The Mike, Issue 1 (2016-17)

THE MIKE Friday september 30, 2016 ISSUE 1

becoming hip Gentrification and Revitalization in Toronto’s Favorite Neighborhoods

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editorial

Whether this is your first or final year here at the University of Toronto - welcome! We at The Mike know what new beginnings are like, and we are right there with you in that post-summer adjustment.

Still, with the cooler weather comes an array of opportunity. We learn in lectures, tutorials and labs, yes - but we also learn a great deal outside the walls of our storied institution. These past few years have only solidified to me that people are the real conduits for creativity and innovation. The written word and oral tradition are but mediums through which our passions are translated and left for those that follow our time. Each of us has something to offer and chances are, there’s a way to record it so that it outlasts time.

Whatever your interest, there is a means to engage it here. The 2016-17 Masthead is determined to find a place in the pages of this paper for a diversity of perspectives.

It’s no secret that the depth of talent on this campus is impressive, and we’d like to share it. One of the core values of St. Michael’s College is service, for it’s through service that we build community. We owe it to ourselves to share our talents and passions.

You’ve heard my angle – I’m here to showcase all we have to offer: so let’s leave something we can be proud of.

Anah Mirza EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

open positions The Mike is still looking for two (2) design managers and one (1) photo editor to join its masthead!

Design Managers are responsible for spearheading the design of content in one issue a month.

Experience with production software isn’t necessary – all we’re looking for is determination and a willingness to learn!

The Photo Editor is responsible for taking (and editing, if necessary) photos for the newspaper as well as compiling the work of other contributors.

masthead 2016-2017 Editor-in-Chief Ms. Anah Mirza editorinchief@readthemike.com

MANAGING EDITOR Ms. Elizaveta Mironova managingeditor@readthemike.com

faith editor Ms. Farah Rasmi faith@readthemike.com

Opinions Editor Ms. Garnet Ryu opinions@readthemike.com

Sports editor Mr. Josh Scott sports@readthemike.com

Copy editor Daniela Solimine

Arts editor Mr. Liam McConnell arts@readthemike.com

Living editor Ms. Jennifer Bueno sports@readthemike.com

Copy editor Marianna Kalaczynski

BUSINESS MANAGER Mr. Zia Faisal business@readthemike.com

Design Manager TBA

Photography editor TBA

OPINIONS are the new Black.

Write or Edit for us editorinchief@themike.com The Mike is the Official Bi-weekly Student Newspaper of St. Michael’s College in the University of Toronto, publishing since 1947. The Mike has a circulation of 2000, delivered to over 40 newsstands across the University of Toronto: St. George Campus and is published

by The Mike Publications Inc. The Mike is printed by MasterWeb Inc on recycled newsprint stock and is a member of Canadian University Press. Copyright: 2012 The Mike Publications Inc. All Rights Reserved. All editorial inquires should be sent to editorinchief@ readthemike.com. The Mike reserves the right to edit all submissions

living

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A guide for the settling backpacker Erin Bendiksen CONTRIBUTOR Did you spend the last year backpacking the world, and now the time has come to settle down and continue your education? Are there times when you dream about adventure and wish you were out traveling the world? Here are ten tips to help you backpackers settle down.

Embrace the Change Farah Rasmi FAITH EDITOR

1. Missing the wild adventures and amazing views? Go explore the city and the surrounding nature. Take weekend trips up to the mountains or the beach, and you might have some wild adventures and discover some amazing views.

2. Learn a new language. Remember how difficult it was to ask for directions to the bus station using gestures? Every backpacker knows the struggle of not being able to communicate verbally with the locals, and wishing you were able to speak a few words. You know you have the opportunity to learn a new language. There are so many languages, just choose one or even two, and start learning. Keep yourself motivated by knowing that you will now be able to communicate with the locals in their language.

3. Keep meeting awesome people. Let’s be honest:one of the best parts about traveling is the people you meet along the way. Just because you are staying in the same room every night, and not in different hostels, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go out and socialize and meet new people. Explore the international communities in your city and meet awesome people to share your stories with.

4. Stay in touch with your traveling buddies. They know what you are going through, and can help you through the hard times. One of them might be in your area, and you don’t want to miss an opportunity to visit with them.

5. Help out in the local community. Taking on volunteering and working opportunities are major components of backpacking, and we all remember the feeling of accomplishment after those long days. So explore your local community and get involved.

6. Embrace your creative side. Use your pictures and journals to create something artistic.

Examples can include scrapbooks, videos, or a blog. This gives you an excuse to look at your pictures again, and gives you a new way to share your stories.

7. Look into exchange opportunities. Let’s face it: we are all looking for ways to study and travel, or work and travel, at the same time. So get in touch with the center for international experience and find out which exotic places you can go.

8. Explore future travel and work opportunities. Do not look at school as a limitation to travelling, but rather as an opportunity to be able to explore the world with an additional mission. It could be anything from scientific research to journalism. Find a career that’s for you and pursue it.

9. Take breaks and unwire. Remember when you were surrounded by nature in some foreign country, and you had nothing to worry about except for were you were going to sleep and what you were going to eat? Even though life can be very stressful, and time seems scarce, take the time to think, to breathe and to unwind.

10. Plan your next trip. When you feel the urge to just drop everything and go travel, start planning your next trip. Find out where you want to go and what you want to do, but remember to leave out time for spontaneous travel, because that is where the best adventures are.

You know that moment on the plane when you’re literally hovering over an ocean?

When you’re between the sky and the earth, just floating with the clouds? There’s this haze in those few hours on the flight where one traverses between two worlds, and the difference is stark. Those who have lived abroad for a good chunk of time have always experienced a sense of double identity. One that most people experience on some level everyday in the differences between who they are at home, at work, and for us: who they are on campus with their friends. It is that difference in character, the switch in us that may seem so small, that shows how malleable our personalities are.

All of us have different personalities, between each other as people, and between our different selves. When we first come to university, we come with a history, with a story that probably no one knows in this new world. We are then free to create a new story for ourselves, portray who we are the way we want to be seen. Some of us try to escape from new habits and build new ones, others try to maintain their old habits for fear that any small change will alter and even diminish their chances of success. Few however, realize that this change in them is what makes them who they are.

