vanessa “OMG It’s Our Last Production!” Kauk

General Manager

Liane “What Just Happened” McLarty

Editorial Intern

Charlie “Part of the Fam” Vernis

Contributors

Ava “Dodged An Eyelum” Whelpley

Dylan “Paper Airplanes” Marks

Daniyah “finally-published” Yaqoob

Eliza “#1 Gee-Gees Fan” Nwaesei

Hannah “<3” Bellai

Ana “Periodista” Baltar Quiros

Rachel “Watch My Matcha” Cheng

Claire “Hoity Toity” Van De Weghe

Kieran “Bookie” Lauzier

Lillie “Sun Setting” Coussée

Sammy “Groovy Out” Kogan

Jake “Mr. Worldwide” MacAndrew

Juliana “U of Tea” Sarychev

Negin “Peace Out, Homies (Again)” Khodayari

Ilyas “EyeRants Forever” Hussein

Daniella “Still Super Slay” Lopez

Maisy “Angel” Chang

Chang “Telegram” Family

Getting the call on April 14, 2023 that I had been elected as the Volume 57 fun and satire editor came as a shock, seeing as my only two bylines up to that point with the publication were for the communities section. I was still in a daze when I flew to Los Angeles in August of that year, slumped next to an airplane window and furiously typing up my section’s first-ever story. Wracked with guilt for having to miss the frosh issue in-person, I was determined to make a strong first impression.

Unfortunately, after a couple of days in Southern California, a bad allergic reaction quickly developed into full-scale anaphylactic shock, rendering me out of commission in a small Orange County hospital on the volume’s first production day. Yeah, that definitely was not my proudest moment.

Now, as I approach the end of Volume 58 as its editor-in-chief (EIC), life couldn’t be more different.

I began my tenure as EIC with a burning excitement. The Eye was still facing rippling impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic and Bill C-18, including a loss in our readership, limited community engagement and a dwindling volunteer base. The 2024-25 school year represented the first full turnover of students at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) since the world was shut down in March 2020, leaving behind a community that teemed with anticipation to grow.

As students began to fill our sunny downtown campus once again, I hit the ground running with many— maybe an unrealistic amount—of goals, one being quite simple: to open doors of opportunity.

The Eye changed my life long before I became EIC. As a fun and satire editor and part-time online editor, I jumped at every chance to edit a story. I immediately loved sifting through every piece I could get my hands on—seeking every chance to make it articulate, accurate and impactful. Before I knew it, I was offering insight I didn’t realize I had. With every experience that developed my own understanding of journalism and made an impact on my surrounding community, I fell in love with this place a little bit more.

Little did I know that every twist and turn was a gentle nudge in one particular direction.

Yes, I became a better writer and editor, but more importantly, I was exposed to the power of change. That is what inspired me to even begin considering my wildest dream to date—to become the next EIC. And when this dream became a reality, I knew I had to open others’ eyes to what The Eye could do.

I remember feeling so inspired

to meet the incoming students and introduce as many as I could to The Eye. I was determined to lead my team of fresh-faced editors, tell every impactful TMU story and open up as many doors as possible to whoever saw us as a place to get involved. I made countless spreadsheets, Google Drive folders, personal notes and organized documents in preparation to ensure my year ran as a reflection of how I wanted it to be—flawless.

If you had asked me then if I was prepared to tackle the role, I would have brandished my shiny office keys and said I was ready to catch anything The Eye was going to throw at me. Besides, the role description on paper was only about 300 words. How hard could it be? No amount of spreadsheets was going to properly prepare us for what came next.

With each story and scenario that passed, reality set in. Not every story came out the way I or the section editors envisioned it, nor to the quality I expected. TMU’s public relations and communications team wouldn’t always give us sufficient answers to issues fueled by the university’s lack of transparency with students. The state of Canadian media and TMU’s student community would be everdeveloping as the world around us continued to change, slowing for nothing and no one.

Oct. 7, 2024 marked one year since Israel’s siege on Gaza and ongoing genocide against Palestinians. Long before and to this day, TMU students have both organized and joined pro-Palestine demonstrations on campus and throughout downtown Toronto. Student groups have entered university management spaces, joined walkouts, hosted events and done much more to seek solidarity for over 70 years of oppression. Our community has raised their voices to call for change—stretching from Gaza all the way to TMU, even voicing concerns in how we’ve covered their stories.

Amidst the rapid development in our immediate surrounding governments, we got to be a part of the student body’s conversations

surrounding their elections, such as the 2024 United States presidential election and Ontario’s snap election in February. Finally, older generations can stop claiming that young people don’t think about politics.

Within TMU’s own spaces, The Eye sought to cover concerning behaviours in the Toronto Metropolitan Students’ Union (TMSU), where distrust between them and TMU students is running more rampant than ever. The institution has long needed to be held accountable for avoiding transparency with students, rejecting opportunities to show integrity and fostering distrust during their general elections.

This year’s executive team took it a step up during this year’s general election. Team Re-Elect, the running slate made up of current executive members of the TMSU, took advantage of their existing power to tip the election scales and ignored election bylaws that should be worth dozens of demerit points—all while dodging calls to take accountability. As of April 8, it’s been 27 days and counting since the voting period closed for this year’s general election, with the results yet to be announced.

The common theme between all these stories and more is that they were reported by students. Since Volume 58 dawned in August, members of our masthead and many contributors have risen to the occasion—taking on responsibilities others wouldn’t dare to touch.

I’ve watched with pride as countless young journalists spent endless days and nights setting aside themselves and their own lives to tell stories only students are willing to. I’ve watched them soak up every learning experience, optimize their abilities and transform into seasoned, honourable journalists.

In a world that’s easy to become discouraged in, witnessing selfless acts of courage, perseverance and integrity from students who are hungry for the truth has reignited a hope in me I feared was fizzling out when initially taking my seat on the EIC chair. It’s a hope and an indisputable reminder that student journalism is still alive, thriving and

spreading despite constant attempts to douse and silence student voices.

As I prepare to turn the office lights out one last time, fold my keys into the hands of a new leader and bid goodbye to this crazy place that has given me so many fulfilling lessons and memories, I can rest knowing this adventure will continue. Good student journalism isn’t going anywhere, no matter how many attempts arise to shove it aside or corrupt it with false narratives.

I feel beyond honoured to have been a part of this volume’s story. Though I’d love to crack open an empty document and add a million more words to the EIC’s job description, I know it’s nowhere near feasible to condense this experience into mere writing. I just know I can say now that I’ve done it. Far from perfectly, but I’ve done it—and I couldn’t be prouder.

Thank you to my beloved masthead, who for some reason put their faith in a satire editor to lead them on this adventure of a lifetime. Seriously, what were you thinking?

To anyone who contributed this year, thank you for sharing your many talents with us and for helping us tell TMU’s stories. If you learned anything at all from your time with us, maybe we did a few things right.

As we look past this year’s horizon to the seasons ahead, never forget to be extraordinary. Learn to be great, then become even greater. If you’re told to be quiet, be even louder (theoretically—some of y’all need to learn volume control). Call out those in power and hold them accountable. Don’t be afraid to fuck something up—but if and when you do—try not to let the learning experience pass you by. It’s a lot more fun that way.

I’ve come a long way since almost experiencing death-by-cashew and will leave having given The Eye my absolute all and then some. Though I’m grieving that my time here has come to an end, I can’t wait to see what the rest of you—who are nuts enough to give this place a go—are gearing up to show the world.

I’ll cashew later, TMU. Here’s to embarking on many more lifechanging adventures.

Sunny at TMU: 2024 sunshine list shines light on salaries

Last year’s sunshine list shares the salaries of TMU’s top earning executives, with some noticeable changes

By Jerry Zhang

With the release of the 2024 Ontario Sunshine List on March 28, Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) saw an increase in the number of their employees earning over $100,000 last year, according to the Ontario Government’s annual Public Sector Salary Disclosure—more commonly known as the Sunshine List.

Since 1996, the provincial government has published the Sunshine List to disclose the names, salaries and benefits of public sector workers earning over $100,000. This threshold is not adjusted for inflation. $100,000 in 2024 would be equivalent to approximately $185,017.03 in 1996, according to the Bank of Canada’s inflation calculation.

In 2025, the list shows 1,935 TMU employees earning more than $100,000 in 2024, a 3.25 per cent increase from the 1,874 employees in the 2023 Sunshine List, as previously reported by The Eyeopener

Of those employees, 520 earned over $200,000 and 24 earned over $300,000 both rising from 476 and 13 respectively from the 2023 list.

The average salary increase for all employees on the current Sunshine List was approximately $2,651, a 1.65 per cent rise from 2023.

The highest-paid employee at TMU in 2024 was President Mohamed Lachemi, earning $457,570, up 2.95 per cent from

$444,475.04 in 2023.

Roberta Iannacito-Provenzano, TMU’s provost and vice president academic, was the second-highest-paid employee, earning $422,000, a 21.77 per cent increase from the previous year from $346,550.65.

The third-highest-paid TMU affiliate was Teresa Chan, the founding dean of the new School of Medicine, with a salary of $420,000.04. This marked a massive 140.11 per cent increase from $174,920.65 in 2023, reflecting her first full year in the role.

In 2023, second and third place respectively, were Anver Saloojee—a professor in the department of politics and public administration who earned $356,213.96— and Daphne Taras—professor and former dean of the Ted Rogers School of Management—who earned $333,626.31.

In 2024, Saloojee’s salary decreased to $271,691.95, placing him 70th overall on the list, while Tara’s salary dropped to $333,626.3, ranking her ninth.

TMU’s Sunshine List growth is consistent with the overall trends in the university education sector, although it remains smaller in scale than Ontario’s other institutions.

