News
Karissa Ketter News Writer
Michelle Young / News Editor Karissa Ketter and Jaymee Salisi / News Writers
March 29, 2021 news@the-peak.ca
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Jaymee Salisi News Writer
News
Michelle Young / News Editor Karissa Ketter and Jaymee Salisi / News Writers
news@the-peak.ca
Opinions Victor Tran SFU Student
Carter Hemion Peak Associate
Madeleine Chan / Opinions Editor
March 29, 2021 opinions@the-peak.ca
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Opinions
Madeleine Chan / Opinions Editor
opinions@the-peak.ca
PRICK-CAUTION
WHAT GRINDS OUR GEARS?
The U-Pass BC website glitch Students can’t expect the vaccine to solve the pandemic.
More like Useless-Pass.
PHOTO: Gudrun WaiGunnarson / The Peak
Many students at SFU have the U-Pass — a flat-fee transit option for those attending university in BC. While I appreciate the convenience it has given us, the website where U-Pass holders reload their card has not been working properly. More specifically, the initial step to reload the card, which requires selecting a school from a drop-down menu, can’t be accessed. It's been over three months since the site began experiencing issues and I’m surprised no one has been able to figure out why. Although the problem has a temporary solution — calling in and having the U-Pass manually reloaded — I am still disappointed. TransLink is a large organization that surely has access to personnel who would be able to solve the glitch quickly. I’m sure their staff is doing something about it, but I miss being able to just go online at any time to reload my pass, instead of waiting for TransLink’s office to be open to call in. It was recently announced that SFU is seriously considering returning to in-person classes for the upcoming fall semester. So, for the sake of the 88% of SFU’s student population who use public transportation, TransLink really needs to get a handle on this situation before then.
Written by Tiffany Chang
Photo courtesy of U.S. Secretary of Defence via Wikimedia Commons
The COVID-19 vaccine isn’t our saviour While helpful, the vaccine won’t completely stop people from giving or receiving the virus Kyla Dowling Staff Writer The COVID-19 vaccines have been touted as a Hail Mary after a long year of distancing, protocols, and anxiety — the end seems near. Despite the slow negotiations that led to a shortage of vaccines, the government intends for all Canadians to be vaccinated by September of this year. The vaccines seem like the light at the end of the tunnel; however, the pandemic won’t go away when people get vaccinated. Given that vaccinated people can still carry the virus and that transmissible variants are growing in number, the vaccines don’t mean we should abandon all other safety protocols. Because of this, if we have a full return to in-person learning in the fall, it will not necessarily be a safe scenario. Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are said to be 95% effective, with AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson at 76% and 66% efficacy respectively. Though these numbers are strong, nothing is guaranteed. A number of people who have received the vaccine still got COVID-19. While the vaccines highly limit the chance of getting a severe case of the illness or having to be hospitalized, it is not an immunity badge, and shouldn’t be treated as such. Not only do the vaccines not guarantee a COVID-19-free life, but they also don’t prevent the virus
from being transmitted to others. There is evidence that the vaccines hamper transmission, but it can still happen — whether fully or partially vaccinated. This is why the CDC recommends that only people who have been fully vaccinated (and have waited two weeks after the final dose) gather together without masks or distancing. However in BC, these types of gatherings won’t happen any time soon. As per BC’s vaccination plan, the majority of university students (who fall in the 18–24 age range) are not scheduled to get their first dose until June. Additionally, due to the number of vaccine shortages, a panel of vaccine experts recommended that doses for the Moderna, Pfizer, and AstraZeneca vaccines be administered four months apart to streamline partial vaccinations. They also advise partially vaccinated people to still wear masks and social distance around those outside their household. As such, university students may not receive their second dose of the vaccine until October — meaning a full return to campus life without any precautions will not be possible. Students from other provinces are also an issue. In Ontario, university students will not be eligible for their first dose of the vaccine until July. Given that all adults aged
59 or younger will become eligible at the same time, it is not likely that all students will be able to get the vaccine within the month of July. Even when the majority of the population is fully vaccinated, this will not be the end of the pandemic. There are people who are unable to get vaccinated due to medical conditions, and they will only be able to safely stop wearing a mask when we reach herd immunity — or if we reach herd immunity. As if all of this isn’t enough, there are still multiple variants of the virus, the ones prevalent in Brazil, the United Kingdom, and South Africa being at the forefront of the news cycle. The vaccines notably do not provide as much protection against the variants than they do the original virus. This is a concern, especially because B.1.1.7 (the UK variant) is both more transmissible and more lethal than the original. Having partially or fully vaccinated people move around as if they are invincible is bad enough without the variant. But with it? It spells disaster. Being vaccinated doesn’t mean that concerts and clubs will come back full force. It doesn’t mean that when we return to campus in the fall, we can hug our friends and ditch our masks. It doesn’t mean that you’re safe, or that anyone else is. It is vital to continue wearing masks, physically distancing, and listening to governmental guidelines. When you get your first dose of the vaccine, your life may not be at risk anymore — but other peoples’ lives still are.
Opinions
March 29, 2021
opinions in dialogue
Are local businesses good? The “support local” message has many sides
Written by Meera Eragoda, Sara Wong, with introduction by Madeleine Chan Small and local businesses have been hit hard during this pandemic, increasing rally cries to support them. But are answering these calls the solution? Students Sara Wong and Meera Eragoda discuss the intricacies of this topic.