We are beings of change and of habit. We are constantly evolving, for better or for worse. Those of us who have experienced a discrepancy between who they are in their daily academic lives, and who they are when they go home know that there can be many versions of ourselves that are equally successful within the environments they are tailored for. Sometimes we feel more comfortable in one of those lives than in the others, and that’s okay. Sometimes none of them seem to fit and we start to worry: Who am I?! Why do I not fit in?!

The good news is, you can always change. You can always change either some of your traits, your friend group, the place where you reside, and even your environment at large. In other times, when that is not an option, you can change how you deal with your environment and those uncomfortable surroundings.

For the new students specifically, and the rest of the U of T community in general, don’t be afraid to embrace change. Don’t keep hovering in that limbo. Even if you’re first year studying methods worked for you then, it doesn’t mean they should work in your fourth year. You’ve changed, and so has your coping mechanism and how you absorb information. If there’s a specific way you made friends in high school and it doesn’t seem to come as easily now in first year, don’t fret, there’s always a different way to approach things.

The point is, that some people experience this double identity much more than others because they experience it at a much larger scale than others (i.e., literally travelling across the globe and dealing with strikingly different cultures.) Others experience it in a way that may not seem as obvious to them, but that is still there nonetheless. Regardless of how intensely you may feel this, know for certain, that every single student on campus has experienced this at some level in his or her life, and that you are not alone.

While the size of this campus may seem intimidating, there’s one main blessing in its capaciousness, and that is: there’s room for everyone, and everyone can find a group where they belong in.

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faith & thought

Absorbing Things You Don’t Want to Understand ANONYMOUS There’s no such thing as a perfect conversation. Even people who read from a script for a living have never experienced a flawless exchange. Something will always go wrong, some word or intonation will always anger or bore or be misunderstood by the other party. This has always annoyed me. Deeply, in fact. Early this week, however, I think I finally understood how to come to terms with it.

wee lass, and he was essentially waving a nightmare in my face. Eventually, though, what he was trying to say filtered through and I listened as he explained his view: that education was opening pathways to let the devil in. I smiled, nodded, shook his hand, and then turned and walked away.

I think we have all seen him, the man on the corner: “SAVE HUMANITY, CLOSE UNIVERSITY” I pass him almost every day on the way to class. I never stop, citing terrible excuses to myself: “class in ten minutes,” “everyone is looking,” “oh, bloody hell, no.” This particular day, though, I was curious.

http://i.cbc.ca/1.2998037.1426596648!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/16x9_1180/toronto-utm-protest.jpg

Standing at the light, I waved and pointed, asking “Why? That seems a bit extreme.”

He doesn’t answer me, but he pulls out a battered copy of the Bible. Immediately, I seize up. I have had a less-than-positive relationship with religion since I was but a

As I walked away, my biology-soaked brain gradually worked through what had just happened. I hadn’t gotten angry. I hadn’t pressed my opinion. I’d listened—and then I left. Which, I finally understood, is so incredibly relevant. This is university. We are going to come across themes, thoughts, ideas, theories, facts and foibles we have no context for. We cannot get annoyed at it all, as satisfying and self-congratulatory as that may be. In comparison, it is far healthier to acknowledge these ideas exist and use the concepts and techniques we learn in school to analyze them. Everything is open to us, and we are kids in the sandbox with a full bucket of toys.

Rediscovering Your Faith McKayla Malcolm CONTRIBUTOR This won’t start with a commanding passage from a holy scripture. Instead, this brief article is meant to show that faith comes to us in different ways, and that we all have different faith journeys. I was once the conventional Christian: I went to Sunday school, read my scripture on Sundays and made sure to behave especially well on those days. Fast forward several years, and I am now at that stage in life where I am exploring who I really am and what my faith means to me.

Currently I am what they call an Omnist. The fancy word just means I believe in the validity of all religions and respect them equally. While I may not read the Bible as much, it does not mean that I don’t believe in what it teaches, as I do. The Beatitudes and the parables in the Holy Book can all teach someone something, regardless of faith orientation.

I am now at that moment in life where I am searching for how faith plays a role in my life, and so I went to the prayer group at SMC, which was very welcoming though I was mostly an observer. I forgot the verse mentioned, but it led to a very good discussion about how we should not covet what is not ours, and to ask ourselves and reflect deeply as to rather what we ask for in prayer is meant to better humanity or ourselves.

https://www.jacobabshire.com/church/christian-living/doubts-arise-hearts/.

While I may be rediscovering what faith means to me, that doesn’t make me any less of a person, because university is a time to rediscover who you are. I especially do not worry about going off the path of devout faithfulness, as the likes of Paul have been known to wander off, as this makes you a better person; one that explores and really seeks a belief that goes beyond just doing good for the sake of a great afterlife.

I just want to end off by saying to not worry about being the perfect Christian or perfect follower of your faith group, as there are none. Instead, be the best Christian or the best person as relating to your faith. If you are not a believer, then at least be your best self. Define what faith means to you and remember that your definition of it will be different from another’s, and that faith is more than going to Church and reading a Holy Scripture; it’s about execution.

Keenan Gibson CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER

5

sports

Why Team North America Works

One Fan’s Late Season Outlook

Josh Scott SPORTS EDITOR

Rory McCreight CONTRIBUTOR

By the time you read this, the 2016 World Cup of Hockey will be wrapping up.

https://www.thestar.com/sports/bluejays/2016/05/02/blue-jays-meet-rangers-for-first-time-since-bautistas-bat-flip-alds-game.html

The Toronto Blue Jays are struggling.

Right now, it’s feeling a little tough to be a Blue Jays fan. Our once soaring Jays aren’t looking so good – they’re losing ugly games to bad teams and dropping key matchups to AL East rivals. On the other hand, they’ve looked great against the Yankees. In other words, they haven’t exactly been consistent.

Their age is showing — outfielders Jose Bautista and Michael Saunders have been plagued by injuries all season, and 2015 AL MVP third baseman Josh Donaldson is having hip issues as well. It’s recently emerged that star pitcher Marco Estrada has been pitching through a herniated disc in his back.

