The Eyeopener: Vol. 59, Issue 11 by The Eyeopener

Made by students, for students

Meet the faces behind the largest independent student paper at TMU

By The Eyeopener

We are The Eyeopener—your independent student newspaper since 1967.

You may have seen our stands on campus or heard us yelling on Gould Street that our “new issue is hot off the press!” You may have even stumbled upon our office in the Student Campus Centre, distracted by our foosball table right next to our door when you walk in. And if that’s the case, you’ve probably also seen us. The people behind the

paper. The ones stopping you on Gould Street. The ones kindly asking you to volunteer for us if you want to play on foosball table; and the ones always encouraging you to write for us, to bring us your stories and to read the others that might make you feel part of the bigger Toronto Metropolitan University community.

But here is what you might not gather at first glance:

Our team is made up of full-time students across different disciplines and programs. The diversities

don’t stop at areas of interest—they carry over into our identities and lived experiences. Our team comes from all walks of life: different races, ethnicities, religions, genders and sexual orientations. We’re proud to say our intricate perspectives inform everything we publish. Our understanding of the world and our yearning for representation is woven into every article, every photo, every piece of content we produce. This is what we are most proud of—our

shared commitment to fairness and doing more good than harm.

We also promise to not shy away from the awkward conversations, the uncomfortable realities and the unsettling truths—because journalism is meant to disrupt and hold power to account.

Above all, we take pride in our integrity. We move with transparency and bring you, our readers, along every step of the way. We learn, grow and evolve alongside you and never turn down an opportunity

to discuss how we can do better. How we can represent you better.

We are The Eyeopener your independent student newspaper.

For any questions or comments reach out to editor@ theeyeopener.com while making sure to abide by our Human Rights Policy on our website, theeyeopener. com. For advertisement requests email advertising@ theeyeopener.com.

Thank you, Your

fall 2025 masthead

News Editor

Shumaila Mubarak

Photo Editor Ava Whelpley

Editor-in-Chief Negin Khodayari

Editor Daniel Opasinis Production Editor Sarah Grishpul

TMSU election candidates voice their platforms at Executive Candidates Forum

Forum marked by low student and candidate attendance ahead of the 2025 by-election voting period

By Garrett Raakman

Candidates running for positions within the Toronto Metropolitan Students’ Union (TMSU) in the 2025 fall byelection spoke at an executive candidates forum on Nov. 21.

The forum featured nominees from each slates who delivered brief speeches and answered questions asked by Ghallia Hashem, the TMSU’s chief returning officer (CRO). The questions included what motivated the candidates to campaign, and how they planned to increase transparency within the TMSU.

The forum had very low attendance from the student body and only three out of the six candidates running for president attended. Hashem said that the lack of attendees was due to poor planning.

“It is unfortunate that the room is empty,” said Hashem at the forum. “I think that that might have been a little bit of a planning issue given that it was on a Friday, and definitely that will be looked into for the general election.”

Zain Baig and Kobe Biya—the presidential candidates representing Team Justice and Students

Leading Tomorrow, respectively—as well as independent candidate Muhammad Hanan were in attendance. There were also a handful of candidates running for smaller roles such as vice president of education and vice president of equity.

“I believe that the role of the president is to uplift others, empower their ideas, and create an environment where every student can grow both personally and professionally,” said Baig.

Biya said in his speech that leadership should be inclusive. “Leadership, I think, is established, very much through what others see. Especially those that you consider your peers,” he said. “I think that it’s very, very important to not be afraid to be questioned.”

The candidates also addressed some of the recent allegations of corruption within the TMSU as previously reported by The Eyeopener. They also addressed how they intend to rebuild trust between students and the union.

“I think it’s not the right call to change your policies depending on the situation you’re in,” said Hanan.“You’ve gotta think about it more in depth. You do need to

care about students, what they really need and make sure that you’re implementing things that help students out.”

When asked about the safeguards meant to help prevent interference in this election, Hashem highlighted the TMSU Election Procedures Code (EPC).

“We’re introducing some really pointed focuses on the EPC as a governing document, and all of the content that has so far been shared

in terms of how the elections will be administered is directly from the EPC.” said Hashem.

“We’ve also taken accounts to make sure that individuals can submit complaints—if they believe there’s something going wrong with the election.”

This election comes after the TMSU’s 2025 April general election was nullified after the TMSU’s board of governors concluded that there was illegal

interference.

The 2025 Fall TMSU by-election will occur from Nov. 25-27. Originally scheduled from Nov. 24-26, voting was delayed a day by the CRO due to technical errors in ballot casting. According to the CRO in a video posted to TMSU’s Instagram, all ballots casted up to that point will be voided. Polling will open at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday and will close at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday.

These are the TMSU 2025 fall by-election candidates

By Amira Benjamin

The fall by-elections for the Toronto Metropolitan Student Union (TMSU) has begun, with a total of 13 slates and 26 independent candidates.

At the September Special General Meeting, a motion to postpone the fall by-elections to the winter 2026 semester failed, as previously reported by The Eyeopener

The April 2025 general election results were voided following an investigation into the union.

The candidate forum was held on Friday and the online voting period was set to run from Nov. 24-26. But as of Monday afternoon, the TMSU announced in an email that the voting period will be delayed a day from Nov. 25-27.

Note: The list of candidates was found on the TMSU website, where you can find more information about the by-elections.

Team Forward

• President – Faizan Ansari

• Vice President Education –Gyan Kalra

• Vice President Equity – Mariami Aslanikashvili

• Vice President Operations –

Rohan Ramchandani

• Vice President Student Life & Events – Victoria Alcantara

Team Justice

• President – Zain Baig

• Vice President Education –Teresa Baricevic

• Vice President Equity – Megan Morgan

• Vice President Operations –Ahmmad Haidary

• Vice President Student Life & Events – Polly Yang

Students Leading Tomorrow

• President – Koby Biya

• Vice President Education –Naya Haj Mohamad

• Vice President Equity – Mustafa Chaudhry

• Vice President Operations –Mohammad Aamir

Guardians

• Vice President Equity –Muneeb Muhammed

• Vice President Education –Talha Jogiat

Future

• Faculty of Arts Director –Moaaz Lulat

• Faculty of Arts Director –Raiyan Mirja

Flames

• Faculty of Engineering & Architecture Director – Hashir Fatmi

• Faculty of Engineering & Architecture Director – Eias Kapadia

Zenith

• Faculty of Engineering & Architecture Director – Ishan Dubey

• Faculty of Engineering & Architecture Director – Thomas Fronczkowski

AB^2

• Faculty of Science Director –Amitoz Banga

• Faculty of Science Director –Alex Banoub

Catalyst

• Faculty of Science Director –Sakina Haider

• Faculty of Science Director –Shoaib Sheriff

Focus

• Faculty of Science Director –Shayan Khattak

• Faculty of Science Director –Abdullah Saiyid

Freedom

• Faculty of Creative School Director – Jennifer Khoury Baini

• Faculty of Creative School Director – Lev Rudovskiy

Hetavi & Mezghan

• Faculty of Ted Rogers School of Management Director –Hetavi Shah Faculty of Ted Rogers School of Management Director –Mezhgan Siddiqui