The average salary in Ontario is roughly $57,100 in 2022, according to Statistics Canada.

The University of Toronto (U of T) saw 6,872 employees on the list, a 15.6 per cent increase from 2023, according to the Sunshine List. York University reported 2,711 employees, a 17 per cent increase from 2023.

The highest-paid employees from the two schools were Alan Aspuru-Guzik, a professor of chemistry and computer science, at U of T earning $671,857.13 and Steven Hoffman, Chair in Global Governance & Legal Epidemiology and a professor of global health, law and political science from York University earning $660,467.14.

While TMU’s president remains the university’s top earner, at U of T and York University, the highest-paid individuals were professors with significant research portfolios or endowed chairs, highlighting salary disparities driven by research funding and institutional size.

Here are the top 10 earners from TMU in 2024, according to this year’s Sunshine List

1. Mohamed Lachemi $457,570

2. Roberta Iannacito-Provenzano $422,000

3. Teresa Chan $420,000.04

4. Krishan Mehta $376,715.98

5. Saeed Zolfaghari $350,000

6. Steven Liss $348,680

7. Donna Young $348,515.65

8. Thomas Duever $334,204.69

9. Daphne Taras $333,626.31

10. Tanya De Mello $329,000.04

NAGEEN RIAZ & SAMMY KOGAN/THE EYEOPENER

This year’s top news stories

By Jasmine Makar, Daniel Opasinis and Jerry Zhang

Over the 2024-25 school year, The Eyeopener’s news team has brought many hard-hitting stories to Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU)’s student body. As summer approaches, here are a few especially impactful stories from this year.

BREAKING: ‘I am in complete disbelief’: Arts faculty dean removed from her position

The former Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Pamela Sugiman, was terminated from her position two weeks before her expected return from a leave of absence.

U.S. election prompts discussions in TMU’s community Students shared their apprehension as the 2024 United States (U.S.) presidential election took place and shared how the neighbouring country’s changes would affect Canadians and TMU students.

TMU students join pro-Palestine demonstrations in Toronto for International Day of Action On Oct. 5, 2024, TMU students joined thousands of protesters at Yonge-Dundas Square for International Day of Action.

Organized by the Palestinian Youth Movement, the demonstration marked one year since Israel’s siege on Gaza and protested the ongoing genocide against Palestinians. According to Al Jazeera, approximately 62,614 civilians have been killed as of April 4.

‘Beyond The Wall’: An exhibition of personal agency within physical barriers opens Feb. 27

An architecture exhibition created by students to examine and show how physical barriers can be used as a tool of oppression— with the exhibit “beginning and ending with Palestine”—opened to TMU on Feb. 27.

‘Beyond The Wall’ presented six total case studies—the Apartheid Wall through the West Bank, the Berlin Wall, the Ireland Peace Walls, the U.S.-Mexico Border Wall, The North American Highway Program & Claiborne Corridor and the Gaza Blockade & University of Toronto (U of T) encampment.

TRSS $17,000 short after lack of communication and policy breaches

After signing a letter of intent to attend a student business competition, missed deadlines resulted in a debt of $17,000 for the Ted Rogers Student Society (TRSS).

Joshua Chang declared dead as a doornail in the 58th annual Eye Games

the gruesome battlefield, running down Gould Street.

Disclaimer: This recap is as real as the rebellion, if you believe any of it, you should send a rose to President Lachemi.

The 58th annual Eye Games have now officially concluded, with our gracious victor crowned and many editors to be remembered for their contributions to the masthead in the past year, including Joshua Chang.

Before the games began, two valiant souls stepped up for their districts. Daniel Opasinis volunteered as Con-tribute in this year’s reaping, in place of Lillie Coussée from the News District, moments before Saif-Ullah Khan stepped forward to take Sammy Kogan’s place from the Photography District.

Once the Con-tributes were lifted via mechanical thingamajigs from the bowels of Kerr Hall Quad, the countdown began in blood. Teresa Valenton of the Arts District was the first Con-tribute eliminated after stepping off her launch pad prematurely, causing an immediate detonation and launching her above Kerr Hall.

Anthony Lippa-Hardy, a seasoned career tribute from the Biz and Tech District, appeared calm and calculated as he swiftly claimed the first kill, taking down the Digital District’s Lily Han as all Con-tributes rushed towards the cornucopia.

Chang, the sole Con-tribute of the Chief District quickly escaped

As chaos ensued at the cornucopia, the Sports District’s Contributes Mitchell Fox and Daniel Carrero swiftly shut down any hope of survival for the Photo District’s Khan, Khadijah Ghauri and Nageen Riaz. Armed with neoncoloured hockey sticks and bats, they hit home runs off the Photo Con-tributes’ heads.

Their precision assault sent the rest of Con-tributes scampering across the campus. As the News District candidates, Opasinis, Jasmine Makar and Jerry Zhang were lured from the battlefield by the sound of fire truck sirens, Makar stumbled upon a camouflaged Fun District Sarah Grishpul disguised as a TMU chair. The two teamed up when they heard the steps of the Production District’s John Vo and Grace Henkel.

Armed with bows and arrows, Makar and Grishpul struck down the production alliance in one sweep, taking off in separate directions to divide and conquer the rest of the Con-tributors.

After diving into Lake Devo, Chang accidentally encountered a reef full of shellfish, breaking out into a deadly allergic reaction. Approaching his final moments, he was saved by the bell when an airdrop— sponsored by former Chief District champion Negin Khodayari—landed in his lap, containing a singular epinephrine auto-injector.

Meanwhile, Opasinis’s early self-sacrifice had turned into a le-

thal force. He was confirmed to have killed Communities District Con-tribute Khushy Vashisht— in a skirmish captured by Capitol camera operatives Divine Amayo and Lucas Bustinski—by unapologetically hitting her with a broken office chair so hard that he sent Vashisht flying west.

Lippa-Hardy, who was considered an unsinkable ship among the Con-tributes, was brought down by Zhang during a brutal fight near the Ted Rogers School of Management building. Armed with his signature skateboard, Lippa-Hardy met an ironic end as Zhang shattered the board mid-fight and drove its splintered edge through the Contribute. Even though the death was captured in 5K by Lippa-Hardy’s GoPro, Amayo and Bustinski aired it in 1080p.

Reacting to the loss of Vashisht, the Sports District prepared a revenge campaign against the news Con-tributes, retreating to the Mattamy Athletic Centre. Sources within the Capitol confirm the duo walked out of campus bounds and were met with an electric finish.

Chang and the Features District nominee Nalyn Tindall were looking for resources in the George Vari Engineering and Computing Centre building, when a swarm of tracker jackers fell on Tindall, enveloping her in stings and chasing Chang out into the street.

Watching the actions of the news alliance closely, Toronto Metropolitan Students’ Union (TMSU)

gamemakers sent their street dogs to end the team’s run of success. Makar, Zhang and Opasinis were subsequently chewed up and spit out in front of the Student Campus Centre televisions.

As the last Con-tributes standing, Chang and Grishpul decided on a truce between former Fun District representatives, agreeing to eat a handful of berries in an act of rebellion against the gamemakers. In a shocking turn of events, Grishpul fell to the floor with life-threatening “tummy troubles”, while Chang stumbled away surprised that he was the last one standing.

While walking through Kerr Hall Quad, where the twisted game all started, Chang spotted Sherwin Karimpoor of the forgotten Circulation District. Gripping a cart stacked with this year’s “Knock knock” issue, Karimpoor sent the buggy hurdling in Chang’s direction, crushing him under the weight of traumatic events.

Chang’s time in the game was completely, totally and finally over.

“Honestly I didn’t even know what was going on,” Karimpoor explained in a post-game interview with the Capitol Eye. “I lost grip of the cart and he was in the way LOL!”

Sherwin Karimpoor of the Circulation District was officially designated the 58th victor of the Eye Games. Let us all thank our gracious TMSU, and may the odds be ever in your paper.

Brought to you by The Capitol Eye

KHADIJAH GHARUI & SAIF-ULLAH KHAN/THE EYEOPENER

‘A huge loss for our industry’

Toronto’s jewelry community galvanized by suspension of George Brown College programs

By Grace Henkel

The jewelry arts and gemmology program at George Brown College (GBC) has long held a hopeful place in the back of Veronica Schmeiser’s mind. The second-year creative industries student at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), who is looking to transfer into fashion, has experimented with making her own jewelry since around the age of eight.

Schmeiser had been considering taking a formal certification in jewelry design to grow her skills into a “side hustle,” or potentially pursue the craft as a full-time career. Until recently, she planned on applying to the one-year certificate program offered at GBC in jewelry and gemmology upon the completion of her bachelor’s degree.

However, Schmeiser’s plans changed after finding out that three out of four of GBC’s jewelry and gemmology programs are to be suspended as of Fall 2025, with only one more intake of new students set to take place in September 2025 for the one-year jewelry essentials program.

“It’s kind of like a slap in the face, I think, because it doesn’t feel like there’s a lot of programs that offer such niche ‘making’ skills,” said Schmeiser.

According to an Instagram post by Paul McClure, an artist and professor at the George Brown College School of Jewelry, the jewelry and gemmology program has been running for over 55 years and is the largest in North America with 250 fulltime students.

Schmeiser said, “It’s something that I definitely relied on being there for me. And it kind of detracts my whole plan that I’ve been thinking about for years now so it definitely makes me feel a little uncertain about where I would go next after my degree.”

Martha Glenny, a 1975 graduate of the program who returned to GBC as a professor and is now retired, was disappointed by the suspension but said it didn’t come as a surprise.

“It’s been decades in the making because there’s been chronic underfunding by the provincial government,” said Glenny, noting that “the easy targets are the programs that are costly to run.”