Combine these factors with some sleepy bats and shaky pitching, and the Jays find themselves a few games back of the seemingly unstoppable Boston Red Sox for the division lead.

So, what now?

With a repeat for the AL East title pretty much out of the picture, the Blue Jays look to be on track for the Wild Card game. For those of you unfamiliar with the Wild Card game, it is essentially a one-off elimination game between the top two teams in the American League not leading their respective divisions. As it stands, the Jays look likely to face their rival, the Baltimore Orioles.

To many, a one game playoff in baseball constitutes sacrilege. Considering that the season itself is typically played out in three game series (though sometimes two games and sometimes four) it hardly seems fitting. The whole process feels a little insufficient and unorthodox; its raised stakes tend to heighten the sense of stress and anxiety felt by fans and players alike.

As for the thought of a one game playoff for the Jays? Toronto has done anything but thrive in must-win games lately—and so, the two do not seem like a good mix.

However, we shouldn’t despair. We should be excited. A one game playoff means a guaranteed game seven situation — it’s the big fight before the title shot. The Jays are a great team, lead throughout the season by a surprisingly stellar starting rotation and a shutdown one-two punch in the bullpen of veteran Jason Grilli in the eighth inning and young gun Roberto Osuna in the ninth.

Imagine, for instance, Aaron Sanchez getting the start. Sanchez’s end of season treatment by Jays management has mired an otherwise phenomenal breakout year. Picture him shining. Or would anyone really be all that surprised if, say, the Jays’ talented bats were to wake up and break out? Wouldn’t it just seem long overdue?

Don’t sound the alarms just yet. The Blue Jays are still more than capable of big things this season. We should embrace the stakes of the Wild Card game, and thank our lucky stars for another 2015 ALDStype situation. Here’s to hoping for another Bat Flip.

At U of T’s St. George Campus, there are quite a number of options available for students who weightlift. But don’t be intimidated, I’m here to tell you what I wish I had known.

In case you weren’t aware, this year’s tournament came with a significantly altered script. Not only was the tournament subject to a huge influx of money, coverage and advertising — it also revised its format.

This year’s edition of the World Cup of Hockey, an event last held in 2004 – and only twice over the past 20 years – featured two new and unfamiliar teams. The six usual suspects — Canada, the U.S., Russia, Sweden, Finland and the Czech Republic — were all in attendance. However, this year they were also joined by a Team Europe and a Team North America, both of which ended up being more than just filler teams.

Team Europe – a best of the rest squad, consisting primarily of the worthiest Danes, Germans, Slovaks and Swiss, among others – spoiled the hopes of the Americans early, the Swedes late, and is set to face Canada in the finals.

However, the real focus for most has been on Team North America, who Europe coach Ralph Krueger calls “the fastest team in the tournament” – and for good reason. They skated circles around Team Europe in their preliminary showcase; in just two games, they had scored 11 goals on them.

Sadly, Team North America, which is made up the best under-23 players on the continent, just missed the cut due to the fact that they won one of their games in overtime and not regulation. Despite this, they still provided the most exciting hockey of the tournament — something witnesses of NA’s thrilling 4-3 overtime win over Sweden (according to many, Canada’s biggest threat) would surely attest to.

The positive reception of these two makeshift teams – initially devised as a sort of stop-gap due to organizers’ inability to arrange a proper qualifying tournament — will hopefully lead the NHL to reconsider. Originally derided as gimmicky, both teams quickly became, in practice, widely lauded.

Will these changes be enough to resurrect the World Cup? Only time can tell. If enough fans support it, things should bode well for the future of the World Cup, but perhaps not so much for the fate of the NHL at the Olympics.

In an age where analytics and systems-based tactics have proliferated, it’s refreshing to see a group with such unbridled speed and skill as Team North America – and they certainly made a believer out of this writer.

Regardless of what the tournament’s future holds, for now, it’s hard not to enjoy watching them.

Lessons Learned from a Student Who Lifts Josh Scott SPORTS EDITOR

Any student who pays compulsory athletic incidental fees automatically gains membership to the facilities this article speaks of (Hart House Fitness Centre, the Athletic Centre, and Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport). That is, nearly every full and part-time student incurs these fees.

However, it must be mentioned that students in some programs, such as the School of Theology, don’t necessarily pay these fees. It’s worth checking either online through ACORN or with your department in order to confirm your eligibility to these facilities.

Of course, some of you may also already have a preferred gym. But for those of you on a tight budget (and let’s be real here—that includes most of us) having a number of free options available opens up the playing field, not to mention lessens the strain on your wallet.

For those of you unfamiliar with these options, allow me provide you with a basic lowdown: If you ever find yourself in the weight room at the Hart House Fitness Centre, leave.

Seriously, if you know what’s good for you, never return. Don’t be fooled by its central location or the glossy pictures online: this place will break you. While I wouldn’t avoid the Hart House Fitness Centre entirely — some of its other aspects, including its walking track, are actually quite nice — I’d suggest steering clear of this 30x60 patch of underworld if you can. Unless however, you’re a fan of trading breath and sweat with 50 other people in a cramped space with no A/C. (Last I checked, the A/C consisted of a couple of fans.)

On top of all this, the Hart House Fitness Centre itself is actually quite difficult to locate and navigate.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Fitness/comments/1hnyux/why_i_love_working_out_on_a_holiday/

A much better option for the average weightlifter is the Athletic Centre at the corner of Harbord and Spadina, which is much easier to find. It has more machines and usually less people, which in turn means less waiting around to rotate in. It also has more space and – you guessed it – working A/C. Depending on your program, the only real downside is its location.

With travel distance in mind, there’s also the Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport, located just south of Bloor – and St. George subway station – across from Varsity Stadium on Devonshire Pl. Its spacious, state-of-the-art facility has A/C and is, perhaps most importantly, conveniently located. Despite its name, the Goldring Centre caters to all types of weightlifters — though it especially suits more serious ones.

Happy lifting!