Fusion

• Faculty of Ted Rogers School of Management Director –Fayez Addas

• Faculty of Ted Rogers School of Management Director –Jan Khan

Independent Candidates

• President – Newton Doan

• President – Muhammad Hanan

• President – Levi Li Vice President Operations –Zayd Kapadia

• Vice President Student Life & Events – Abdullah Badat

• Vice President Student Life & Events – Vinayak Mathur

• Vice President Student Life & Events – Alya Rizwan

• Faculty of Arts Director –Rana Ak

• Faculty of Community Services Director – Abrahim Ahmad

• Faculty of Community Services Director – Faiz Memon

• Faculty of Community Services Director – Mateen Saleem

• Faculty of Creative School Director – Ethan Elharrar

• Faculty of Engineering & Architecture Director – Omar Ahmed

• Faculty of Engineering & Architecture Director – Farouk Elbattay

• Faculty of Engineering & Architecture Director – Shammis Jumah Ali

• Faculty of Engineering & Architecture Director – Benjamin Sadegh

• Faculty of Medicine Director – Prabhkirat Kaur

• Faculty of Medicine Director

– Nabeel Mansuri

• Faculty of Science Director –Hamza Nasir

• Faculty of Ted Rogers School of Management Director –Muhammad Mulla

• Faculty of Ted Rogers School of Management Director –Latif Syed

• Faculty of Ted Rogers School of Management Director –Fraz Haider

• Faculty of Ted Rogers School of Management Director –Afrasiyab Syed

• International Director – Harsham Dave

• International Director –Shayan Obaid

• International Director – Khaja Kamil Ahmed Mohiuddin

GRAY MOLOY/THE EYEOPENER

TMU students reﬂect on road safety after Ontario speed camera ban

The new change raises questions about driver behaviour around campus.

By Ariana Boncoraglio

On Oct. 30, the provincial government officially banned all automated speed cameras across Ontario, a move that has sparked concerns about road safety.

Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) sits right in the heart of Toronto, where thousands of students cross busy intersections every day. Speed cameras were a tool to control driver behaviour in high-risk areas such as schools and community zones, according to provincial legislation in 2019. There are two speed cameras near campus, for long-term care homes and schools.

“15 to 54 per cent of injuries and fatalities have been prevented...”

In a news release published by the provincial government on Sep. 25, Ontario has ranked in the top five jurisdictions in North America for road safety in the past 25 years. According to the release, more than 700 municipal speed cameras have been installed across the province since being introduced in 2019 by the Ford government, but they are officially out of op-

eration as of Nov. 14.

After announcing the ban, the Ontario government introduced the Road Safety Initiatives Fund (RSIF). The fund includes $210 million to replace speed cameras with alternative safety measures, such as raised crosswalks, speed bumps and roundabouts. $42 million of this fund will go directly towards improved signage and increased enforcement in school and community.

“The effects are significant and of course that means people’s lives”

Former president of the Canadian Road Safety Association Professionals, Raheem Dilgir spoke to The Eyeopener on the effectiveness of speed cameras.

“I’ve seen some numbers ranging from 15 to 54 per cent of injuries and fatalities have been prevented from automated speed enforcement camera installations,” said Dilgir. “The effects are significant and of course that means people’s lives.”

Dilgir explained how speed cameras influence driver behaviour in two ways. He said, some people slow down after receiving

a ticket themselves, while others adjust their behaviour due to the presence of law enforcement.

“If there is no more threat to get a ticket, you won’t necessarily feel deterred to go the speed limit,” said Dilgir. “That’s human nature.”

The removal of speed cameras has prompted mixed reactions among TMU students.

First-year business technology management student Tara Sakhi said speed cameras provide a safer environment but believes the fines are too high.

“I do think they should decrease the fines because a lot of people can’t afford them, especially since they are already paying for car insurance, gas, and all of that,” she said.

“I do think they should decrease the fines because a lot of people can’t afford them”

Previously in O. Reg. 355/22 under Ontario’s Highway Traffic Act , fines were determined by how much a driver was going over the mandated speed limit, as well as an additional penalty if in a “community safety zone or school zone”.

The Eyeopener

Masthead

Editor-in-Chief

Negin “St. Nick” Khodayari

News Editors

Shumaila “Big Ben” Mubarak

Vihaan “Pubbin” Bhatnagar

Amira “Noms” Benjamin

Arts & Culture Editor

Lama “Buckingham” Alshami

Business & Technology Editor

Jerry “Good Run” Zhang

Communities Editor

Daniel “Fun & Satire” Opasinis

Features Editor

Edward “Emily” Lander

Fun & Satire Editor

Dylan “Ho Ho Ho” Marks

Sports Editors

Jonathan “Fits on Fire” Reynoso

Victoria “Blue & Gold” Cha

Production Editors

Jasmine “Burnin Up” Makar

Sarah “Help! I’m Bleeding” Grishpul

Photo Editors

Ava “JC Penny” Whelpley

Rachel “Nouvelle-Aquitaine” Cheng Pierre-Philipe “Joyeuses Fêtes” Wanya-Tambwe

Media Editors

Divine “Hear No Evil” Amayo

Lucas “Hostest With Mostest” Bustinski

Digital Producer

Anthony “Sk8er Boy” Lippa-Hardy

Circulation Manager

Some students said they already struggle with the general student expenses, like tuition or commuting costs which is why a single speeding ticket can feel less like a safety tool and more like a financial burden.

Piraveen Mahadevan, a thirdyear business technology management student supports the ban.

He says speed cameras don’t always change driver habits and that downtown Toronto’s congestion slows drivers down regardless.

“Since it’s a really populated area I feel like drivers already know they can’t speed there,” he said.

Mahadevan also highlights that since a lot of students use public transit to reach campus, the ban should affect them less.

He says “speed bumps or speed cushions, high visibility signage across the streets [and] increased police enforcement” can be better measures for road safety.

With thousands of students crossing Gould Street, Victoria Street and Nelson Mandela Walk, the ban raises questions about how drivers will stay cautious once cameras–and the deterrent they provide–are gone.

Sherwin “Treacherous” Karimpoor

General Manager

Liane “Bills. Bills. Bills.” McLarty

Design Director

Vanessa “Where Art Thou” Kauk

Contributors

Myrtle “Commissioned” Manicad

Ella “Shinji” Miller

Zanoah “Zany” Plummer

Cindy “Peter Sam” Lou-Who

Gray “Pants OK” Moloy

Shaaranki “Shout-Out” Kulenthirarasa

Nadine “Nutgraf?” Alsaghir

Izabel “Roomie” Mensah

Aditi “Lord of the Rings” Roy

Hannah “Hustle” Thompson Francesco “Goated” Cautillo

Harsh “Home for” Kumar

Aanya “the holidays” Jyotsna Jaiswal

Victoria “Fashionista” Andrade

Evan “Messy” Perry

Gray “SO Fast” Moloy

Garrett “TMSU” Raakman

Ariana “FIRST STORY!” Boncoraglio

Students reflect for ‘Maaveerar Naal’

Tamil Canadian students run and attend events to remember their roots

By Shaaranki Kulenthirarasa

Disclaimer: The writer of this story performed at the event held on Nov. 10 by the TMU Tamil Students Association.

For many Tamil students at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), this Thursday, Nov. 27 is one filled with remembrance and reflection. Maaveerar Naal—which translates to “Great Heroes Day”— is a memorial day observed by the community to remember those who sacrificed their lives for Tamils during the Sri Lankan Civil War.