The recent cap on international student enrolment by the federal government has also been a focal point of concern as noted by GBC administration. In addition to heavy reliance on international student tuition, many post-secondary institutions have also come to depend upon part-time staff to run their programs, Glenny explained.

Part-time instructors in the jewelry program are often recent graduates who are launching their own businesses while working in the industry.

“They’re absolutely essential,” said Glenny. During a virtual interview with The Eyeopener, the former professor wore a yellow pin with bold black lettering that read, “Save GBC Jewellery.” As previously reported by CBC News, students gathered on March 19 on the college’s campus to protest the suspensions with yellow flags and pins bearing that same message.

On social media, backlash against the suspensions has also gained traction, with “#savegbcjewellery” circulating on Facebook and Instagram.

“The faculty and the students are very energized,” said Glenny. “I don’t think they’re going to let this go.”

In an email to industry professionals, alumni and others connected to the program, interim dean of the Centre for Arts, Design, & Information Technology Ana Rita Morais wrote, as verified by The Eye: “The Jewellery and Gemmology programs at George Brown College are currently facing critical evaluations due to substantial financial pressures exacerbated by recent changes in international student policy and subsequent impacts on our budget.”

“While we have made the difficult decision not to run intakes for Fall 2025, I want to clarify that these programs have not been suspended or closed indefinitely,” the statement also read.

“I don’t think they’re going to let this go”

In Morais’ message, an invitation was extended to recipients for a roundtable discussion this June to “collaboratively identify viable pathways and innovative approaches to maintain the high standards of education and

training that GBC is known for, particularly in our Jewellery and Gemmology programs.”

Isabel Gertler, a 2018 graduate of the jewelry arts program who now works at the Toronto-based Fair Trade Jewelry Co., noted that GBC jewelry graduates are part of a “close-knit community” and had heard rumours leading up to the suspension from fellow alumni and colleagues. She was one of the recipients of the above message from the interim dean.

“I was truly surprised. I didn’t think it was going to happen because it’s such a robust program,” said Gertler, of the suspension. “I was just thinking that this is such a huge loss for our industry.”

While the administration cited low enrolment as the primary reason for suspenions of funding, Gertler has witnessed the opposite, saying GBC jewelry has long been “a very popular, very well-attended program.”

Gertler emphasized that “business is booming” at Fair Trade Jewelry Co.

“There is still an appetite for custommade, locally made jewelry,” she said, adding that there’s a “symbiotic relationship between the program and the local industry.”

While the majority of Canada’s jewelry making is concentrated in Toronto, as noted in a report by Industry, Science, and Technology Canada, Gertler said the city won’t be the only place where the closures will reverberate. Many of Gertler’s former classmates have gone on to careers across Canada, including in the Prairie Provinces and on the West Coast.

The Vancouver Metal Arts Association, an artist-run non-profit society that promotes workshops, artist lectures and exhibitions for the art jewelry and metalsmith communities in Vancouver, recently published a call to action to restore the GBC jewelry and gemmology programs.

The sweeping tariffs launched by the Trump administration in the United States have bolstered support for all things local and Canadian-made, including jewelry.

“Especially right now, when there’s this resurgence or this big interest in buying Canadian, buying Canadian products, supporting Canadian companies, there’s a real advantage to having this industry here at home,” said Gertler.

“But if there’s no training for it, then that’s

just not sustainable. And this industry will potentially wither and go away,” she said.

Leif Benner, a master goldsmith, jeweller and graduate of GBC’s jewelry and gemmology arts program, has watched firsthand as opportunities for prospective students disappear. Benner’s son, who is in grade 12, had planned to enrol in the three-year program this fall.

Now, however, his plans have had to drastically change. Benner suggested his son enrol in the only program still being offered—a one-year certificate—and then work as an apprentice in Benner’s studio.

Still, Benner said the situation isn’t ideal. Having worked actively in Toronto’s jewelry community as a mentor and artist fellow at Harbourfront Centre, he says the pareddown program simply won’t be the same.

“I really, really wanted [my son] to have the experience of George Brown, because it’s so thorough and it’s such an enriching experience for a young person,” said Benner.

“The sheer volume of technical knowledge it takes to make jewelry, it really takes three years,” he added.

Benner, Glenny and Gertler have all written numerous letters and emails to faculty, administration, as well as members of provincial parliament. Current students began a petition to advocate for the restoration of the program.

“At the end of the day, what we have to do is fight for it”

Schmeiser has seen the jewelry discipline emerge through creative circles at TMU, whether with hobbyists or experienced craftspeople. Technical skills like soldering, goldsmithing, gem-setting and more have piqued her interest and her career hopes.

The loss of an opportunity to learn at GBC jewelry has left her feeling shut out of that world. “It kind of makes me feel like I have FOMO [a fear of missing out] because I don’t have access to those tools or that education,” she said.

“Losing that tradition is going to be sad,” said Benner of the program. Still, he was reassured by the response from students and the tight-knit community of goldsmiths, jewellers and craftspeople in Toronto.

“At the end of the day, what we have to do is fight for it.”

SUPPLIED: VERONICA SCHMEISER

Inside the longest game in U Sports men’s hockey history

By Mitchell Fox

Making the long skate across the ice, players on the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold and Mount Royal University (MRU) Cougars traded the bright lights and big screens of the rink for the shadowy red tunnels of Ottawa’s TD Place on March 20.

As yet another intermission ensued, players on both teams hurried to make use of any support their team staff could offer. Some went straight to the athletic therapist for work on aching and cramping limbs. Others ate and drank what they could for fuel. They all remained locked into the game.

Long before it made history as the longest-ever U Sports men’s hockey game, the first quarterfinal game of the 2025 U Sports University Cup (U Cup) men’s hockey championship would be the last of a long season for the losing side.

Over the course of three regulation and five overtime periods—and over seven hours from opening puck drop to final buzzer—the Bold and Cougars fought tooth and nail, knowing it had to end in opportunity for one and heartbreak for the other.

Eventually, the Bold came out victorious. First-year forward Spencer Shugrue scored after 143 minutes and 33 seconds, ending the game and surpassing the previous record for the longest U Sports men’s hockey game by about 26 minutes. His stick was sent to the Hockey Hall of Fame to commemorate the record.

“I can’t imagine how the players are feeling right now, because, to be honest, I was sore standing,” said Bold head coach Johnny Duco after the game. “It just makes me that much more proud of this group, to know that they fight through adversity. They stick together through thick and thin.”

Duco, in his eighth season as head coach of the Bold, was impressed with how his team pushed through the game, especially after going down 3-1 in the second period.

“There’s never a doubt, nothing but the utmost belief in that group, in us, that they’re going to find a way to get it done,” he said. “Huge kudos to them to find a way.”

Kevin MacDonald is the operations and social media manager for the TMU Bold men’s hockey team and served as an assistant equipment manager during the tournament. He said he doesn’t usually get “worked up” about games but a feeling of relief stood out to him at the end of this one.

“It’s a long day, especially behind the scenes, for the sports staff,” he said following the final buzzer. “The [players] don’t see what we do behind the scenes but they understand what we do.”

“We’re the little hockey program that could”

Each game day, while players prepare for a battle on the ice, Kevin and the staff set the team up for success behind the scenes. On this day, he and the Bold’s varsity equipment manager Kevin Campbell arrived at the rink at 7 a.m. to ensure all of the team’s equipment, snacks and other provisions were ready to go.

The Bold arrived in Ottawa on March 18 and skated the next day, getting used to the soft ice, square corners and rattling boards that TD Place is known for. For Kevin and sport performance manager and strength and conditioning coach Ryan MacDonald, their

first days in Ottawa were about finding places for all of the team’s needs.

“At the [Mattamy Athletic Centre (MAC)], everything has its own place, and everything has labels or cupboards or whatever. Now it’s like, ‘OK, we’re gonna put this here to make it easier for the guys,’” said Kevin. “They only have to show up and play hockey. They’re not worrying about anything else, because when they’re at home, they don’t worry about anything else.”

Throughout a game, no matter its length, everyone on the Bold dives into their roles. But during an eight-period game, the need to keep players in good form is heightened. The crew did everything they could to bring snacks, electrolytes, water bottles and stretching equipment to the players in between periods.

“We’re taking extra care of the guys, because yeah, you play four periods, maybe the odd time five…but eight is a whole different beast,” said Kevin.

As the game continued past second-year Bold forward Daniil Grigorev’s game-tying goal—over 90 minutes of game time before Shugrue’s winner—Duco said the Bold coaches focused on keeping their message to players short between periods.

“You try to stay even keel and probably minimize the things you’re talking about, knowing that they’re exhausted. If you overdo it, it’s going to be in one ear out the other,” said Duco.

Many of the Bold’s key players played in a similar situation at the 2024 U Cup at the MAC, where they beat the Calgary Dinos in double overtime of the quarterfinals. The team’s veterans also went to the U Cup in Halifax in 2022, so Duco said he knew they were used to the big stage.

“It was pretty awesome to hear and see when you’d go into the room before I would speak, listening to what they were talking about,” he said. “We’re so fortunate to have tremendous leadership and to have some super hungry players that wanted to get back to this stage.”

At the other end of the ice, the Cougars represented a small program with big goals. They got to the Canada West final for the first time in program history this year, and entering as the fifth seed, they were determined to make waves at the U Cup.

“We’re the little hockey program that could,” said Cougars head coach Bert Gilling post-game, who led MRU to their first-ever playoff win in his first season in 2014. “We thought we had as good a chance as anybody to win Canada West and the national championship. So to be one and done, it’s a little hard to swallow.”

In the dressing room, Gilling said he heard “all of the right things” from his players. Like Duco and his staff, the Cougars’ coaches said what they needed to say but let the players keep themselves in high spirits and focus.