Gentrification and Revitalization in Toronto’s Favorite Neighborhoods Elizaveta Mironova MANAGING EDITOR

A Native performer dripping in sweat whilst playing a harmonious tune on the flute, dancers decorated in exotic costumes handing out flyers, a crowd of people bouncing to the simultaneous beat of drums and Latin music– was this a dream?

Compared to New York or Moscow, Sundays are unusually quiet days in Toronto. People here tend to spend the day recovering from a long weekend of partying, take the day off to see their families in the suburbs, or do what I was doing – catch up on endless reading for school.

Queen Street West could very much rival Kensington for the title of “most iconic and hipster neighborhood,” with its plethora of clubs, graffiti, and small coffee shops with the finest roast coffees of South America. It accommodates one of the largest selections of boutique stores in Toronto – anything from large brands like Anthropologie to smaller ones like Canon Blanc.

To mix it up, I decided to take a break from Robarts and explore coffee shops in Kensington Market. I made my way down Spadina to find the streets blocked off to cars. A distinct smell curled around the corner from what seemed to be Augusta Avenue and the scene was more chaotic than usual. I could not miss the date with my Netherlandish Renaissance Art readings, so I pushed my way through the crowd.

A lingering spicy aroma created a cloud around a burning grill covered in pork and cheese papusas – this is where I had to stop before reaching Eative (one of my favorite study spots in town), and figure out what in the world was going on.

Yet, the two neighborhoods looked totally different just 30 years ago. https://nearafar.wordpress.com/2012/01/25/near-how-do-i-get-to-cold-tea-bar-in-toronto/

What I thought to be a dream, was actually a case of Kensington Pedestrian Sundays. Organized on the last day of each month from May through October, Pedestrian Sundays offer Torontonians a great way to interact with the Kensington community. Kids run and play on the streets, small food joints have booths set up on the streets, and the streets begin to resemble a carnival inspired by different regions of the world.

I soon discovered that this concoction of energy in Kensington has been permeating Toronto’s streets for nearly a decade. According to research done

by Heather McLean and Barbara Rahder of York University, Kensington Pedestrian Sundays were an initiative that began in 2004 as a way to protest car culture and the “influx of condominium development.” It sought to promote community interaction and culture. http://ilovetoronto.com/places-in-toronto/2012/09/kensington-market-photo-essay

Hip, entertaining and dynamic are all words we often associate with Kensington Market, so it should come as no surprise that there is a crazy and fun event like Pedestrian Sundays. It is the iconic, hipster neighborhood which is best known for its selection of vegan restaurants (urban Herbivore), quirky underground bars (Cold Tea), and mouthwatering dessert cafes (Millie Creperie). It all falls into place.

All throughout history, Kensington was home to working class immigrants.

Starting in the early 19th century, the area saw an influx of Jewish settlers from Eastern Europe. These settlers formed a close-knit community, opening up a variety of stores and creating the original ‘market place.’ It was not unusual to see newcomers buying out entire building structures, as housing was very affordable. Stores would take up the ground level of the home, and the upper levels were used as living space. Kosher meats and idiosyncratic European products were in demand, so it made sense for many families to produce and sell outside the home.

http://www.blogto.com/city/2011/07/a_visual_history_of_kensington_market/

The ‘market place’ trend continued, but the cultural structure itself underwent a historically significant transformation, of which we can still see fragments of today. In the 1960s, that very same area – west of Spadina, between Dundas and College – turned into a bustling amalgamation of ethnicities. Communities of Portuguese, Italian, Chinese, Latin American, and Afro-Caribbean origin alike flocked to the area. You name it – every mix of foreign tradition was there. Each new cultural flavor added to the

https://comeandgogo.wordpress.com/2016/06/30/toronto-kensington-market/

architecture and aura of the neighborhood and shaped the infrastructures Due to safety concerns, they could not be converted into living areas, but that are still in place today. they could be used as studio space. Rent was affordable so slowly but surely, artists began moving in. In 1995, Artscape created 22 brand new studios The archives of Queen Street West on the other hand, do not invoke the where artists could live and collaborate on projects. Some bought out their same sense of profound cultural heritage and positivity as the former own spaces, and the area became home to some of the most important neighborhood’s chronicles do. In 1850, one of the most scandalous players in the art world. institutions of the time opened its doors – the Provincial Lunatic Asylum, located at 999 Queen Street West. Joseph Workman, stepped in as medical This created a sort of domino effect: Gallery 1313 opened shortly after, director in 1853 and the institution itself eventually came under public followed by Edward Day Gallery, Katherin Mulherin Contemporary Arts scrutiny for being corruption and the mistreatment of patients.

Projects, and more recently Birch Contemporary and Georgia Scherman Projects. Queen Street West became home to an institutional and Approximately a century later in the early 1960s, the neighborhood saw its commercial art world. greatest decline. It was blocked off from the water by the construction of the Gardiner Expressway. Due to the expressway, infrastructure pertinent to transportation improved and industrial manufacturing was moved to the suburbs. Warehouses were abandoned and the area came to be associated with drugs, crime, and prostitution.

Here arises the main question: how did two undeveloped, more or less isolate and poor neighborhoods become hipster and so popular in such a short period of time?

The answer is simple: artists.

Before I go onto explaining how artists made the ripple in neighborhood culture and helped create positive perceptions of Queen Street West and Concurrently, small bars and local restaurants were closed in favor of chain Kensington, there are two terms we need to define: gentrification and food giants and swanky pinnacles of fine dining. In addition, many of the revitalization. older buildings were sold and projects to build expensive new condos registered with the government. Gentrification of Queen Street West Gentrification is the process of reinvestment in a disadvantaged area often caused by institutionalized art had a direct effect on huge improvement of related to an increase in property prices. It can bring improvements such the area and its fashionable ambience today. as better amenities and services, but can also have negative effects as it displaces people and smaller businesses in favor of the wealthy and big Kensington Market, which was to a lesser degree in need of reparations, name brands. Often times, it is related to white residents replacing the took matters into it own hands when it came to art. The community had middle or working class. Revitalization indeed, is quite a similar to the seen what happened to Queen Street West and was (rightfully) afraid former process, but it adopts more of a community-centered approach. that everyone would be put out of business if they let developers in. The More businesses open with the help of the current inhabitants, but people people founded an organization entitled PS Kensington in 2002 with the are not displaced as frequently. aims of promoting art and culture in the neighborhood and to oppose redevelopment that would destroy the distinctive character of the area. It established Kensington Pedestrian Sundays so that artists could showcase their works. http://juliekinnear.com/blogs/gallery-art-for-sale

The Pedestrian Sunday that I stumbled upon had an abundance of different art media on display. There was a Kensington Market Art Fair displaying handmade jewelry, abstract paintings, and mixed media works. There were Native performers and jazz bands. There was less “money circulation” but the individuality of each artist was preserved and there was absolutely no institutional presence – as such, there was a wealth of e fine arts and crafted goods.