Across the month of November, Tamil Students Associations (TSA) at many universities work together with the Tamil Youth Organization (TYO)—an international organization—to hold ceremonies commemorating the lives lost. Swaytan Rameshwaran, copresident of TMU’s TSA said they were one of the earliest student groups to host the ceremony in Ontario, which was held on Nov. 10. Kuberaka Kumareswaran, copresident of TMU’s TSA said this day is significant for Tamil students who were born and brought up in foreign countries.

“We definitely wouldn’t be able to [have] this freedom, an education without the maaveerar [heroes] who have fought for us...It’s

a constant reminder for us to keep pushing, keep excelling in whatever career we are doing,” she said.

Earlier this year in May, Chinguacousy Park’s Tamil Genocide Monument was revealed in Brampton, Ont. Thousands of civilians were killed in the civil war which lasted over 26 years from 1983 to 2009. The community’s understanding of the killing of civillians as a genocide is reflected in Ontario’s Tamil Genocide Education Week Act (Bill 104).

As the preamble for Bill 104 notes, “Acts of genocide against the Tamils started in 1948 after Sri Lanka gained its independence and were perpetrated through SinhalaBuddhist centric government policies, pogroms, land grabs and ethnic cleansing.”

Over 35 students gathered on campus to participate in the remembrance event which consisted of flag raising and lowering ceremonies, flower blessing ceremonies and several performances by Tamil students.

Rameshwaran said this event— which the group hosts every year— is a reminder that the younger generation of Tamil students who are born and raised in foreign countries remain connected to their roots.

“It is important for us to run these events because it’s an oppor-

tunity for us to showcase it to people that are not Tamil. We [can] spread awareness about what happened in the [civil war],” he said.

Ashwin Vasantharasan, the TSA coordinator for the TYO supports several TSAs across the country to organize and carry out events related to Tamil culture.

Vasantharasan said the event students hosted was empowering.

“It’s very inspiring and motivating to see that even after 15 plus years since the height of the Tamil genocide, our next generation continues to carry the histories and memories of our nation,” he said.

The TYO organizes the Youth Maaveerar Naal ceremony annually, which will be held on Tuesday Nov. 25 at the Metropolitan Centre in Scarborough. Students from various Canadian high schools and universities come together for this. Many also volunteer for the Nov. 27 ceremony held at The Interna-

Catching a snooze at TMU

SUPPLIED BY: AISHWIN JEEVOTHAYAN

tional Centre in Mississauga, Ont.

For many Tamils, this is a day to remember loved ones who lost their lives.

In addition, efforts are being made to build the ‘Tamil Community Centre’ in northeast Scarborough aimed to provide programming and a space where the Tamil community can come together.

Abisha Baskaran, a second-year law and business student, was one of the students who performed at the TMU’s TSA event. Baskaran— who has grown up performing at Maaveerar Naal events throughout the community—feels that this November, with the building of the Tamil Genocide Monument, the community feels heard.

“I think [it’s] a really huge step.

Many people died...Many horrible things happened to a lot of people.

A lot of the country had to flee to other countries and towns just so that they could live...I think it’s a

big step that people are learning about it,” she said.

Kumareswaran and Rameshwaran also find that the idea of the Tamil Community Centre a step in the right direction—bringing together members of the community with shared experiences. Rameshwaran said the government’s support of this community centre is big.

“It’s something important to us because it’s something we are finally starting to see more representation [in] and seeing people recognize the struggles of Tamil people,” said Rameshwaran.

Though these students see change being made, they feel that there is still a long way to go.

“I feel like there needs to be more work done to bring justice to our people...This year like every other year people both in the homeland and in the diaspora will continue to remember our heroes,” said Vasantharasan.

Long commutes and demanding schedules are causing students to sleep on campus

By Nadine Alsaghir

As finals season approaches at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), students say they’re napping in lounges, libraries and even empty hallways, struggling with sleep due to long commutes and demanding schedules.

TMU shared in a statement regarding the renaming of Dundas

Station that more than 80 per cent of the school’s 50,000 students, staff and faculty are commuters.

Third-year biomedical science

student Anokhi Patel said the exhaustion often begins before sunrise. She said that she finds herself napping in TMU’s library on days she has a long break between a morning and evening class.

“I had an assignment due last night

and I had to be here for an 8 a.m. class, so I had to leave my house around six something,” she said. “Then I’m here for a really long time at night.”

Patel travels more than an hour to campus each day, and says the lack of resting spaces on campus only makes things harder. “Especially for students that are commuting and don’t get that opportunity to go to a dorm and rest for a little bit.” She

said she believes TMU should provide “a dedicated space where they could rest, especially knowing it is a commuter school.”

According to Housing and Residence Life, TMU provides a commuter hostel located in the International Living/Learning Centre Residence at 240 Jarvis St., which “offers students short-term accommodation on-campus in support of their academic success.” It provides commuter students up to three consecutive nights and nine nights per month.

First-year electrical engineering student Pranet Chirag Talati, who commutes from Brampton, Ont., shares the same struggle. His commute takes nearly two hours each way, forcing him to wake up around 5:30 a.m. for 8 a.m. classes.

“It’s just a lot of fatigue and the stress of commuting,” he said. “Whenever I have about an hour or two difference between my classes, I find myself sleeping.”

On Nov. 7, Talati had an 8 a.m. class and then a midterm at 8:30 p.m. Together, it would be a commute of four hours, so he said there

was no point in going home—that’s where the nap comes in.

Some students who live closer to campus still find themselves caught in cycles of exhaustion, especially in programs with heavy workloads. Eleanor Qu, a first-year architectural science student, says her peers often joke about the “architecture stereotype of not sleeping.”

“We thought it’d be fun to stay [in the architecture building] for 24 hours to finish our projects,” she said. “But then the next day, I realized I needed to keep working—it was 2 a.m., and I didn’t want to go home because it was unsafe that late. So I slept there again.”

Qu has even heard tales of upperyear students who spent four nights in the building during project deadlines. “Having some sort of more flexibility within schedules could really help,” she suggested. “Putting more classes together on the same days would really help those students, because commuting to TMU for like two hours just for one class is really draining.”

AND THEY WERE ROOMMATES...

Amid rising rents, moving in with friends can seem like a sensible choice—these students beg to differ

BY IZABEL MENSAH

Photo illustration by Ava Whelpley

In her ﬁrst year at Toronto Metropolitan University, creative school student Vera*, lives in Pitman Hall. She doesn’t know anyone at ﬁrst but meets a few people who attended high school in the same school board as her. They start spending lots of time together, slowly introducing more people into a now-growing friend group.

During their second semester, Vera needs a place to live off-campus for the following year—and so did one of her new friends. The logical choice, she says, was to move in with her.

“We didn’t really know each other very

well but she needed someone to live with and me and another friend were like, ‘okay, screw it, let’s go’,” Vera says.

The third friend ends up backing out of the plan leaving just the two to move in

together. She and her friend begin their search for a new place in February of their ﬁrst year. That’s when the issues start to arise. “Honestly, she had a way bigger budget than I did. So, everything was super bougie, and I was like, ‘lowkey, I can’t afford this’.” she says.

“But as time went on, I started to get annoyed... why am I the only one cleaning every week?”

Vera’s budget was limited—a constant worry for her and her parents. Her friend, on the other hand, was able to live a bit more lavishly. Seemingly without the looming concern of “will I be able to afford this?” according to Vera. “It’s a weird situation when you’re with someone that can drop like $1,700 a month just on their own. So, I kind of felt like I got the short end of the stick when it came to that,” she says.