Sara:
Sara: Sadly, this is the first I’m hearing about the Strathcona BIA’s NIMBYism. It’s
Meera: There are many local businesses that I support, and I do still think they’re
disheartening, especially after reading their president’s statement about wanting to build “lasting connections between the often disparate groups that make up a community like Strathcona.” Analyzing the Strathcona BIA even more, I noticed that a majority of its staff members are visibly white and none own or operate small businesses like the ones we’ve been discussing. With these points in mind, I think the overarching issue is a lack of representation.
a much better alternative than buying from places like Amazon and Starbucks if people can afford it. Your point about how expensive local businesses are is a good one, but the conversation around small business often leaves out that they can be gentrifying forces. Often, small businesses set up in working class neighbourhoods because rent is cheaper. This ends up increasing the value of those neighbourhoods and pushing out working class residents who rely on the cheaper living cost. The influx of places like Downlow Chicken, Umaluma, and even Moja (one of my favourites) are undoubtedly contributing to the gentrification of Commercial Drive and the Downtown Eastside.
I’m also glad you brought up workers’ rights. Although I see more has been done in recent years to make working in a restaurant environment more inclusive — like having values-based hiring practices, clear commitments to diversity, and genderneutral spaces — I wouldn’t say the industry has been revolutionized yet. I’m not sure I agree with you about the “support local” movement taking away from the fight for workers’ rights though. My takeaway is that we need to pay closer attention to the practices of small businesses and hold them accountable when they do not uphold social responsibilities.
To start off, buying local can be expensive. But if you have the budget to purchase a latte from Starbucks, daily, I don’t see why you can’t support an independent coffee shop instead. This “support local” message can also be directed at people who spend a lot of money on beauty products, home accessories (like candles), and fast food items.
Additionally, I’ve noticed how the “support local” message that has been especially pervasive during COVID-19 flattens any real activism, and posits the solutions to crises as “buy more.”
Sara:
You’re absolutely right about how small businesses can contribute to gentrification. The last time I was in Chinatown, I noticed a DALINA — a high end café. I’m more mad about Tim Hortons being in the area though. At least with small businesses, they care about the community they’re a part of. Sticking to the Downtown Eastside, there’s one coffee shop I really love, Coastal Eden Café, that provides job opportunities for folks who have had trouble finding work due to past struggles with addictions. Tim Hortons, meanwhile, has a history of discrimination, such as racially profiling Indigenous customers and refusing to serve people with disabilities. Also, there are many ways to support local that don’t involve spending money! You can write nice reviews, promote small businesses’ activities (e.g. new takeout menus or special product launches) on social media, or connect with industryled organizations.
Meera:
I do think you’re right about small businesses tending to care more about their community than large businesses or chains. The troubling thing about that is often their care only goes as far as what doesn’t hurt their bottom line because ultimately, even though they’re small capitalists, they’re still capitalists. Small businesses have less money which makes them less likely to provide their employees with proper benefits, safe working conditions, and appropriate wages. Focusing the conversation on small businesses takes it away from worker rights. On the point about addiction, I’m glad to hear that Coastal Eden Café provides those opportunities and I would love to see more small businesses implementing policies like these. But on the whole, small businesses are more likely to align themselves along pro-police and anti-crime lines. Most Business Improvement Areas in Vancouver and elsewhere rely on the police, which not only contributes to gentrification but is also detrimental to unhoused people, BIPOC, and drug users. With the Strathcona tent city, for example, the Strathcona Business Improvement Association (BIA) was a huge voice advocating for NIMBYism (not in my backyard) and city intervention. This means that even though they support the ideals of housing for everyone, they don’t want unhoused people in their neighbourhood.
Meera:
Yes! That’s it exactly. I’m not against small businesses but I do think it’s important to be aware of how they operate within capitalism and hold them accountable not on an individual basis, but across the board. For Strathcona BIA, I don’t think they’re the exception to the rule, unfortunately. As The Tyee reported, “The Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses represents more than 100,000 members who operate small businesses across Canada [ . . . ] In recent years, the CFIB has lobbied against increasing the minimum wage and against guaranteed personal leave for workers, among other causes.” Because of their precarious position, small businesses are often the ones who run ideological cover for big business, fighting for conservative policies that place workers in precarious positions. For organizations like the Strathcona BIA, I agree that representation is important, but it can also turn into tokenism — which includes hiring people of colour who will uphold conservative ideals. You make a fair point about how conversations about worker and small business rights can happen in tandem. Sadly, the conversations that were happening in the beginning of the pandemic about mutual aid have been mostly flattened due to highly circulated social media graphics about small businesses to support.
Sara: Again, you’ve brought up some excellent points that I haven’t considered before. I think it goes to show that supporting local in the long term will require much more than spending money or re-posting a cute infographic. But while the pandemic is ongoing, small businesses need all the help they can get. These businesses, as previously discussed by Saman Dara at The Peak regarding a lecture by Jeremy Stone, “provide people with the ability to grow, learn skills, and experience successful mentorship, all the while serving different demographics, trades, and geographic communities.” If they disappear, it will be that much harder to improve things such as workers’ rights and fair representation.
Meera: Small businesses need help to get through the pandemic, and we should support them (especially BIPOC-owned ones). As I mentioned earlier though, more times that we’d like to think, small businesses are at the forefront of eroding workers’ rights. I think what’s needed generally is for conversations surrounding unions and legislation to be much more prominent than they are right now. Small businesses are a far better alternative to big business and I love supporting the creativity of locals. But it’s also important to remember that they are far from perfect and to reiterate a point you made, we need to hold them accountable.
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Arts & Culture Lester Leong SFU Student
Harvin Bhathal Features Editor
Sara Wong / Arts & Culture Editor
March 29, 2021 arts@the-peak.ca
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Paige Riding / Humour Editor
humour@the-peak.ca
Humour
March 29, 2021
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Yuri Zhou / Business Manager
business@the-peak.ca
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