Kensington hosts jazz festivals, concerts, and performances that encourage cultural celebration. Revitalization is at play with the new cafes and restaurants opening up, but because of the efforts of the people to keep out Interestingly enough, Queen Street West and Kensington are examples of Walmart and Nike stores, original qualities of the neighborhood are still gentrification and revitalization, respectively. Urban development research preserved. curated by Carl Grodach explains that “fine arts activities are more likely associated with […] revitalization, commercial arts industries are strongly Art is an important part of our development and it is very interesting how associated with gentrification.” To visualize this, we need to take a look at drastically it can change neighborhoods of one city. Being aware of how it our examples. affects different communities as well as the positive and negative aspects of gentrification and revitalization is important to preserving the heritage and As mentioned earlier, following the departure of manufacturing industries individuality of the people. from Queen Street West, many of the warehouses were left abandoned. http://www.travelweek.ca/news/torontos-west-queen-west-named-2nd-coolest-neighbourhood-world-vogue/

8

arts

Tideline at Hart House Theatre Liam McConnell ARTS EDITOR It opens on Wilfred, wearing black and white and speaking in front of an unseen judge, delivering a tale of sexual gratification and forgotten names, while a tableau of onlookers wait in the misty background like silent spectres.

With that, the first of many sets of opposite concepts are combined into a strange middle ground: intimacy and anonymity. As the play continues, many more sets of opposing notions are combined into something strange and new, existing in the space between one and the other. The play itself unfolds in a state of surreality – somewhere between the concrete and the abstract, therefore creating within the viewer a sense of unease, confusion, and disorientation.

in purpose as the cast eventually come to inhabit their credited roles. One by one they join him; an unlikely alliance bound by an unspeakable tragedy that they all share. They become a team fueled by positivity and hope, guiding one another and the audience through the mire of destruction and degeneracy that permeates every line of the play’s shocking and challenging second half.

With liquid deftness, the cast guides Wilfred in and out of both dreams and reality, allowing the two to overlap and refusing to permit him — or, by extension, the audience — to find solid emotional footing. The stage is rarely abandoned by the bulk of the cast: instead they stalk the background at the ready as ancillary characters they have just played or are about to play, never allowing Wilfred a moment of decompression or recollection.

Blending another binary, Wilfred can never be sure if these apparitions exist to aid or sabotage him, and indeed they do both.

The combination of dream and reality allow for the convergence of another set of opposites that become a central theme: life and death. The dead simply won’t stay that way, much to Wilfred’s amazement and frustration.

Characters once dressed in black and white eventually begin to appear in grey, as if they subconsciously acknowledge that the best they can hope for in a world of hope and despair, identity and anonymity, good and evil, sin and redemption, and black and white is some combination of the two: a grey middle ground. They can’t let go of their pasts or what they’ve done, but they can allow themselves catharsis and self-forgiveness.

The design of the stage contributes to the disorienting effect, as everything from the backdrop to the tables are just slightly off-kilter. It is not only the script itself that combines two normally divergent elements: the stage juts out into the audience and bridges the artificial divide that separates them. This combination of stage and gallery, unusual for Hart House, bring the action to the viewer, making them complicit and involved.

From an enormously capable cast, particularly strong performances are exhibited by Augusto Bitter and Kwaku Okyere, who, along with their main roles, each play several smaller roles, ranging in type from the fiercely effeminate to the drunkenly obsequious to the bitterly furious and the crushingly heartbroken. They glide through their many characters’ winding emotional labyrinths with the skill and confidence only found in truly gifted actors.

The tone shifts in the second act, as the play’s dark but juvenile sense of humour fades into something more sinister. Wilfred finds himself in an unaccommodating and foreign yet familiar land, breaking his back to carry out his mission. This mission begins to transform

One leaves Hart House after Tideline feeling like they’ve just run an emotional gauntlet.

Wajdi Mouawad’s script calls for unrelenting intensity, and Director Ken Gass chose a cast capable of rising to the exhausting task.

Tideline runs at Hart House Theatre until October 1st. For information, visit harthouse. ca/tideline

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arts

Salt at Alumnae Studio Theatre

HBO’s Summer Mini-Series is Not Your Grandpa’s Courtroom Drama Angela Feng CONTRIBUTOR A few drinks, ecstasy, a borrowed taxi and a mysterious woman – this is all Nasir Khan (Riz Ahmed) remembers of a night that culminates in his arrest as the prime suspect in a murder investigation. The Night Of is HBO’s show of the summer: captivating, addictive and thought-provoking, but, unlike Netflix’s beloved summer favorite Stranger Things, not quite so fun.

The Night Of is based on Criminal Justice, a 2008 series that explored the inconsistencies and shortcomings of the British justice system through the unlikely murder case of Ben Coulter, played by the decidedly Caucasian Ben Whishaw. Creators Richard Price and Steve Zaillian explore similar themes in their HBO drama with one vital alteration: they tell their story through the eyes of a Pakistani-American.

Representation is perhaps The Night Of ’s greatest strength. While other shows choose to explore largely racialized worlds through the eyes of white outsiders, Price and Zaillian commit to telling a different story – one of potentially greater interest to audiences simply because it offers a rarely seen perspective. Society’s flaws are illuminated through the lawyers’ flippant use of race, religion and social class to manipulate the public’s perception of Nasir, all while he sits helpless in prison. Nasir himself, a student living under the watchful eye of his immigrant parents, is a rare insight into a new generation of young adults caught between two cultures, whose actions that night might seem reasonable or even tame compared to those of his peers.