Paired with what she says was an amazing realtor, they were able to secure an apartment at the corner of Jarvis and Gerrard streets—right next to campus. A decently nice place: two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a sizable living room.

Vera managed to get the smaller room, ﬁtting just within the range of her budget. Her roommate had the master suite, with an ensuite bathroom and two closets. “Super bougie, but the apartment itself was everything I needed,” says Vera.

The dream of having her own apart-

ment in the city was ﬁnally a reality. “At ﬁrst, I thought it was super fun. Of course! Being 18 and having your own apartment in Toronto!” Vera says. “I dreamed about this my entire life, I knew I belonged here. I knew I wanted to be here.”

Vera, carried away by the excitement of living on her own, didn’t take notice right away that her roommate wasn’t picking up the slack when it came to household chores.

“Like if it was dirty, I would just do it....I was just too blinded by the fact that I had that commodity,” she says.

After the dust had settled, Vera realized her expectations of living downtown with her friend were less than what she hoped for. “When it came down to cleanliness…I just kind of did everything myself. But as time went on, I started to get annoyed... why am I the only one cleaning every week? Why am I cleaning your dishes out of the sink?”

As the months went on, things only deteriorated.

“I was always sweeping, mopping, even after she’d have friends over and they’d ‘pre’ at our place and there’d be alcohol everywhere—sticky on the ﬂoor. I’d have to clean it or it wouldn’t get done.”

Though many people don’t account for the reality of living with a friend—how boundaries in a friendship can overlap with the responsibilities of being a roommate and the limitations of said relationship. Many students who plan to live with their friends, plan only for an idealized version, ignoring whether they are actually compatible as roommates.

In a city with skyrocketing rents, rooming with a friend can feel like a smart ﬁnancial decision. According to data from the Toronto Regional Real Estate board, the current average market rent for a two bedroom unit in 2025 is $3,101 and $1,945 for a bachelor apartment.

Living in Toronto is more than just ‘expensive’ by student standards. Budgeting, cutbacks or even picking up extra shifts can be barely enough to cover the cost to live comfortably downtown. That, on top of a university schedule with assignments, exams and deadlines, and the pressure becomes something that is too heavy for one student to shoulder alone. Which is why many students planning to live in the city look for like-minded and like-budgeted individuals to share the burden and create a sustainable housing arrangement.

However, expectations of that arrangement don’t always match reality.

People often romanticize the idea of living with a friend. TV series like, well, display the whimsy of having a close friend who doubles as a perfect roommate.

Ben Deans, a spokesperson from the Toronto Centre Tenant Union, a nonproﬁt community-based tenants’ union, The Eyeopener outlining expectations is essential in any

wrote in an email to roommate relationship.

“There are a lot of expectations around:

ROOMMATES...

will roommates get along, how long are they each planning to live in the unit, ﬁnances and paying the rent, the quality of the building maintenance. There are lots of different ways that expectations can fail once students start living with friends,” the email reads.

In Evelyn Carey’s ﬁrst year studying biology at the University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM), she lives in residence with three other girls. The apartment-style suite has four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room and a kitchen— a beautiful kitchen, Carey says.

Carey shares a bathroom with one of her roommates, who she says was “exploring her newfound freedom” and developed tendencies that were difficult to live around—at least from Carey’s perspective.

“She would never like, pitch into anything like cleaning, cleaning supplies or just anything,” she says. The others noticed it too—but all in all, they had fun.

Carey loved living with her friends and the others in her dorm. As their time in the dorms was ending, the roommates thought it would be best to reapply to residence together—seeing how compatible they all were in the beginning. However, to get a different place in their second year, they needed a fourth person.

“Someone from our residence from ﬁrst year was like, ‘Hey I’m looking for someone to live with’,” Carey says.

Soon, Carey learns that between her and the newest addition to their group,

the two of them were not the best mix.

“She was friendly enough but there were certain microaggressions that I was getting from her. I was like, ‘Hey, I’m just gonna push it off. I don’t really care that much’.”

“That pet ended up destroying all of our furniture and peeing on my bed and being a menace, and it was furniture that we both paid for”

“She needed a place to stay and we’re like, well, we need a fourth and it’s better than living with a stranger.”

Carey says while she chose to look past her roommate’s behaviour, her two friends took the approach to mitigate and call her out on things they deemed as problematic.

Carey recalls how throughout her second year, she noticed a change in her roommate’s behaviour and their relationship. For a while they lived together on campus, until keeping up with the costs became too much for all of them to handle. Eventually, it was decided that together they would ﬁnd a new place off campus.

“We were all supposed to pitch into everything,” Carey says. “But I did all the searching like, I’m very much a type-A friend and they were all very much type-B.”

She knew the difference in management styles between her and her friends caused strife here and there—but they worked through it.

They were able to find a home that met just about their every need. With three of them on the upper level sharing a space and one downstairs maintaining a floor on her own. “There were four bedrooms, two bathrooms, two living rooms and a kitchen,” Carey says. “I chose the smallest room for the lowest amount of money.”

Blinded by the rose-tinted glasses of living in a big house with all her friends, and the chic, quirky feeling of it all, she overlooked some of the early disagreements she’d have with her roommates over minor details. “I kind of just kept pushing these things off,” Carey says.

Sometimes, it was little things like messiness or her roommate’s constant spending—piles of online shopping packages showing up in the apartment. Other times, the problem looms larger. Vera had to be mindful of her finances. Turning down offers to eat out or suggesting cheaper alternatives for transit. Making excuses to subtly reject her friend’s expensive activities. “There’s always that power dynamic there, when you’re with someone that you know has a lot more money than you,”

destroying all of our furniture and peeing on my bed and being a menace, and it was furniture that we both paid for and I never got compensation back,” Vera says. “Our whole apartment reeked, I just got so sick of it by the end of the year. I made up a lie to get out of it with her. ”

Vera’s decision to move out of the apartment with her friend, creating an excuse to break the fall, was her way of mitigating the awkward tension that would spring between her and her friend.

“I love her as a friend. I just don’t think I could live with her”

From Vera’s sudden responsibility to take care of a pet she didn’t want, to doing solitary chore work along with her friend’s overall lifestyle, Vera was over it.

Having a proper foundation in a friendship can change the way people get along as roommates.

“I think it was just because we didn’t have that [strong] foundation of friendship before,” she says.”

It wasn’t that Vera disliked her as a friend but rather she knew their differences in cohabitation style were all too overwhelming.

“I love her as a friend. I just don’t think I

she says.

could live with her.”

couldn’t

But when her roommate, to Vera’s surprise, one day adopted and brought back a cat for their apartment, she couldn’t handle it for much longer. “That pet ended up

* for privacy reasons. The Eye this source.

This source has chosen to remain anonymous has veriﬁed

‘Localizing the Intifada:’ Art and Indigenous-Palestinian solidarity

By Aditi Roy

On Nov. 20, four pro-Palestine activists and artists graced the stage at the 401 Richmond building for a panel focused on building Indigenous-Palestinian solidarity.

Hosted by Toronto Metropolitan University’s (TMU) Office of Social Innovation, the panel was part of their “Free School” series, which according to their website is “rooted in the idea of learning through community, activism and collective inquiry.” This campus initiative illustrated the value of art and intersectionality in shaping Indigenous and Palestinian movements for freedom and justice.