“They’re breaking up with some laughter every once in a while…I mean, good grief it’s what, seven hours? What are you gonna do? You can’t be serious the whole time,” he said. “The buy-in in this group in terms of what we’re trying to do, and the culture of our program, it really showed itself in those moments.”

During every intermission at the MAC, Kevin MacDonald can be seen rushing between the Bold dressing room and bench, emptying and refilling water bottles. During this unprecedented game in Ottawa, the team

had to devote one of two large jugs for electrolytes to water and he had to refill the jugs three times, something they wouldn’t usually do.

Ryan was just as busy. He ordered pizzas for the players and made multiple trips across Lansdowne Park—the plaza surrounding TD Place—to the grocery store, stocking up on granola bars and water. He also brought cold coffee, flat Coke and compression massage devices for the players’ legs.

“He was dialed in. Ice bath, Normatecs, food, snacks, treats, whatever they needed,” said Duco about Ryan. “You name it, we had it in there to make sure that we had every competitive advantage possible.”

“They only have to show up and play hockey. They’re not worrying about anything else”

Duco said the team leaned on having “all the bells and whistles,” including equipment, supplies and snacks available to replicate a home game. A favourite for the players—often seen in small cups outside the Bold change room at the MAC—is stroopwafels, which third-year goaltender Kai Edmonds said he ate between periods. Hailing from the Ottawa area, playing in the 11th longest game in North American hockey history at home was special for him.

“It’s a game that happens probably once in a lifetime, right? Five overtimes is pretty crazy,” said Edmonds post-game.

Down the hallway, the Cougars’ staff were going through a similar scramble to keep players in the best shape possible. Gilling said it was “all hands on deck” as their strength coach, trainers and MRU associate director of varsity athletics Rod Godfrey got to work. Godfrey was the one running across Landsdowne for the Cougars, ordering food and snacks while the coaching staff sought all the advice they could in such an unprecedented situation.

“We were texting and trying to call our dietitian back in Calgary, like, ‘What should we be doing right now? We’re running out of ideas,’” said Gilling. “We [hardly talked] as coaches to the players between periods. It’s just like, ‘What do we need? How can we get you guys back out there?’ Everybody was awesome to get through a night like that.”

If the game’s length wasn’t enough, a zamboni malfunction led to a delay between the first and second overtimes. As TD Place staff scrambled to spray the ice with fire extinguishers, fans and media members circled the rink, searching for food anywhere other than the then-closed concession stands—which

opened up again before the day’s second game was supposed to start. All the while, the two teams tried to maintain their usual flow.

“Twice, we were about to walk out and then had to go back in,” said Edmonds of the delay, which added 15 minutes to an already 18-minute long intermission. “[You] just gotta be ready. There’s nothing that you can do to get back out there faster.”

As overtimes rolled by, neither team could create much of an advantage on the ice. The Cougars appeared to end the game early in the third overtime period but a video review confirmed the puck never crossed the goal line. After the false ending, the players settled back into a back-and-forth rally.

Around the start of the fourth overtime, fans began to pile into the building for the evening game that would follow between the host Ottawa Gee-Gees and the two-time defending champion University of New Brunswick Reds.

Edmonds said he saw the building getting busier, but tried to keep his focus on stopping pucks and trusting his team to score the winner.

“Maybe sometimes a little frustration sneaks in, wanting the boys to finish it, but I just have to worry about what I’m gonna do,” he said. The Bold staff knew they had all the equipment they needed to get through any game, while the players stuck to their usual routines—no matter which intermission it was.

“Hockey players and most athletes are superstitious by nature,” said Kevin. “We have a routine where a couple of the guys say stuff to the players just before they walk out, and that stays the same, whether it’s the first period, fourth period, or, in this case, eighth period.”

He said the Bold are a “well-oiled machine.”

“By the eighth period that we played, it was literally just ‘OK, let’s do it again.’”

While Shugrue’s goal closed out the longest men’s hockey game in U Sports history, it didn’t put an end to the drama. The Cougars called for a video review of the goal, which saw Shugrue poke a puck through third-year goaltender Shane Farkas’ pad in a scuffle in the crease.

At the end of likely the longest day of his tenure with the Bold, Kevin admitted he was tired. Fans are used to an overtime or two, he said, but this game was closer to watching a movie marathon.

“It’s still the waiting and sitting around and standing there, it’s the same for everybody. The athletes just kind of took a bit more of a beating than anybody in the stands did.”

NAGEEN RIAZ & PIERRE-PHILIPE WANYA-TAMBWE/THE EYEOPENER

Against all odds: The Ottawa Gee-Gees’ Cinderella story

With ‘Dream On’ and ‘ Rich Strike’ as their mantra, the eighth seed claimed the 2025 University

By Eliza Nwaesei

The Ottawa Gee-Gees’ Queen’s Cup pursuit ended early.

After losing Game 1 of the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) semi-finals to the Queen’s Gaels with a close 4-3 final score, the Gee-Gees needed to win two straight games to move on. But Game 2 didn’t go their way either. After 22 minutes of play, second-year goaltender Franky Lapenna was pulled after allowing a third goal and from there, the tide never turned—the game ended in a 7-3 final score.

Although the Gee-Gees were knocked out of the OUA playoffs, their journey wasn’t over yet. For the first time ever, the U Sports University Cup (U Cup) men’s hockey championship would be hosted in Ottawa at TD Place by the University of Ottawa. This meant the Gee-Gees had an automatic spot in the nationals tournament, giving them a chance for redemption.

“We knew we couldn’t come here and just be a charity case, getting in eighth seed just because we are hosting,” said first-year Gee-Gees forward Mitch Martin after the semi-final.

Ottawa entered the tournament set to face the top-ranked team in Canada—the University of New Brunswick (UNB) Reds. After an undefeated season in 2023-24 and being the two-time defending U Cup champions, the Reds came into the tournament

with only two losses under their belt all season and a three-peat on their mind.

Heading into the matchup, the GeeGees took a calculated approach, knowing they would face moments of high pressure against UNB. The early elimination from the playoffs gave the team extra time to focus their efforts on a single opponent. With a strong belief that they would be facing UNB, they spent three weeks preparing for the game, including a week on the ice at TD Place, where they gained a preference for soft ice with duller skates than usual.

“Our game plan was very specific,” said Gee-Gees head coach Patrick Grandmaître following the win over UNB. “We knew we would have to survive at times because [UNB is]so good, the amount of pressure they put and how hard they work. They’re the best for a reason.”

Game day came and the Gee-Gees executed their strategy, pulling off an upset. With a 3-2 victory, they proved to not only the home crowd, but the UNB supporters that preparation goes a long way. Grandmaître acknowledged other key factors that played a role in capturing their win.

“You still need a lot of saves, you need some luck and need some things to go on your side,” said Grandmaître. “Perhaps in all their wins, they had a lot of times where it did go to their side and maybe today it was another team’s chance, so now we’re happy it was ours.”

Cup

With UNB eliminated, the tournament opened up and the narrative had changed, as it could now be anyone’s to win. For the semifinal matchup, the Gee-Gees took on the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold.

The Gee-Gees may have had less experience than the Bold—a team making their third nationals appearance in four years— but won the only matchup between the two teams in October 2024. Nevertheless, their underdog storyline continued.

his debut for the Gee-Gees following the winter break after undergoing open heart surgery in October 2024.

“It was something I was born with,” explained Martin. “My aortic valve was defective, so if I wanted to keep playing hockey, I needed to get opened up. They fixed everything and I’m back and I’m good.”

C LE CAAP APSSUULE

After the Bold tied the game in the third period, with just 42 seconds left on the clock, Martin buried a shot into a wide-open net—a moment that brought the crowd to their feet.

Martin wasn’t the only Gee-Gee affected by health issues—second-year defenceman Jacob LeGuerrier also had to battle his way back to the ice. Drafted by the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens in 2019, LeGuerrier was sidelined for two full years after being diagnosed with myocarditis— a heart condition brought on by long COVID. This forced him to halt physical activity for months.

As the puck hit the back of the net, Aerosmith’s “Dream On” echoed throughout the rink, the team’s goal and win song for the tournament. It was a fitting anthem as the lyrics seemed to speak directly to the Gee-Gees: “Dream until your dreams come true.”

“Dream On” wasn’t just a goal song, but it had deep roots for Grandmaître. 21 years earlier, he captained the St. Francis Xavier X-Men to their first-ever national title and their championship video featured the same Aerosmith track. The Gee-Gees re-claimed the song for this championship run, as Grandmaître hoped to “rekindle some of that magic.”

“We knew we couldn’t come here and just be a charity case”

Grandmaître is now the figurehead of a restored program. Following an alleged sexual assault by Gee-Gees players in 2014, the school shut down the team for two seasons before returning in 2016, with Grandmaitre at the helm. Less than 10 years later, he led them to a national championship.

“The plan was to be here at year eight. We were there at year four and year 10, and now we’re in the final,” said Grandmaitre after the semi-final win. “I remember doing my job interview, [former NHL coach] Jacques Martin was in there and I told him, we’re gonna win one in no more than eight years.”

Martin was named player of the game for the Gee-Gees after recording an assist and scoring two crucial goals against the Bold—but his journey to this moment came with ups and downs. Martin only played eight games this season, making

This season saw him in and out of the lineup, never knowing when he would get the green light to play. However, the former Canadiens’ prospect managed to suit up for the tournament and stood tall when it mattered most.

“He played the whole tournament and was a beast on the D-Core,” said Grandmaître. Martin’s game-winner was the spark that carried the Gee-Gees into the biggest game in their program history. With a home crowd and team alumni—all decked out in grey and garnet—behind them, Ottawa stepped onto the ice for the U Cup final against the Concordia Stingers.