Nasir Khan is unlike any other Muslim character on television. He is flawed, complex and wholly relatable; the changes he goes through are necessary. This sheltered university student must survive in prison, and the show seeks to justify his every action. The development of his character is a reflection of the criminal justice system’s ability to transform the most harmless of prisoners – guilty or otherwise – into hardened criminals.

In 2013, over 2 million people were incarcerated in the United States, and a disproportionate amount of these people were visible minorities. The decision to make the main character a person of color highlights the negative effects that imprisonment has on minority communities, an effect that would have been lost by simply recasting the character of Ben Coulter.

The success of The Night Of confirms the fact that successful programming and media can be headlined by people of color, and the fact that this casting choice does not deter from the quality or the popularity of the series may allow creators to explore different perspectives.

The statements made on the failings of various societal institutions are made possible by one very important truth: The Night Of is an exceptional 8 episodes of compelling storytelling.

Madeleine Anderson

CONTRIBUTOR

Making its world debut, Salt, by Canadian playwright Erin Vandenberg and director Briana Brown, is brilliantly written, beautifully acted, and deeply disturbing. Audience members were at times so moved they literally gasped, and I left the theatre feeling shaky and thinking “that was beautiful.”

All of the writing in this play, from the dialogue to the symbolism, is excellent. The complexity of the ideas being explored by the three main characters is never reduced in order to ease the audience’s full comprehension, yet I never felt lost. Vandenberg and Brown take full advantage of the medium of theatre to not only tell a story but also create an experience for the audience that sticks in the mind.

This consuming play begins with the eldest of two sisters, Lilias (Cosette Derome) returning home after leaving for a year. The atmosphere into which she returns is consistent with her memory of why she needed to leave, and yet freshly intensified by the microcosm created by her absence. The action circles Lilias, her younger sister Petal (Lucy Hill) and their deeply troubled mother, Vivian (Phillippa Domville), all of whom give authentic and full-bodied performances.

Phillippa Domville’s portrayal of Vivian is especially mesmerizing. I found myself captured by the subtle minutiae of her performance, like the way her feet lifted onto her tiptoes in the moments her character was mentally far away. The expert physicality of Domville’s performance came as no surprise. While reading her biography, I found that she is the instructor of theatre movement at Ryerson University. It is sometimes said that those who cannot do, teach. Domville put that old adage to rest once and for all.

Domville’s performance is accompanied by Lucy Hill’s phenomenal embodiment of Petal.

Hill’s posture and voice express the duality of Petal’s juvenile and mature elements in profoundly complicated harmony. Hill’s eyes are especially enthralling. They stare outward into the audience, highlighting the invisible walls that divide her from them.

Every theatrical element succeeds in making the space feel inescapable. The set (created

by Anna Treusch) is made to look like a paper cut-out; the walls and floor are a light beige colour and there are tabs along the edges so that the divided walls look like they could be glued together. All in all, these elements exaggerate the fragility of the home. These beige walls were also the perfect backdrop for colourful projections (by Treusch and Brown) that gave the audience a window into Petal’s little world. A ringing sound (by Lyon Smith) makes moments that would otherwise be peacefully silent subtly uncomfortable.

This production deals with the subject matter of mental illness and family relationships intelligently, poignantly and with grace, and comes with an enthusiastic recommendation.

Salt is presented by Lark & Whimsy Theatre Collective and continues at the Alumnae Studio Theatre until September 28th. For more information regarding the production and to purchase tickets, visit: www.larkandwhimsytheatre.com/salt.

A Reflection on the Life and Work of Edward Albee Liam McConnell ARTS EDITOR Edward Franklin Albee III was born on March 12, 1928.

On September 16, 2016—only a few hours ago at the time of this writing—he died at the age of 88. In between those dates, he gave us a play that would be come to be considered among the greatest in American theatrical history; a play that would enjoy a state of reverence reserved for only works of the highest artistic or cultural merit in the canon—A Streetcar Named Desire, Death of a Salesman, Glengarry Glen Ross, or A Raisin in the Sun to name a few; a play that, when adapted into film, gave one one of Hollywood’s most beloved and talented actresses the career-defining role that earned her one of her two Oscars.

The historical and literary importance of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf cannot be overstated. As a commemoration to its author on the day of his death, I sat down to read it once again.

The first thing I noticed was how accurately Albee managed to capture the tumultuous ups and downs of a time-tested relationship. I’ve had arguments with my significant other that sound identical to those had by Albee’s troubled spouses. I don’t purport to compare myself to George or my partner to Martha (lest I be drawn and quartered at home tomorrow), I simply recognize Albee’s power to capture the fact that sometimes a profession of love and a condemnation come out on the same breath.

The second thing I noticed was the meticulous stage direction Albee included above almost every line of

dialogue. George is instructed to deliver lines (“Absently, as if he had not heard”) or with (“Feigned incredulousness”).

Martha, on the other hand, speaks (“Loud ... to no one in particular”). Albee knew exactly who these characters were in both dialogue and mannerism, and wanted to convey to every actor and director that took on the production exactly how they should behave. At least once, Albee used his playwright’s authority to shut down burgeoning productions of Woolf with an all-male cast. The layman may suspect—quite fairly—that Albee was opposed to homosexuality, but that is simply not true. In fact, he was openly homosexual himself. He simply had a very distinct idea of his characters, and wanted to protect them. Take it from me: that dogged surety is a rare and enviable quality among writers.