Lamya Amleh, an engineering professor at TMU, moderated the discussion. Featured speakers included Quill Christie-Peters, an Anishinaabe artist and educational developer in Indigenous pedagogies and curriculum at TMU; Maysam Ghani, a Palestinian poet; Ala’ Qadi, vice chair of the OPSEU’s Coalition of Racialized Workers; and Elizabeth Ha, a labour and equity activist.

The discussion unfolded into a conversation about the significant roles that art and union organizations play in the ongoing movement for colonial resistance.

Artists Christie-Peters and Ghani detailed their ongoing initiative with Anishinaabeg Palestine Alliance—an annual delegation that brings together youth and Palestinians from the Greater Toronto Area to experience Treaty 3 in an effort to build solidarity.

“For Anishinaabe people, relationships are truly the heart of our worldview and the heart of everything that we do,” said Christie-Peters, explaining the foundation on which the initiative is built.

The immersive experience allowed the two communities to work in tandem building lodges for community members in Treaty 3 and expressing their creativity through storytelling, singing and painting panels on the cabins.

“We say globalize the Intifada… but what if we localize it a little?” said Ghani. She encouraged the audience

to seek solidarity by standing alongside local communities and continuing the fight against oppression.

Christie-Peters voiced her passion for this initiative, pointing out the importance of shared labour and arguing that it goes beyond rhetoric, becoming a political act in itself.

Amleh said, “From Turtle Island to Palestine is not a metaphor. It is a lived set of relationships, responsibilities and solidarities built through land based practice, political risk taking, community care and commitment to the liberation that crosses movement and borders.”

When highlighting the shared struggle for land, Ghani said, “When I think of Land Back, [it] is the equivalent to the right of return for Palestinians.”

In reference to the work the delegation accomplished on the premises of Treaty 3, Christie-Peters said, “Our land knows you. Our land misses you. Land misses me too.”

On the necessity for art, Qadi chimed in, pointing out that “we need to pay more intentional attention to how we’re doing this work.”

“We are all the victims of colonialism—it works with the same principle; you just dehumanize the occupied…and blame the victim,” he added. He noted the value of intersectionality as various ethnic groups have historically faced the same suffering that Palestinians endure today.

Ghani said that her visit to Treaty 3 was exactly that. She recounted her joyous experience vividly describing the fusion of Indigenous and Palestinian traditions. “Singing our prisoners’ songs to the waters…just being with one another outside of stating all of the talking points in response to our enemies.”

Jane*, a PhD candidate at TMU, said she felt at ease attending the discussion among like-minded people. “You get to be around people who keep you going…remind you that we should keep on fighting,” she said.

Jane believes that such initiatives help create a safe place for pro-Palestine students at TMU.

*This source has requested an alias due to the sensitive nature of the matter.

Exile, art and the unwavering bond of a father and daughter

Written and translated by Negin Khodayari

Photos by Pierre-Philipe Wanya-Tambwe

Disclaimer: This interview was conducted in Persian to accommodate the source. The column on the right is written with the original conversation.

25-year-old Tania Ekrami was just a fresh teen in Iran when she discovered her love for drawing. The now fourth-year psychology student at Toronto Metropolitan University has been using her art as a form of self-expression ever since.

Ekrami immigrated to Canada at 18, leaving part of her heart—her family—behind. In her moments of isolation, her art remained a companion. And in her moments of joy her pens and paper did the same.

But in exile, there’s one other thing that brings Ekrami solace: the unconditional support of her father and an unwavering bond with her family.

We asked Ekrami a series of questions that unveil the deeper significance of her art and found a story of exile and her everlasting love for her father.

What made you come to Canada?

Since I was a kid, I always wanted to live somewhere free. When I was around 15 or 16, I decided I wanted to leave Iran but I didn’t know where to go. I decided to come here—somewhere I could reach my goals and live freely. I’ve always been ambitious and wanted to live somewhere that allowed me to do what I dreamed of. I felt like Iran wasn’t the place where I could fully pursue my dreams.

What role did art play in your dreams?

A huge role. Every time I was sad, happy or when I felt lost and didn’t know where I stood in life, I would grab paper and draw. Even if the only thing I had was a pen. The funny thing is, I would draw everywhere.

One story I remember is when I spent two or three hours drawing. Then I showed it to my dad and asked, ‘Dad, do you think it’s pretty? I drew it myself.’ At first he didn’t believe me. He said, ‘You printed this! How could something this detailed come from your mind?’ I told him I drew it myself

and he said, ‘I’m sure one day you’ll get somewhere with this art.’ I’ll never forget that sentence. Art has always been my language, a way of communicating with myself. Through it I express everything. In my drawings, if a part is very detailed, I know I was thinking about something chaotic, if a part is more empty, I know I was feeling peaceful.

What’s your earliest memory of drawing?

I must have been around 13 or 14—I remember sitting in my room with blue and pens, drawing. The next day I showed it to my dad. I still have that drawing. And that’s the day he told me, “If you actually sat and drew this, you’re going to go somewhere with your art.” From then on, every time I draw, that sentence stays with me.

What role did your father’s support play in your art?

When your father stands behind you, you feel like you can move the world. That’s exactly how I feel. My mother and sister also support me, but especially in Middle Eastern culture, when a father stands behind his daughter—particularly in something like art—means a lot. His support gave me so much confidence.

Today, what role does art play in your life?

Honestly, one of the biggest roles.

As a young woman living alone in Canada, I experience a wide range of emotions—sadness, joy, loneliness, longing. When I feel down or happy, I bring out my paints and start drawing and suddenly I feel better. I grew up in a very lively, social household in Iran, with constant gatherings. But when I moved here, ‘loneliness’ got a new meaning and so did my art.

How does exile impact your art?

I immigrated at 18. The day my family left me here, I found myself in the second-largest country in the world, not knowing how to navigate anything. It was very heavy. When I miss my family and everyone in Iran is asleep or when the internet was shut down back home during times of unrest— drawing was all I had. The colours made my life brighter.

SUPPLIED BY: LISA AFRIYIE

Don’t forget about us

Student-run athletic clubs are keeping the community alive on campus, even when most don’t know they exist

By Hannah Thompson

For a university with nearly 48,000 students, it might be expected that Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) would have an equally bustling recreation scene as its athletics. Across the Recreation and Athletic Centre (RAC) and Kerr Hall gyms, a handful of student-run clubs continue to move, train and build community, even when most of campus doesn’t notice.

“The Community Running Club is a relatively new club at TMU,” said club president Anthony Quach. “We started last year, so we’re now two years old. Our club invites students from every level of running experience, from beginners to advanced, to join us for more than just running, to socialize, explore the city and enhance our overall well-being.”

The team meets three times a week for five to six kilometre runs around downtown Toronto, adding longer weekend sessions as the weather allows. However, Quach admits that the biggest hurdle isn’t endurance, it’s visibility.

“I really hope [students] know we exist,” he said. “TMU is a commuter school, and everyone’s schedule is different. But we’ll always try our best to host runs when most students are available.”

While TMU’s athletics department provides funding, Quach says the real challenge is cutting through the “commuter conflict.” Between jobs, transit and burn-

out, maintaining engagement is a marathon. “Don’t just commute to TMU,” he said. “Experience what TMU has to offer.”