“I don’t know if other people knew how good Concordia was, but for us, Concordia was pretty much as good as UNB,” said Grandmaître. “We felt like we were again the underdog in this final and thought we actually came out the best way.”

The championship game opened with Ottawa putting up three goals on the scoreboard, capped off by second-year forward Luka Verreault.

Verreault was among a slew of members from the team battling injury—after suffering a broken hand and dealing with lingering complications, he had only played one game since October 2024.

However not everyone was as fortunate. Fourth-year forward Max Grondin and first year forward Zach Giroux—who were key contributors to the team—were sidelined for the gold-medal game due to injury, furthering the uphill battle Ottawa faced.

PIERRE-PHILIPE WANYA-TAMBWE/THE EYEOPENER

Zahra Siddiqui’s photography career sparked from a five-minute conversation. As an observer of Toronto’s music scene—her twin sister being a singer-songwriter in the city—Siddiqui gained an affinity for picking up the small details. She would notice individuals in group settings and think to herself, “Nobody has a clue we are here, how much space we take up in hiding.” In each person, she saw a story waiting to be represented.

Almost 11 years ago, Siddiqui made an offhand remark to an artist friend about liking photography. All it took was a two-word response that changed Siddiqui’s world: “Do it.”

With 350 dollars to spare, Siddiqui and her friend immediately drove to Future Shop and bought her first camera, one that would aid the first four years of her career as a portrait photographer, highlighting the intersectionality of marginalized communities.

But Siddiqui’s commitment to using her platforms as a way to inspire social justice came much before she bought her camera.

“Before [being a photographer], I was a child and youth worker. I had already known that I wanted to be in a space where I could be a part of amplifying the communities that I was around,” she said.

Jason Samilski, executive director of Canadian Artists Representation (CARFAC) Ontario said art can act as a “signal” to encourage social change. “One way to think about art [is] not necessarily a tool for social change, but rather a product or perhaps a reflection of that change.”

In an age of humanitarian tragedies, social up-

Creative Rebellion: when art becomes a means for justice

From Palestinian resistance to movements worldwide, art documents hope, reality and solidarity

tion, climate change and many more inequities—art plays a crucial role in pursuing justice and awareness.

About four years into her career, Siddiqui became frustrated with herself as an artist, feeling as though she had plateaued. In 2012, Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old Black boy, was followed, shot and killed by George Zimmerman, a neighbourhood watch volunteer. Zimmerman’s acquittal was one of many driving forces that stirred the beginnings of the Black Lives Matter movement.

By Daniyah Yaqoob

soul that is restless and needs to talk. And it finds its ways, whether through writing or painting.”

Through their creative mediums, many young people are not just engaging in an act of self-expression but also using their art as a form of activism, making statements and hoping to spark social change.

Siddiqui calls it “gentle disruption”—something she sees as more effective than some forms of traditional protest.

“My way is a silent strength that I want to give to people,” she said. “I’m trying to do work that highlights visibility and representation for people who need it.”

During this time, Siddiqui realized taking portraits wasn’t enough for her to feel like she was making an impact.

As a naturally quiet person, visual arts was her way of communicating. “I’m a very quiet type of person in my social justice but the images, the vibrancy, the faces, that’s loud. If you’re paying attention,” Siddiqui said.

She wanted to do more, so she mixed her photography with mixed media elements to create compelling collages.

“There is something in my heart and my soul that is restless and needs to talk”

“The political climate just catapulted me into this new version of myself as an artist, which is where ‘The Invisible Majority’ was created,” Siddiqui explained.

Elle Alconcel, an art and music curator in Toronto approached Siddiqui in 2016. For the cultural hub Daniels Spectrum—located in the heart of Regent Park—Siddiqui created 150 mixed media portraits, blending ideas of both diversity and justice. For instance, she clipped newspaper headlines onto portraits to put social issues in close perspective.

She named the exhibit ‘The Invisible Majority’—and the name stuck as her brand name. Her portraits and mixed media primarily capturing Black, Indigenous and people of colour (BIPOC) are committed to bringing their identities into the spotlight through her work.

heaval and political movements— from global racism, gender discrimination, faith-based persecu-

BIPOC people make up a “visible minority,” as the Employment Equity Act refers to racialized people in Canada. In 2021, three racialized groups—South Asians, Chinese people and Black people—made up 16.1 per cent of Canada’s population. Studies, like one from the Journal of Higher Education Policy, indicate that “Canada is a racially stratified society that privileges Whiteness pertaining to access to resources, in this case, education and employment.”

For Siddiqui, it’s important to challenge these inequities through mediums such as photography. She turns the term “visible minority” on its head, to become the “Invisible Majority.”

Samilski said part of the role art plays in seeking justice is reinterpreting social systems.

“Art prompts us to question our realities and very quickly—and rather efficiently—dismantle and rebuild those notions of reality,” he said.

For Siddiqui, the act of resistance does not always come from the final product. The act of creation itself, of searching for and highlighting unseen identities, is a means of

For artists like Siddiqui, art is much more than the dictionary-defined “conscious use of skill” or “creative imagination.” It can play a role in resistance, justice and peace.

Aia Bakir is a fourth-year sociology student at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) and a self-titled multidisciplinary artist. From poetry and spoken word to painting and photography, she’s dabbled in many different artistic mediums.

“Art is the soul trying to speak,” she

explained. “There is something in my heart and my

freeing herself.

“I create for myself first,” she said. “I can’t show up in the world authentically if I’m creating from a place that’s

not authentic.”

When her portraits enter the world—turned into collages with mixed media elements like textiles and jewelry—they still have a goal of inspiring change within

individual people.

“I think my work is about the simple act of highlighting someone. That’s it, just an individual,” she said. “If I can spend time energetically sharing space with somebody and they felt safe with me to take their portrait, that in itself is an act of care and safety and empowerment—for not just me, but the person I spent time with.”

For Bakir, art similarly plays a role in engaging individuals and building a community. In many of Toronto’s artistic corners, Bakir has performed spoken word. In the Bampot House of Tea late last year, she did the same. Under warm lights, she stood before a crowd of listeners. A friend who she had introduced to the spoken word community had fallen in love with the medium. He invited her to the event as a featured writer—an opportunity Bakir was grateful for.

Visuals by Saif-Ullah Khan and images supplied by Zahra Siddiqui, Nazha Syriani and Aia Bakir

Bakir said she finds it her obligation as an artist to witness what is happening around her and then “echo” it through her creative mediums. She thinks it is a way to find and build community, around collective grief.

To Bakir, all of this—artists channelling their emotions and sharing it for people to resonate with—is a form of resistance. Above all, the ability of art to pave visions for the future is the greatest form of rebellion, in her view.

“I can’t show up in the world authentically if I’m creating from a place that’s not authentic”

beyond this imminent destruction of Gaza. “That’s where art comes in to create that sense of future.”

With contrasting visions of Gaza’s future from politicians worldwide—some which call for further displacement of Palestinians and the erasure of their identity— significant amounts of harm are continually perpetuated.

Bakir said art can help to create a vision for the future, though many may not have the ability to envision a future presidency

plainly capture a garden—loving strokes which make tree leaves and flower buds and nothing more. But a painting of a garden could be interpreted as so much more, even sparking ideas around ecological crisis. Samiliski added that because of this varied interpretation, it is important to be cautious when instrumentalizing art as a tool for resistance. Instead, an artist’s depictions of the world may incline the audience to enact certain changes within their society.

Morel, who has curated exhibitions at the Image Arts Centre—which showcase inherently political photography—said the goal is never to send a specific message to the audience. The photographs she chooses to display do not themselves enact change.

“It’s more like art is only here to propose something to us creatively,” she said.

Surrounded by bohemian paintings, Bakir read poems about her Syrian identity. Some detailed the 2023 earthquake in Syria, an expression of the deep emotion and pain tied to the land she called home. To a diverse audience, sitting close to each other in the tight tea house, she read poems she wrote documenting the genocide in Palestine. There was electricity travelling in their closeness, and though the

poem itself was a release of emotion, sharing it with a crowd was a source of healing for Bakir too.

The issues Bakir writes about and the emotions she expresses have been building for decades from her lived experiences. As an artist, she documents these experiences to share with an audience she hopes will find comfort in relatability. When her words fail, Bakir uses visual art to release her feelings.

Especially since the start of Israel’s siege on Gaza, Bakir’s art and writing have turned to resist mainstream narratives in media surrounding the genocide in Gaza and highlight the Palestinian story.

According to Al Jazeera, as of April 4, 2025, around 62,614 Palestinians have been killed since Oct. 7, 2023—though a study from The Lancet argues that the number is much higher. A review by the Al Jazeera Media Institute suggests that Western coverage of the siege has been skewed with a proIsrael bias. In times like these, Bakir said art has a role to play in documenting truth.

“Art has a great role in the documenting aspect of [Palestinian] collective experience. And it humanizes it,” she said.

The works of fourth-year fashion student Nazha Syriani— ranging from jewelry-making and crochet to fashion design— is also influenced by the urge to seek justice in Palestine. Syriani is half-Palestinian—she said her art is a firm reminder to the world that her people’s existence cannot be erased.

“It’s important for us that we continue to showcase who we are, to let the world know…that we’re not going to go away, we’re always going to be here and fight for our freedom,” she said.

Weeks after assuming his presidency in January, United States President Donald Trump posted an artificial intelligence (AI)-generated video to his Truth Social app. In it, people emerge from a besieged Gaza into a skyscraperfilled beach, complete with a gold statue of Trump, money raining from the sky over Elon Musk and a large gold arch marking that “Trump Gaza” is here. AI-generated vocalists sing his praises, celebrating the president to “set Gaza free.” Intentions to cleanse Gaza are no longer thinly veiled—instead, they are visualized and celebrated by many.