As I continued to read, it began to dawn on me why this play resonated with American audiences so profoundly at the time that it did. It’s precisely the reason that The Great Gatsby succeeded so enormously years earlier. In fact, it could be the reason that Glengarry Glen Ross or A Raisin in the Sun and more in the canon have resonated throughout decades and societal shifts. This play is about the death of the American Dream. One of the first things we hear Martha comment on is the shoddy quality of her home and her dissatisfaction with her husband. She denigrates his efforts and emasculates him. George, on the other hand, recognizes his life’s failures and is very quick to defend his meagre accomplishments. The secret shame of

the couple is the child that they wanted but couldn’t have – the coarsest of sandpapers, scraping away the varnish from their marriage. This couple is disaffected by their inability to collect on the things that they were promised— the perfect marriage, the perfect child, the perfect life— and that sense of disappointment and longing for escape permeates the script. In fact, one of George and Martha’s most tender moments as a couple comes about when he pretends he is about to murder her. The tenderness lasts all of four lines.

If one thing has remained consistent throughout American history, it’s this: people very rarely find the idealistic, quintessential American Dream. Advertising, films and magazines have written us cheques that reality can’t cash.

Albee gave us characters that are struggling just like all of us.

We can see ourselves in their frustration, disappointment, and misplaced pride. Albee was the playwright for the jaded, the ambitious, the crestfallen. He was a voice for those who have bumped their heads on the glass ceiling.

He spoke for those who had lived their lives according to a script written for someone else. He may be gone, and he will be missed, but his work will live forever.

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opinions

iPhone 7? More like iPhone 6.2 Soy M CONTRIBUTOR For years, Apple was known for it’s ingenuity and ability to come up with innovative ways to sell it’s product, but, with their latest additions, I would say that they have been trying to find ways to dig deeper into consumers’ pockets. By removing the headphone jack, Apple is forcing you to either use the headphone jack adaptor or use Bluetooth headphones. Oh yes, and there’s also the option of using their floating Ear Pods, which, by the way, are inexplicably easy to lose. But what if you wanted to plug your headphones in and listen to music, while also charging it or syncing it with a computer? The new iPhone does not allow headphones or earpieces to be activated when the jack is being used for other means.

You must either do one or the other, which makes you wonder – did Apple really think this through?

Let’s face it. One of the main reasons people purchase edition after edition of the new iPhone is because it’s cool. It’s like a Zwipper binder. The first kids buy it because it’s cool and new, but the next thing you know, everyone in class has one, because nobody wants to be the only one left out of a “cool” trend. However, in the case of the iPhone 7, the phone can hardly be called “new,” and so this does not even seem to be the case.

No one would ever be able to tell the difference between your iPhone 6 and iPhone 7, as the iPhone 7 essentially has the exact same design as the iPhone 6. They did make some changes, such as the absence of an antenna band across the back of the phone, and there are exactly two new colour editions: black and jet black. But really? It

may take just as much effort to tell apart the two most recent iPhones as trying to figure out which eBay iPhone is authentic and which one is a knockoff from China.

Perhaps you are just more of an iOS fan than Android.

That’s totally fine. But, should we really be willing to pay the high price of $1000+, just to get an iPhone 7, when you could probably just do some DIY to add a “jet black” case to an iPhone 6, instead? Just think of all the things that you can do with that $1,300 – all of the chicken you could buy! Or if you are a vegetarian, all of the tofu? In the end, what you do with your hard-earned money is up to you, but just remember: by the same time next year, there will be another iPhone in town. And, I’m sorry to break it to you, but your iPhone 7 will not know what hit it.

Because Samsung is Apple’s number one competitor, the two companies and their phones are naturally compared on a regular basis. While some would say that Samsung is Apple’s sole competitor, others would argue that it has long surpassed Apple with it’s new additions (in particular, the Galaxy S7 Edge). Not only is this phone also waterproof, it has a more innovative design with its curved glass and came out before the iPhone 7. Some even speculate the influence of Samsung’s new editions on those of Apple’s. Call me an Apple-hater, but I’d much rather have a phone that transcends what we know as normal and potentially peeks into the future, than one that merely reproduces itself every year. As long as it doesn’t explode on me. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CsT9rJRWYAAaZTZ.jpg

Nostalgia at its finest Sam Barrett CONTRIBUTOR Nostalgia is a double-edged sword, and, if I’m going to be honest, I really don’t mind it.

The feeling itself is a bittersweet one. It’s a perfect blend of familiarity and longing for a far gone past, but, to some, the feeling can be quite overwhelming. People tend to be very protective of those first and fragile memories, especially when those memories pertain to something we did as children. Which is why, I suppose, we become extremely critical of things that oppose our idea of an aspect of our past in a reference or representation of it. We tend to criticize things, and people, when they do not seem identical to what we remember. Television shows are not exempt from this criticism. If anything, they receive even more scrutiny, because there is often a popular and well-known canon show that fans can compare it to. Many fans who loved the original will take it upon themselves to watch the rebooted show for the sake of over-analyzing it and making comparisons. Sometimes, we go in with our expectations being far higher than they ought to have been only to be seemingly let down.

Reboots as a whole have a reputation of being worse than their predecessors. So many Batman movies have been made with the same concept in mind, and they are not always good, as the many fans who have seen George Clooney’s take on Batman in 1997 can attest. But, at the same time, reboots weren’t always made for us, and, maybe, in a way, they aren’t always meant to be good reboots. They exist to look at things differently, to bring them into a new generation with new people and, more importantly, I believe reboots exist to try and get us to rekindle our love for the originals that we’ve watched.

Nostalgia is a good thing, and it is encouraged strongly in show reboots. This can definitely be seen in the X-Files, which recently aired with Mulder and Scully’s original actors returning and reprising their original roles. Fans of the new show are going back and watching or re-watching the original. In some cases, reboots can be even better than the original, as they come out remastered, with bigger, better plot lines and more life than ever before. Voltron: Legendary Defender is a phenomenal example of that very fact.

With bursts of colour and diversity of character, Voltron manages to bring to life its 80s counterpart and bring with it a whole new meaning to what it means to be a mecha show in 2016.

Reboots aren’t sequels. Instead, they’re reinventions of something that was once great with the intention to reintroduce it to the world. And who is to say that the reboot can’t be as great, if not greater, than its original? Only time will tell.

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QX0a0aQz8R8/hqdefault.jpg https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QX0a0aQz8R8/hqdefault.jpg

A prime example of this? Teen Titans vs Teen Titans GO! A friend of mine once asked me if I had seen Teen Titans GO! and I took one look at her and scrunched up my face.