In a statement describing its Recreational Clubs program, the school says its goal is “to offer a broad range of student-led and student-focused sport and physical activity clubs, offering both a community of shared interest that contributes to a spirit of belonging at TMU, and also an opportunity for instruction and skill development.”

This sentiment is shared elsewhere. Heather Jackson, coach of the Trampoline Club, said her small group bounces between enthusiasm and obscurity.

“Sometimes people will walk by the gym in Kerr Hall and pop their heads in like, ‘What’s this?’” Jackson laughed. “And I tell them, ‘It’s the TMU Trampoline Club,’ and they’re always so surprised; they had no idea we even had one.”

Limited promotion comes down to time. Jackson, who works another full-time job, hasn’t been able to attend TMU’s orientation fairs.

“I feel bad about that,” she said. “We used to set up a trampoline in the [Kerr Hall] Quad for Welcome Week, and it drew a lot of interest. I’d love to bring that back.”

Without permanent facilities, their folding trampolines are set up and taken down each practice.

Jackson believes TMU’s commuter culture makes it harder for clubs to thrive. “When I was a student, living in residence helped me discover what

The last step

Aaron Rhooms looks to end his journey at TMU hoisting up a championship banner

By Francesco Cautillo

Personal accolades and national representation overflow the daily life of Aaron Rhooms. But the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU)

Bold men’s basketball guard finds himself focused on simplicity, prioritizing his contribution and plans for his final year with the team.

Basketball is what keeps Rhooms’ world spinning, but the sport was merely a hobby. The ball was like a magnet, drawing aspects of his life closer and closer to him–a method of bonding with his father, whom he spent a lot of his childhood with growing up in Mississauga, Ont.

“I think the biggest thing that basketball gave me with my pop was [something] more that we can relate to…it brought us closer,” said Rhooms.

The conversation about the possibility for Rhooms to play the sport

clubs existed,” she said. “But most TMU students don’t live on campus, so they just don’t hear about us.”

That invisibility extends to TMU’s martial arts scene.

“We’ve got some amazing martial arts clubs at TMU,” said Michael McCarthy, principal instructor of the Karate Club. “What makes ours unique is that it’s less focused as a sport and more on self-defense. We really care about the personal development of all our members.”

McCarthy has taught for over 35 years, guiding everyone from beginners to black belts through the fundamentals of traditional karate. Still, he admits, “It’s probably hard to hear the signal through the noise. If you’re looking for karate, you’ll find us. But I don’t know if you’d just bump into us otherwise.”

That “signal-to-noise” problem is one Quentin Favire, junior executive of TMU’s Kendo Club, knows well. “We’ve got posters, ads, an Instagram page, everything,” he said.

“But you kind of have to find that information yourself. I had to do a lot of digging to even figure out how to post on the campus screens.”

Kendo, a traditional Japanese martial art using bamboo swords, is one of several clubs trying to reach new members through demos and trial classes. “We’re even considering a free semester for beginners,” Faivre said. “We just want people to try it.”

Fellow junior executive Jazz Yeung says the club offers what TMU students crave most: connection. “I didn’t even know the Kendo Club existed until I saw someone wearing a fencing shirt and looked it up,” she said. “But when I joined, I made friends so quickly. When you’re sweating and working out together, it’s easy to bond. That’s what people need more of—especially with how common student loneliness is.”

That sense of belonging is also key at TMU’s Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) Club. Founded by president Shervin Akhlaghi, it makes martial arts accessible. “Most gyms cost $150 to $200 a month,” he said. “We charge $65 a semester or $100 a year. By teaching myself, we make it affordable for everyone.”

For member Kyrra Mailer, joining has been empowering. “At first,

I was intimidated,” she said. “But TMU BJJ has such a welcoming community. It’s helped me feel confident, make new friends and even feel safer walking home at night.”

This aligns with the university’s vision for these groups. TMU emphasizes that being “student-led is a critical focus,” designed to create “an environment where participants of all abilities, identities and skill levels are welcome to join, learn the activity, and share in the community together.”

From trampolines to tatami mats, these clubs prove there’s more to TMU than academics and varsity scores. They’re small pockets of passion, often run by students balancing midterms with marketing posters, all for the sake of keeping their communities alive.

As McCarthy put it, “You don’t need a crowd to build a community, just people who care enough to show up.”

So the next time you’re walking through the RAC or passing by Kerr Hall, stop for a second. You might just find a club waiting to welcome you.

at a level more than just for fun came on a random day.

For Rhooms, the ball wasn’t just filled with air, it contained the weight of the world and the emotion he poured into the game that he loves. Every bead of sweat, every pull up jumper, marked his commitment to the game of basketball.

While practicing with his father outside, 10th grader Rhooms was asked if he wanted to pursue the sport professionally, to which he instantly replied “yes” with enthusiasm and passion.

His father made sure that he was aware of the sacrifices that come with elite play, constantly giving him insight and stressing the focus of simplicity. “He was big on fundamentals. So whenever I’m on the court, I’m always trying to keep things simple, like making the easy pass and taking the easy shot,” said the Bold guard.

After the passing of his father in 2020, Rhooms has continued to hold close the crucial lesson that was installed in him. Explaining how this truth transcends sport, Rhooms says that “it applies to life too, when you

slow things down, be patient, do the simple things, they add up and things work out.”

Daryus Alleyne is a former teammate of Rhooms who grew up playing with the TMU guard in high

school. Since then, the two have become close friends, with both of them achieving their dreams of propelling to the varsity athletics scene.

Can TMU students afford travel for the winter holidays?

By Aditi Roy

With the holiday break approaching, many Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) students are rethinking how far they can afford to go. Some say the rising cost of day-today life has made them turn travelling into a careful financial calculation.

Domestic students cite high airfares, rising living costs and uncertain work as reasons to stay in Toronto, while international students are weighing the financial strain of long flights against seeing family. Affordability, not destination, is shaping holiday plans, with experts noting that students are increasingly opting for short local trips or choosing not to travel at all.

According to the 2025 Blue Cross Travel study, 81 per cent of Canadian travellers have changed their habits to account for the rising cost of living and tightening budgets.

Fourth-year domestic business technology management student Mohammed Rayed noted how commitments to part-time jobs and co-ops can be a hindrance to

travel plans. “If [I] were to take a day off, [I’ll] be risking the job.”

He reflected the heightened pressure to retain these employment opportunities in times of uncertainty in the job market. Rayed added that due to rising costs, “people are just trying to…stay home and save up.”

Julliane Macarandang, a fourthyear media production student, will be taking a cruise in the Caribbean with her family during the break.

Macarandang said she believes on her own, she lacks the savings to travel abroad. “Two part-time jobs are still…not enough, because I’m still a full-time student,” she said.

For international students, the hefty price of overseas tickets appears to be worth it to spend time with their family.

Second-year architecture student Zainab Dhanani said she feels compelled to return to Tanzania this winter, both for her sister’s wedding and because work and co-op commitments will likely prevent her from going again for some time.

“This is the last year that I’d be able to see them all together, and then

the year after, I’d be doing co-op, so I won’t be able to go back home.”

She noted that home provides a kind of support and comfort she can’t find while studying abroad.

“Having my parents there is definitely helpful, because I think your parents are a different kind of support.”

Dhanani said she avoids high airfares by booking in advance or choosing less popular dates, such as special holidays. “Nobody wants to travel on New Year’s, so if you’re okay with missing New Year’s, then go on a plane on New Year’s. I tend to do that.”