Siddiqui agreed about the role of an artist in creating change. She said the freedom to create, without any expectation, is the most gratifying part of the artistic process.

“It’s not anyone’s responsibility to make change for others. It’s our responsibility to make change for ourselves,” she said.

In times such as these, where oppression openly continues despite claims of peacetimes, art becomes a form of resistance. According to Bakir, it draws on imagination to provide hope that there is a Palestinian future—no matter how much pushback the art or the Palestinian freedom

movement is met with.

Tangible change should not be expected from artists—Morelle and Samilski agree that any expectation of their work having to cause social waves is limiting their end result, and ultimately, their expression.

In fact, Samilski said art is not always meant to be welldigested. Instead, it pokes, prods and interrogates reality to create new visions, something he said is an “essential” part

of human existence.

For Syriani, who has built a community surrounded by artists who create for Palestine, art plays a similar role in unification. “It helps people who may be feeling suppressed,” she said. “[Art] will inspire them to also follow in

“Art antagonizes the consensus reality, and you’ll see that that reality begins to pixelate and it can fracture. So in this dimension, this is one reason why art is both dangerous, but also central to the human experience,” he said.

“It’s not anyone’s responsibility to make change for others. It’s our responsibility to make change for ourselves”

Syriani’s creativity not only expresses her personal political ideology, but she seeks to have a direct impact on the lives of Palestinians in Gaza, by using her art as a way to generate donations for them. Her creations— some including watermelon keychains and beaded bracelets—regularly go up for sale at charity events.

Samilski said, “[Art brings] cultural experience where we together get to witness art.” He added, “Together we can undergo that process where our realities are questioned, reconstructed.”

Her art also boldly claims her pride in her heritage. She hopes to establish her own fashion line in the future and would name it ‘Nazha’ after her first name, also one she shares with her grandmother. She said it is an act of resilience for her to embrace her identity at a time when the Palestinian identity is under threat of erasure.

According to Samilski, the role of the artist is to make the observations that non-artists do not see, present those in artistic ways and help the average person people together over a shared “set act come at an issue from a new angle.

Gaëlle Morel, an art historian and curator at TMU’s Image Arts Centre, said art alone is not anything more than art—it does not inherently have political ambitions. Yet, she said, everyone’s existence as human is, in itself, political according to her.

“You make decisions, you have values, your morals, you have convictions,” she said. “Being is political.”

Morel said a painting of a garden could

While she and Samilski agree that art is not inherently political, Morel said art is interesting because it allows for interpretation.

Success and sacrifice: Filipino families restore ties

TMU

students and their parents reflect on the costs of immigrating to Canada—from burden to betterment

By Teresa Valenton

Though simple in colour, the white walls of Katrina Tan’s Markham, Ont. home have witnessed stories that have decorated her life. The living room couch that was once filled with family members celebrating holidays, sharing conversations and sitting in the mundane, now lies empty. Photos in frames that captured better days sit atop shelves alongside medicine bottles, awards and old family documents. Many pass through the room but can no longer recall the moments of love behind the photographs.

Looking back to her childhood, Katrina explained how her household felt emptier and emptier as each family member moved out one by one. “It all started depleting when my grandpa died, then my mom, sister and grandma went [to the Philippines] for a little bit as well. I stayed back with my dad, both my brothers, [my brother’s girlfriend and daughter] but that’s when it started feeling empty.”

The migration stories of Filipino students at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) include foundations of sacrifice made by their parents to successfully settle in Canada. For Katrina, a first-year environmental and urban sustainability student, her connection to these lived experiences has had a fundamental impact on her upbringing.

“It was hard, we were far and I wanted to get them here so we could finally be together,” said Ronaldo Tan, Katrina’s father, who first arrived in Canada from the Philippines on April 27, 1992. He spoke with The Eyeopener in Tagalog and his responses have been translated into English.

Often in search of greater opportunities outside their home countries, many immigrants in Canada have turned to the Family Reunification Program, a government initiative allowing Canadian citizens and permanent residents to sponsor certain relatives to immigrate. It has become one of the three pillars of permanent immigration to Canada alongside economic and refugee protection.

According to the Government of Canada, the program represented 23 per cent of all permanent immigrants to Canada in 2022. Since then, the top three countries of original birth include India, China and the Philippines, representing 70 per cent of newcomers under the program in the same year. The program has become an invaluable opportunity for countless individuals in the Filipino community.

However, the term paghihirap meaning suffering through labour and hardship in Tagalog—encapsulates the familial costs of leaving their lives behind.

By himself, Ronaldo made his move to Canada to join his mother after she sponsored him, leaving the rest of his family behind in the Philippines. In search of better opportunities for his children, Ronaldo quietly endured personal challenges.

In his experience, Ronaldo was initially hesitant to leave his family back home. “At first, I did not want to leave, I had two children and I was unable to secure a job for six months. I thought to myself that it was no good for me here because I was far away from my family,” he explained.

Upon securing a night job in clothing factories, Ronaldo worked diligently from 1992 up until the company’s closure in 2005. While bearing the responsibilities of fatherhood alongside burdens of migration, the separation from his family remained at the forefront of his aspirations. Despite the distance between them, the Tan family remained connected through longdistance calls and memories that grew further with time.

“Both kids were still young so it was quite hard for me. I could not see them or take care of them and all they had was their mom. The [time zones] were different, I could barely speak to them which made it hard for me,” Ronaldo shared.

Ultimately in 1996, the rest of the Tan family—including Ronaldo’s wife and two daughters—were finally able to reunite with him after obtaining permanent residency. His wife, Alicia Tan, had to face a different set of challenges as a mother of two children. Once arriving in Canada, her experiences vastly differed as her immediate family was back home in the Philippines.

“I’ve quietly taken on my family’s hardships while growing up knowing about them which was the most Filipino I felt”

Now in a foreign country, Alicia saved money for calling cards and stayed on standby for times to speak to her parents. Over many conversations of reassurance, Alicia checked in on her family back home with a goal of providing the Tan family with more opportunities. As each day blended into one another, she found herself working tirelessly to both support her thenfamily-of-four in Canada while also sending some money back home.

“[Here in Canada] you have to work hard. Six days a week you have to work—you have to pay for everything, rent, food, apartment, transportation,” said Alicia. “You need the car to drop the kids off to school and buy whatever they need to support them.”

SUPPLIED: KATRINA TAN

Alicia reminisced on the simplicity of life back home, recalling slow mornings with full Filipino breakfast spreads on the table as families gathered around to bask in the sun—much different from Canada’s cold winters. Despite an underlying desire to return back home, Alicia pointed out that she and her husband’s work and efforts have been worth it.

“I had to sacrifice everything for myself, not to see my parents and siblings and to stay here in Canada to raise my family. I had to work hard for them,” she said. “I’m happy to live here. We are OK, even if we’re not professionals working in an office, we gave everything to our kids.”

Years after Ronaldo and Alicia’s journey to Canada and the initial hardships that came with it, they had their daughter, Katrina.

With a unique experience compared to her parents and siblings— who immigrated across the world together—her upbringing marks a different perspective on the reunification program. Having not personally witnessed their initial struggles, her connection to their stories is shown through the result of her family’s sacrifices.

“This house [in Canada] is the only one that I’ve ever lived in. It’s always been packed so on days where I’m home alone now, it doesn’t necessarily feel right,” Katrina said.

With many having similar stories to the Tans, the Filipino community continues to grow in the Greater Toronto Area through the reunification program. According to a 2021 census by Statistics Canada, there are around 925,000 people in Canada of Filipino ethnic origin.

As the population continues to grow, immigrants have formed communities to take care of each other.

In a scholarly article titled “A Political Economy of Emotions: The Love and Labour of Filipina Migrant Care Workers in Canada,” Dani Magsumbol, a PhD candidate from York University, looked further into the effective relationships between Filipino labour mi-

grants. She argued that although academic literature solely focuses on the employment status of immigrants, it fails to view them as social and political beings.

Sought to broaden their portrayal, she proposed the perspective that immigrant workers are participative, political beings who seek out and form communities. Within these communities, the phrase utang ng loob—meaning debt of reciprocity—has remained an important concept in Filipino culture.

In an article from Cultural Atlas, writer Chara Scroope said that “the opinions of younger family members” and children’s opinions are considered to be secondary to their superior.” As a result, those requiring old age care are often taken care of by their children or grandchildren.

Though parents have undergone these pressures, the emotional costs of immigrating have trickled down to Filipino TMU students as well.

Jared Baluyot Colo, a thirdyear business technology student, described his childhood as one shaped by community as he experienced separation from his mother.

At five years old, Colo’s mother immigrated to Canada as their family’s sole breadwinner. “I don’t think I felt very sentient back then but I’ve been reflecting on it,” he said.

Colo said his older sister attended university at the time and his father was not quite present. “I mean I did have other family members such as my lolas [grandmothers] that were there to provide for me in the cases that my dad couldn’t.”

Still surrounded by community and family, he said it did not erase the fact that he went through childhood without his mother.

For seven years, Colo and his family only saw her during occasional visits back to the motherland during the holidays. There were ways to communicate online to mitigate the loneliness he felt but it was incomparable to grow along this separation, he said.

“For what it’s worth, I grew up on my mom’s side in their ancestral home. So there were lots of relatives coming by all the time. My lola was a big factor in my upbringing and filled in what my mom couldn’t do as a maternal figure for me,” said Colo.

He reunited with his mom in Canada in August 2015 and emphasized the concept of paghihirap “What I consider paghihirap to be is the isolation of living in an alien country without knowing how to speak English...I know all the stories my mom would tell about being here alone going through job to job,” he elaborated. He explained that while Filipinos work overseas, their only form of intimacy is cultivated through letters, phone calls or the act of sending money back home for sustenance.