Wayne Smith, a hospitality and tourism management professor at

TMU, is noting an emerging pattern of domestic travel among youth.

“We’re seeing a lot of interest from youth in the cultural centres of Canada,” he said. Tourists have taken an affinity to destinations like Halifax and Quebec on the east coast and Okanagan and Vancouver on the west coast, he said.

Smith added that this increase in domestic travel could significantly boost Canada’s tourism economy, enabling students to travel at a significantly lower cost by using transportation options such as Via Rail.

TMU hospitality and tourism adjunct professor Walter Jamieson reflects on how the change in youth unemployment has drasti-

cally changed the ability for young Canadians to travel.

“When I graduated from university and for several generations after, there was never any worry about getting a job—it was, what job am I going to take?” he said.

Jamieson expressed that he feels sorry for the students of this generation, seeing their inability to travel as a hindrance to their learning experience. He urges students to make the most of the resources they have and travel within Canada if possible.

“Go to Quebec for a week and meet Francophone students and find out what, why and where they are—I think that’s important,” he said.

Students look to skilled trades as job market crashes

By Daniyah Yaqoob

Facing high living costs and an uncertain job market after graduation, some Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) students are choosing the skilled trades or pivoting to other service-related jobs over traditional pathways.

They point to lower training expenses, faster access to fulltime work and stable, long-term income as key reasons for the shift, reflecting a broader trend as young people rethink the value of the skilled trades. Labour experts say the change reflects both economic pressures and growing demand for trade workers across Canada.

Kieran McNally-Kennedy, a fourth-year history student at TMU, said once he completes his degree, he is putting his academic career behind him to pursue firefighting instead.

“The cost of living is pretty extreme in Canada at this moment. And to live the lifestyle that I want to live…we’re looking at, realistically, six figures a year by the time I’m 32, 33,” McNallyKennedy said.

He said he doesn’t see a realistic path to that salary in history or academia, which pushed him to look beyond his degree.

For McNally-Kennedy, firefighting, which he had been interested in since high school, crystallized as his plan as he neared

graduation. He said the direct service aspect would give him a sense of purpose, while the paycheck for firefighters—which can be be

tween $91,692 to $114,787 a year, according to the Ontario Fire Department—is an added benefit.

He said he plans to complete some certifications and credentials over the course of a year, which will cost him between $7,000 and $12,000, less than the average university degree.

It is part of the reason why he thinks there will be an increasing interest in service and skilled trades jobs.

“I think that when people start to struggle and the status quo can no longer be maintained, people start to look elsewhere for survival reasons,” McNally-Kennedy said. “I think right now the push for trades is just because there’s a job market for it.”

A report by Environics Institute, Diversity Institute and Future Skills Centre found that 59 per cent of Canadians are more likely to recommend their children go into a job-oriented trade or apprenticeship, while 26 per cent recommend a general university program.

The change in perception— where youth entrance into the trades was once “hampered” by stigma around the industry— comes as fewer people are confident about the chances of finding a good, well-paying job with a

university degree, the report said. It also comes as 700,000 skilled trades workers are expected to retire in Canada by 2028, while the Ontario government said one in six openings are projected in the skilled trades by 2026.

However, Alex Usher, president at Higher Education Strategy Associates, said the shift of preferences is hard to measure and that enrollment numbers don’t indicate that interest in skilled trades is rising.

“If you look nationally, the number of apprentices is rising slightly. But so is the number of university students,” Usher said.

For those who are turning to the trades, the appeal is often a path

that focuses less on textbooks and theories and more on handiwork, according to Chau-Anne Nguyen, manager of career education at TMU’s Career, Co-op & Student Success Centre (CC&SS).

“I think that a lot of younger people enjoy working with their hands,” Nguyen said. “Sometimes in university, you don’t have a lot of hands-on work, right? That creativity is missing.”

Keerat Srah, a second-year business management student at TMU, said most of his friends ended up going into the trades after graduating high school. He said it was less about their grade performance and more about looking for career openings.

While he’s halfway through his program, his friends are wrapping up college programs or have started earning as apprentices.

According to Srah, one of his friends, an electrician, is one year out of school and working under an experienced professional, making $5,000 to $6,000 a month.

Despite certain university degrees being oversaturated, he believes it doesn’t mean they don’t hold any value anymore.

“There’s big booms for trades, and then there’s big booms for degrees,” he said. “I think trades are going to be in more demand in the next five to 10 years.” Read more at theeyeopener.com

RACHEL CHENG/THE

AVA WHELPLEY/THE EYEOPENER

Your Spotify Wrapped Explained

By Zanoah Plummer

Disclaimer: While these predictions may not exactly be true, the ideas they’re based on didn’t really come from nowhere...

It’s late November and within no time everyone’s Instagram stories will be polluted with Spotify Wrapped images to prove they have the most “underground” taste in music. Many say that you can tell a lot about a person from the music they listen to but I’m here to tell you what your top Spotify Wrapped artist says about you.

Drake I bet your go-to shoes are New Balances, you frequent Square One and you LOVE Dave’s Hot Chicken. You claim whatever drive-over city you’re from as part of Toronto, and swear up and down that the proximity counts (it doesn’t).

Sabrina Carpenter

Your parents don’t like when you play “Tears” in the car and you love that. You’ve barely got any savings left but yes, that concert was worth it.

Alex Warren

It’s time to put the phone down. There’s more to life than your TikTok ‘For You’ page. Go out and feel the sun against your skin and the wind blow through your hair. Hangout with a friend, eat a sandwich, maybe even read a book, just do anything else.

Chappell Roan

You’re a midwestern princess and you’ve got a wonderful hairdo.

Tyler, the Creator

It’s time to catch your fashion sense up to speed. While your music taste might be great, mustard yellow and olive green wash most people’s skintones, and those worn out sneakers could really use a cobbler.

Taylor Swift

You have nothing to worry about, you’re perfect. You’re an angel. You’ve done nothing wrong, and can do nothing wrong because of how wonderful you are. Remember, if anything goes against your vision, it’s always the other person’s fault, not you. Your investigation skills are impeccable, and I’m sure your talents could be used at an intelligence agency somewhere. Your ability to ﬁnd hidden meaning in seemingly mundane imagery is something to be revered, not feared. All hail lord Taylor!!!

Benson Boone Seek medical attention.

TMU leased space on campus to the Grinch for four years

By Cindy Lou-Who

Disclaimer: He’s a mean one, Mr. Grinch. This majority of what is told about him is fake and bullshit though the story it’s based on may just have truths within it.

The Eyeopener has learned that Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) has been leasing space to anti-holiday activist ‘the Grinch’ for several years.

According to information available on the Grinch’s website, greenwithanger.org, Mount Crumpet—a TMU-owned property just north of campus— is currently home to his lair for “wickedness, coal-hoarding and fastening reindeer antlers on dogs.”

The Eye reached out to the Grinch for comment. He was thrilled to express his support for TMU’s administration in an interview.

“TMU has been so very welcoming to me and my nefarious operation,” said the Grinch. “In fact, I’d go so far as to say the university is one of the biggest supporters of my agenda—why else would they lease to me?”

TMU spokesperson Bah Hum-

bug said the Grinch was already a resident of Mount Crumpet when the university purchased it a decade ago.

“We were not aware the Grinch was residing there at the time. The seller said it came without ribbons, it came without tags, it came without packages, boxes or previous tenants harbouring controversial political views,” said Humbug.

Second-year politics and governance student, Neil Iberal, has no gripe with the leasing.

“I think it’s about time that we had some diversity of thought on this campus,” he said, sipping a $16 matcha. “Like, who are you to say holiday cheer isn’t all noise, noise, NOISE! NOISE! NOISE! like Mr. Grinch says.”

The Grinch’s presence hasn’t gone unnoticed. Students have reported the anti-festive beast stealing various holiday trappings across campus.

“That green fuck took my stocking,” said first-year professional music student Chilly Holiday. “And—get this—he was wearing it. They’re literally not even made for that. I don’t even want it back now.”

Another student said he spot-

BREAKING: New 21-storey workshop to double TMU’s toy output by 2030

By Edward Lander and Daniel Opasinis

Disclaimer: While this story is filled with the spirit of the holidays, it’s about as real as Santa Claus himself. Are you…just finding that out? Oh, well forget I said anything.

Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) is constructing a new 21-storey toy workshop at 100 Bond St., the school announced today at a press conference alongside Santa Claus.

The workshop is projected to open in 2030 and will create approximately 1,370 jobs for elves on campus.

The building—dubbed the “Bond Street Toy Factory”— is being constructed in partnership with the North Pole with $83 million in funding from wealthy arctic philanthropist Frosty T. Snowman.

ted the Grinch stealing the bulb from that one streetlight on Gould Street that flickers.

“He said he was taking it back to the North Pole to fix it,” said the student. “I wasn’t mad about that though, that light is annoying as fuck.”

In an email to The Eye, president Lohamed Machemi said he was blindsided by what the new property would mean for the university and overlooked the Grinch’s presence.

“They told me campus would grow three sizes that day,” wrote Machemi. “I was almost as happy as when I found out we were closing the Imperial Pub forever.”

“Either way, students shouldn’t see this as an endorsement of the Grinch,” added the president. We rent to all kinds of tenants: Krampus, Ebeneezer Scrooge—who also serves on the Board of Governors, and the Wet Bandits from Home Alone.”

All I want for Christmas is...the Imperial Pub

Dear Santa,

I’ll keep this short big guy, there’s only one thing I’m looking for.

According to a press release from the university, the building will be made of ice, slush and those frozen maple syrup sticks you get at the fair.

Winky Pointy-Ears, president of the Elvish Labour Federation (ELF) Local 1225 said his members were glad to hear the news given tumultuous trade relations between Canada and the U.S. leading to uncertainty in the toy industry.

“Ever since Amazon and cheap crap from TikTok shop became the go-to thing for a lot of parents lacking in holiday cheer, elves’ jobs have been on the line,” said Pointy-Ears. “Never in my 600 years have I seen so many young, unemployed elves disillusioned with the hiring process. I am very pleased TMU values our labour and wants to invest.”

I think I’ve been a good man this year, a real stand up guy and I don’t think this is too much to ask for.

You and I both know where this campus is headed. Imperial was the only spot on campus with the slightest amount of holiday cheer and cozy vibes. Where else are we supposed to huddle around a decommissioned ﬁreplace and read the covers of books that haven’t been opened in years?

Competitors have already jumped on the festive gap in the market. I got an egg nog from the Met Pub the other day! They’re selling egg nog! It wasn’t on the menu, but the bartender took a few minutes in the back and viola.

Seriously Mr. Claus, It was the only establishment that felt like Christmas year-round! Especially when it was 30 people over capacity and the only seat was some graduate student’s warm lap.

Now I expect swift action from you and your best. On Christmas morning please, bring back the Imperial Pub.

Sincerely,

A student that wants a canoe of fries and a beer

PIERRE-PHILIPE

Santa Claus voices support of speed camera removals

By Ella Miller

Disclaimer: The Eyeopener does not condone speeding, especially in school zones. The opinions presented by Santa in this article are his own – call us Tim Allen the way we’d whack that jolly old elf if we ever caught him.

Santa Claus has announced his Nice List for this coming holiday season and amidst children who should have stopped biting their classmates earlier, one other big, red fat man is quite happy.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford ﬁnds himself at the top of the Nice List for the ﬁrst time since… jeez… ever?

“I usually wake up and ﬁnd my sock full of lumps of coal,” said Ford following the announce-

ment. “Now I don’t mind that. If it were up to me Ontario would still be coal-powered–as long as that coal came from the Ring of Fire, amirite guys?”

In a press conference held from his vacation home in sunny Iqaluit, Nunavut, Santa Claus a.k.a Kris Kringle a.k.a. the guy who didn’t bring me a LEGO Friends Heartlake Shopping Mall set, discussed his controversial decision.

“I voted for Bonnie Crombie in the last election, red is my colour after all,” said Claus. “But I had to applaud Doug for his stance on speed cameras somehow.”

Following mounting public pressure and a string of vandalism, Ford mandated that all speed cameras across Ontario were to be shut off. Critics of this move include pedes-

HOLIDAY GIVEAWAY!

The Eyeopener is giving away two $25 gift cards Find the giveaway rules through the link in our Instagram bio.

trian rights groups and SickKids hospital, who argued that the cameras saved the lives of many children, by encouraging speeders to slow down.

“Listen, nobody loves kids more than me,” wrote Claus in a gingerbread-scented letter to a concerned child. “But if you want that Beast Labs slime under your tree Christmas morning, you’re going to have to look both ways before you cross the street 25 to 30 times from now on.”

Head of Strategic Planning at Claus’ North Pole workshop, Jingles the Elf, shared that the data supports Claus’ hardline stance on the speed cameras.

“We have hundreds of years of sleigh data logged and I’m telling you that over two billion gifts across

six continents do not get delivered by sticking to a lackadaisical 40 in school zones,” said Jingles. “We are clocking ﬁve million kilometres per hour, minimum.”

Jingles emphasized that the only alternative to avoiding the speed cameras would be to switch to travel in the upper atmosphere, though reindeer welfare advocates worry about the possible consequences.

“They lose their natural animal instincts up there due to the lack of oxygen,” said People for the Ethical Treatment of Reindeer (PETR) spokeself, Candy Cane. “Last time the Claus apparatus attempted space travel with the deer they crashed into a satellite which took out television for the whole of Turkey.”

Even though Ontario has issued a ban on speed cameras, they are still

permitted across other Canadian provinces and internationally. Claus takes issue with this.

“I’ve had my license revoked in Chile, Nigeria, Poland, Australia and New Zealand,” said Claus. “The Russian police don’t pull you over, they just shoot. It hasn’t been the same without Donner…”

“If I get any more demerit points, Mrs. Claus will have to pilot the sleigh and nobody wants that,” continued Claus. “Not because she’s a woman; she’s a terrible driver completely independent of her gender.”

Claus has also announced his intention to spread his message via a charity single in the vein of Band Aid or Ladbaby. His single is available for sale on iTunes with all proceeds going to his anti-speed camera charity, Claus For A Cause.

“Try icing it!”

1. Complete the candy cane maze! Only 100 per cent accurate mazes will be accepted.

2. Complete the Google Form via the QR code on the page and add a photo of your completed maze!

3. Await an email! The form will close end-of-day on Dec. 1 and winners will be contacted shortly afterwards and asked to come into our office for photos!