Today, Colo said his relationship with his mother is “back-loaded.” Frequently reminded by others to be grateful for her sacrifices, his own burdens left many questions open.

“I’d be told to be appreciative and grateful, but I didn’t even know what that meant or who this person was supposed to be even though they were supposed to be integral to my life,” said Colo.

Often excluded by the broader Filipino community from direct conversations surrounding immigration, Katrina narrated the aftermath of it all by growing away from struggle. In isolation of her own experiences, she remains thankful to her parents who provided opportunities for her through their hardships. Though she has felt guilt in her journey as a first-generation Filipina—and as a result of the Family Reunification Program— she can sometimes still feel caught between the two countries.

“I’ve quietly taken on my family’s hardships while growing up knowing about them which was the most Filipino I felt,” said Katrina. “Now in university, I have a better understanding for what that identity means apart from that and I’m super proud of it.”

Pushback on DEI programs sparks student concerns

By Ava Whelpley

Uncertainty surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in Canada is sparking discourse among the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) community regarding its importance in the workplace.

DEI is a framework which gained momentum during the 2020 demonstrations of the Black Lives Matter movement, with many organizations beginning to welcome it. According to the American Psychological Association, it “promotes the fair treatment and full participation of all people,” especially of those who have been historically underrepresented or discriminated against.

Since the inauguration of President Donald Trump in the United States (U.S.) on Jan. 20, he has made efforts to scrap DEI programs and initiatives within the U.S. government. As reported by TIME in January, many of these efforts have been successful and the abolishment of these programs has resulted in the loss of jobs and opportunities within American companies such as Walmart, Meta and more following suit.

“When I think about DEI, I think about all of the activities and strat-

egies that we’re trying to do to remediate the under-representation of particular groups in various parts of our society,” said Laura McDonough, associate director of insights and knowledge mobilization at TMU’s Future Skills Centre.

According to TMU’s website, the Future Skills Centre is a part of the school’s Diversity Institute. Its objective is to understand and add to the knowledge base of the “complex barriers faced by underrepresented groups” while advancing research to create change and produce results.

Mikaila Strickland, a recent graduate from the design and production program, said due to a lack of public knowledge, DEI is often a misunderstood framework.

“Maybe the stigma of DEI [is that] people don’t really know what it is. It’s [becoming] a scary thing,” she suggested.

Strickland added, “I feel like some people think it’s not important at all, and that everyone has equal opportunity, and I think that comes from a place of privilege.”

A study done by McKinsey and Company shows that it’s beneficial to incorporate DEI programs in the workplace, through both a social and business lens.

“I think there’s the social justice angle of [DEI]; it’s the right thing to do…then there’s the business case angle of it, we don’t have any other options. We need to make the most of everybody that we’ve got,” said McDonough. “That means figuring out how to break down these barriers and make these systems and institutions more welcoming and inclusive to [marginalized] groups so that they can thrive.”

While the pushback is primarily seen in the U.S., there are concerns for the effects trickling up to Canada.

“It’s no surprise that a lot of [American companies] jumped ship as soon as there was a single hole in it,” said Henil Shah, a fourth-year creative industries student pursuing a career in marketing post-graduation.

Shah also said he thinks most companies are not genuinely interested in DEI initiatives and have failed their customers by their ability to be swayed by politics.

In Canada, there have been instances of rebranding and companies shifting their values when it comes to DEI.

Specifically, the University of Alberta has rebranded their own DEI program from equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) to a new framework of “access, community and belong-

ing.” The institution’s report approved in December 2024 outlines the ways it will continue to improve onits previous framework.

While this change has been viewed by critics as a way to appeal to Alberta’s United Conservative Party, McDonough sees this rewording as something inevitable, “as the struggle continues, the definitions and terms that we need to define the work that needs to get done will also evolve.”

Another consequence of the shifting political climate in Canada is three major corporate sponsors pulling out of Toronto Pride. According to an article by CBC, this move was due to the opposition DEI faces in the U.S. As a result of

declined funding, Toronto Pride will be operating without its Beach Party this year on Cherry Beach and the southern stage at Dundas Street East and Church Street.

Although this is affecting the scale of Toronto Pride, McDonough suggests it might be an opportunity for them to address some of the concerns surrounding corporate sponsors at Pride.

In the same vein, Shah looks to the future of DEI initiatives in Canada and maintains optimism.

“My hope is just that [DEI] stays long term and it evolves and becomes permanent,” explained Shah. “[Canada is] realizing that they don’t have to depend on [the U.S.] for their culture and values.”

TMU Spanish conversation tables transcend language

By Ana Baltar Quiros

Disclaimer: Unless specified, the interviews in this article were conducted in Spanish and translated to English.

On April 4, the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures (LLC) hosted the fourth and final Spanish Conversation Table of the 2024-25 academic year in the Podium building. It provided an opportunity for students and faculty across campus to improve their Spanish and connect with Hispanic culture. The event welcomed everyone, regardless of their proficiency in Spanish.

Fewer students had attended the previous meetings, but this time, over 30 people showed up, filling up the small room and leaving some to stand outside.

Makszim Krjukov, a third-year biomedical science student at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) was one of the attendees.

During the 2014 Donbas War in Ukraine, when tanks flooded the streets, then-10-year-old Krjukov and his family had to leave the country and start a new life in Valencia, Spain, where neither his first nor second language—Ukrainian and English—are commonly spoken.

Krjukov found himself forced to learn Spanish and did so through playing soccer, which helped him find community in a foreign setting. Now, as a TMU student, he decided to take a Spanish elective course where he heard about the Spanish Conversation Table offered by the university.

“These days, I only practice Spanish when I play Counter-Strike on-

line with my friends from Spain,” said Krjukov. Since moving to Canada in 2022, he hasn’t had many opportunities to reconnect with the language.

Similar to Krjukov, this was an opportunity for Ingrid Cruz Ospina, a fifth-year business management student to preserve her culture.

“I’m very in tune with my culture and I don’t ever want to lose that,” said Cruz Ospina who was born in Canada and raised by Colombian and Guatemalan parents.

She said she enjoyed the event— her second time attending this semester—as it presented a judgmentfree environment for attendees to make mistakes without fear of being teased. “Everyone in this room is there to help,” said Cruz Ospina.

Although she describes herself as a very social person, she said she has found it hard to connect with other Latin people in Toronto, especially at university.

Like Cruz Ospina, other students at the conversation table crave this connection with their culture, which motivated them to attend.

Jose Manuel Gonzalez Piñeros, a first-year computer science student, is one of these students.

Gonzalez Piñeros was born in Bogotá, Colombia and moved to Canada when he was two years old. He said he found himself struggling to communicate with his family back home, which inspired him to improve his Spanish.

“When I was younger, I would feel very frustrated about not being able to speak with my family when I travelled to Colombia, especially with my cousins,” he said. “I had to improve my Spanish because there was no other way for me to communicate with them, and I knew they wouldn’t learn English just for me.”

Growing up, he said he found it challenging to find others who could relate to his circumstances.

“I always feel alone in my classes, and it is very difficult to find people who speak Spanish,” he said.

Now, after attending three times, he has made progress and has been able to connect with other students who share similar stories.

“I feel more at ease now that I know there are other people that are in the same situation as me,” said Gonzalez Piñeros. “I am very proud of how hard I’ve worked.”

Although the Spanish Conversation Tables can provide the opportunity for students to reconnect with their own language and culture, being Hispanic is not a requirement to participate. Ella Oladipo, a Nigerian first-year language and intercultural relations student, was also a part of the table.

Oladipo chose Spanish as their stream because she felt a certain connection to the culture.

“Spanish just felt right, because I love dancing, I love Spanish culture, love the connection,” they said

in English in an interview with The Eyeopener. She further shared that she’s very involved with the LLC department, and when she found out about the open tables, she felt like it would be a great opportunity for her.

In order to improve her Spanish, she has watched multiple shows in Spanish, like La casa de papel and Manual para señoritas, but felt she needed real interactions to truly learn the language.

“I’m a people person and [I’m studying] intercultural relations and I’m not gonna learn Spanish if I don’t do things like this,” said Oladipo.

Oladipo also values the interconnection between their culture and tribe—the Yoruba tribe—and the Afro-Latino diaspora. They appreciated that the event was led by TMU’s Spanish professor, Dorismel Diaz as he facilitated a “low-pressure environment.” His intersectionality of being from Barranquilla, Colombia and a part of the Black community was a plus. While the event has an incentive for students to get extra participation credit in their Spanish electives, it also allows people like Oladipo to conduct a part of her interview in Spanish, showcasing her achievements in her language learning journey.

“I love the people of the community. They help you so you don’t feel embarrassed,” said Oladipo— as best as they could in Spanish.

NAGEEN RIAZ/THE EYEOPENER

DANIEL CARRERO, SAIF-ULLAH KHAN/THE EYEOPENER

Brace for impact: Early signs of a recession

With heightened unemployment and crashing markets, a new recession may have a big impact on students

With a recent rise in unemployment and markets such as the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) seeing a six-month low, the Canadian economy is expecting to face a “shallow recession” later in the year, according to TD’s long-term economic forecast.

The forecast stated that Canada’s economic growth is projected to remain below-trend through 2025 and 2026 due to slower population growth and the dampening effects of tariffs.

The tariffs imposed by United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump have led to BNN Bloomberg and J.P. Morgan increasing their predicted probability of an upcoming recession between 40 and 50 per cent.

Taylor Wright, assistant professor of economics at Brock University, said that a recession is the general weakening of an economy.

“We can think of the economy as expanding and contracting. Expanding, the economy is growing. Contracting, the economy is shrinking,” Wright explained. “Just like we have normal breathing cycles, we have normal business cycles in economics. A recession is a period of the economy contracting.”

Wright said one sign of being in a recession is having back-to-back quarters of the economy shrinking or negative gross domestic product (GDP) growth.

However, this figure currently makes it difficult to assess the state of Canada’s economic future as the country’s first quarter results for GDP will be released by the Bank of Canada on April 30, resulting in many economists forecasting the recession taking place later in the year.

Similar to GDP, Canada’s market volatility index (S&P/TSX 60 VIX Index) can also be a sign of economic downturn, having risen roughly 8.2 percentage points since the beginning of the year, indicating increased risk and investor fear in Canadian markets.

“We can think of the economy as expanding and contracting”

An upcoming recession could mean more than just tanking investment portfolios for students. According to Bryan Evans, professor at the Department of Politics and Public Administration at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), the negative economic repercussions would have a large effect on employed students that rely on part-time

income to fund their education.

“When the economy tanks, youth employment is always the worst hit. Unemployment goes up, employment goes down and young people typically bear the brunt of it,” said Evans.

In the March 2025 labour force survey released by Statistics Canada, it was announced that employment fell by 33,000—the first major decrease since January 2022.

According to the survey, “there were 1.5 million unemployed people in March, up 36,000 (+2.5%) in the month and up 167,000 (+12.4%) on a year-overyear basis.”

“Will I find a job in the industry I want to be in?”

Evans also stated if this trend persists, unemployment would continue to increase significantly. This could leave students without jobs, and in turn, unable to afford their education and basic necessities.

Youth employment is very vulnerable during recessions and can make a heavy impact on those entering the labour force for the first time, according to Wright. He also stated that no matter how high general unemployment rates are, youth unemployment tends to be higher.

“In general, youth unemployment is roughly twice as high as the general unemployment rate. So if the general unemployment rate is six per cent, the youth unemployment rate is, roughly speaking, 12 per cent,” he explained.

Adyan Owusu, a fourth-year engineering student, said that his income from his part-time job at JD Sports in Brampton, Ont. is crucial for funding his education and other necessities.

“I’d say I rely on my job a lot because I also buy things for my house, or if I’m paying off something like my car…where else am I going to get the funds from?” he said.

He also mentioned his income helps him pay for transportation, food and other essential living expenses.

According to the labour force survey, “the youth unemployment rate had previously touched a 12-year high of 14.2% in August and December 2024, following a strong upward trend throughout most of 2023 and 2024.”

Along with difficulties finding work, Canada’s inflation rate has already seen increases from 1.9 per cent to 2.9 per cent from January to February, according to Statistics Canada.

TD also predicts a long-term inflationary increase as “Canadian inflation is expected to run a bit hotter than in our last forecast due to retaliatory tariffs and a weaker loonie.”

With higher prices and less jobs for Canadians, Wright explained that talking about a recession as a contraction of the economy leads to “belt tightening” and cutting back on spending of certain luxuries.

“There may be a shift away from more expensive brands of goods to cheaper store-based alternatives,” said Wright. “People are going to be trying to do more with less. And so they’re going to

be cutting back on their spending in a bunch of different ways.”

Owusu said with his minimum wage income, it is hard for him to afford necessities because of how much inflation affects everyday items.

“When I’m going out to buy some groceries and stuff, I’m like, ‘holy crap, I’m not even getting paid this much.’ And for me, affording groceries is hard and I think to myself ‘inflation just sucks’ and minimum wage is not matching up either.”

Rebecca Grabinsky, a fourthyear fashion student, fears inflation might not only affect her cost of living but her income as well. To her, heavy consumer spending from customers is equally important as getting consistent shifts at work.

“I think [a recession] would mostly impact me on the amount of business we’re getting. Not so much less shifts or hours for me, but just the amount of people coming in and actually spending money... which means tipping less, which means less money for me,” she said.

“When the economy tanks, youth employment is always the worst hit”

Grabinsky, a full-time employee at Grace O’Malley’s, said she already struggles with saving and budgeting, but a noticeable drop in hours or tip-outs would push her to start prioritizing her finances.

Wright added that youth who enter the job market for the first time during a recession tend to see lasting effects on their lifetime in-

come. They also tend to see most of their wage increase in approximately the first 10 years that they are in the labour market which, in a recession, results in competition between many different people and less increases.

“That usually means that your wages are going to be lower and you’re going to be accepting worse jobs or at least worse compensation for those jobs than you would if there were fewer people you were competing with,” said Wright.

“These are real consequences for real people’s lives that we’re talking about here”

Grabinsky is also concerned about her ability to find stable employment in her field, where there are already fewer job prospects, causing her to look at alternative career plans to fund her future.

“Will I find a job in the industry I want to be in? Or do I have to work something else but also work a job [in my desired field] to get my foot in the door?” she said.

Looking to the future, more people are likely to claim unemployment insurance, Wright said. He added this could compound with rising prices from recent tariffs and the ongoing cost-ofliving crisis to create a much larger issue at hand for Canadians.

“What that might mean is more reliance on things like food banks, which are already stretched pretty thin. So these are real consequences for real people’s lives that we’re talking about here,” he said.

SAIF-ULLAH KHAN/THE EYEOPENER

By Dylan Marks and Anthony Lippa-Hardy

Hoity Toity Art Gala attracts TMU’s most cultured

Student artisans are reinventing what it means to “do art and stuff” at the school’s biggest, most expensive event

By Claire Van De Weghe

Disclaimer: This article is purely satirical. None of us can afford to get into an art gala this exclusive anyways.

Toronto Metropolitan University’s (TMU) student-run Art Collective has taken over the Image Arts Centre with promises of a bold new reimagining of artistic presentation.

Following weeks of preparation and $3 million of exhibit expenses, the Hoity Toity Art Gala has opened its doors to the top one per cent who can afford its hefty admission fees.

Though the event is incredibly exclusive, we at The Eyeopener have finally caved to months of the Art Collective begging and bribing us, and have been given VIP tickets. Here’s what you missed.

“I’m just trying to make a statement”

Richard Richington, a sixth-year business and fine arts double major and founder of the TMU Art Collective, gave a commencement speech to the crowd. He then pulled out a giant pair of diamond-encrusted scissors to cut the red rib-

bon and officially open the doors to select members of the public.

As the mobs of the upper class entered—ignoring the frustrated students trying to get to their classes in the Image Arts Centre—the criminally underpaid wait staff carried trays of hors d’oeuvres, offering them to the attendees. According to one server, they were told the menu was supposed to evoke a certain ingénue.

“I don’t know, man. I just work here,” the anonymous waiter said. “And yes, the little card that says ‘White rhino steak’ is labelled right. These rich people may be crazy, but at least the tips are decent.”

Richington presented the first piece of the night, which just so happened to be his own creation.

A custom-built oil fountain which fracked directly from the ground beneath the TMU campus. He called the piece “Well of Debt.”

“It’s really about the wasteful nature of our consumerist society and its tendency to take from the land,” Richington told our reporter after trying to mansplain Bitcoin to her five times.

“You know, some people say what I’m doing is morally questionable, but really, I’m just trying to make a statement to the people in power.”

Self-proclaimed “multidimensional artist” and in her fifth year of TMU’s entry undeclared arts program, Sara Silverspoon was one of the first who gathered interest around her “nonconformist” art pieces.

“I think my art is more of a feeling”

Her series of displayed works ‘crush/ed,’ are what she calls “multimedia events.” Ordinary folks call them looping videos of ceramic plates being crushed by bulldozers projected on a white wall. According to Silverspoon, her art is supposed to be “evocative in the way only breaking things is.”

“In this piece, I’m really trying to reflect on how it feels to be a woman, but also, like, my childhood,” she said. “I think my art is more of a feeling, you can’t really understand it if you don’t feel it.”

Before further comment could be given, Silverspoon turned around and stared at the floor for the rest of the show. Some viewers believed it was a piece of performance art, while others tried to shake her from what they thought was a deep, open-eyed sleep.

By Sarah Grishpul

By Rachel Cheng

KIERAN LAUZIER/THE EYEOPENER

The night ended with a musical art performance from twin artists and on-call TMU students FR1AR, who used a combination of Gregorian chanting and synth organ melodies to create a piece which perfectly encapsulated the event. With help from their semi-legally owned pet monkey, FR1AR poured paint on themselves and took to the stage to perform the cha-cha slide. When asked about their creative inspiration, the twins said their mentors, The Blue Man Group, had been the most influential.

“They really create a moment, and that’s what we want to do with our art too. We think we did that tonight,” FR1AR said in unison. “We haven’t had this good of a time since the Bohemian Grove in 1999. Thank you, TMU.”

“The TMU Art Collective’s Hoity Toity Art Gala will continue to be open all week to students willing to pour their entire life savings into one admission ticket. Visit www. tmuartcollective-ingyourmoney. ca to purchase your ticket. Student card discounts do not apply. That master’s program

The ascent of Marks into fun and satire editor

Source: sudokutodo.com

Each column and row must contain every number from one to nine without repetition. Each box must also have numbers one to nine with no repetition. Have fun and good luck!

Signatures + Giveaway

Whether it's your friends and family, professors or the barista at a campus coffee shop, there's so many people that have helped you though the semester. In our last issue of the volume, we'd like to give you something to help you remember what a year you've had!

Oh look! Frankie, our beloved mascot already signed your yearbook for you! I guess he did notice you at the hockey game mysteriously in the stands

Collect a minimum of five signatures, take a photo of this yearbook page and submit to our QR code for a chance to win one of five $20 Balzac gift cards. The contest closes April 14 and winners will be contacted by April 15.