I had, of course, seen episodes of the show and had found it to be lacking in all the ways that I had remembered the original show to have excelled. Where was the character development? The drama? The exciting yet humorous plot? I was not expecting the brightly coloured animation styles or the over-exaggerated quips and jokes. I’ll admit that I was disappointed and thought that the show was pretty much a wreck. Like many in my generation, I criticized a new show for being unlike the original. It wasn’t until I gave it more thought that I realized that what I was watching wasn’t really made for me to watch.

Yes, Teen Titans GO! is an homage to the beauty that was Teen Titans, but at the same time it was for kids, especially young kids. I was about six or seven when I watched Teen Titans and it had made me laugh and cheer. Teen Titans GO! was doing the same thing with a younger generation. It mostly catered to them and scratched the bare minimum number of references to keep me interested. The show itself is a different genre, focusing much more on “dookie jokes” and the comedic view of the lives of the Titans, instead of emphasizing the importance of their bad-guys, as they did in 2003.

http://media.dcentertainment.com/sites/default/files/GalleryTV_1920x1080_TeenTitansGo_554d48797553c0.94296848.jpg

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opinions A mild criticism of the Canadian Federation of Students (by a real student) Micah Ikan Ryu CONTRIBUTOR As you may or may not already be aware, the past couple of years have been filled with controversy surrounding the role of the CFS (the Canadian Federation of Students) at the University of Toronto. The CFS is supposed to represent post-secondary students by lobbying to the government on our behalf. The UTSU (University of Toronto Students’ Union), whose executives we elect every year, is a member of the CFS. As a result, the students at the St. George and Mississauga campuses send an upwards of $800,000 every year to the CFS, which averages out to around $16 per student. This is, potentially, a small price to pay for the advocacy of an organization like the CFS, where student issues and concerns can be given a large collective voice. However, a closer look at the organization tells a different story.

It’s high time that Canada steps up to the international plate once more Robin H. Song CONTRIBUTOR

Increasingly, the CFS has become a top-down organization, holding onto its member student unions with an iron grip akin to that of the former USSR on its independenceseeking republics, dismissing most or all criticism as right-wing anti-union conspiracy, and allowing ‘defederation’ mostly just in theory. Although a comparison to the Soviet Union might seem rather harsh, the CFS has consistently shown signs of prioritizing its own financial security and partisanship over its respect for real student voices and collective decision-making through democratic processes. And, like the Soviet Republics, student bodies risk facing legal action from the CFS for trying to ‘defederate’. In layman’s terms, they’ll take your money to sue your elected leaders for trying to look out for you!

To help quell some of the dissatisfaction, the CFS sends mysterious non-student characters to campaign for a slate of pro-CFS executive candidates, and have been known at other schools to send staff to start counter-petitions against having a ‘defederation’ referendum.

In fact, the CFS can be seen collecting signatures in front of Sidney Smith, asking students for their signatures in support of lower tuition prices and a batch of other goodies, and not against their support of a referendum. Perhaps you even remember some of the shadier events from the “UofT Voice”, “Change Uof T”, and “1UofT” campaigns in the last three elections, which included creepy robo-texts, suspiciously uneven rulings from the CRO and ERC, and the disqualification of the entire “1UofT” slate due to campaign infringements (the CFS machine apparently forgot how to win elections without bending the rules or having the benefit of incumbency).

Our elected UTSU executives, in collaboration with nine other student unions from across the country, recently signed an open letter criticising the oppressiveness, secretiveness, and centralized structure of the CFS. A campaign called “You Decide UofT” (www.youdecide. ca) is running two petitions to trigger a referendum on our continued membership in the CFS. Not only do they have to meet an unreasonably high threshold of signatures (20% of the student body), but the CFS is sure to try everything they can (and even some things they can’t) to delegitimize the petitions, even if they do pass, so it’s important to surpass the threshold for signatures as much as possible. Even if you are not convinced that the CFS is not worth your money, it’s worth opening up the discussion and perhaps giving OUR leaders more leverage in trying to reform it.

Personal disclosure: I am not involved with the “You Decide UofT” campaign, nor have I ever been involved with any of the UTSU executive campaigns, but have previously been involved with campaigns for the NDP.

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=54941#.V-IUO_l97X4

Despite its shortcomings, the United Nations is vital to maintaining order and security in the world. While the world grows increasingly multi-polar, the number of global and transnational problems has increased. We need the UN as a neutral forum to discuss these types of issues and cooperate to solve them. Climate change is an example of the sort of issue that affects everyone and requires the cooperation of everyone in order for it to be addressed. The Paris Agreement, adopted in 2015 and part of the larger United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, was a major breakthrough not only in it’s being the most comprehensive treaty that addresses climate change, but in being a major diplomatic exercise in solving a major transnational issue. Without the UN as a forum and platform for discussion, coordination of efforts to address transnational issues would be much more difficult.

Historically, Canada has had a strong relationship with the UN. Canada was one of the few nations to sign the Declaration of St. James’ Palace in 1941, which was a precursor to the formation of the UN. Canadian John Humphrey wrote the draft of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a landmark text adopted by the UN. Lester B. Pearson, a former Prime Minister, was instrumental in the development of UN Peacekeeping efforts.

Canada has also traditionally been a proponent of peace and diplomacy and has asserted itself as a progressive nation. For example, Canada was among the first nations to establish diplomatic ties with China in 1970, and refused to join the Iraq War without the UN’s approval. As a middling power with a developed economy, liberal democratic society, and relatively peaceful history, Canada was in a unique position to be a leader in a multilateral organization that is the UN. However, in the past decade Canada has lost much of its standing in the UN. The previous government has given the UN the cold shoulder. Former Prime Minister Stephen Harper repeatedly chose not to attend UN General Assemblies in New York, and has questioned the effectiveness of the organization. Former Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird has called it a “debating club for dictators”. Despite Canada having been elected to the Security Council six times, Canada lost its bid to a Security Council seat for the first time in 2010.

The incident was largely seen as a snub to Canada and was an attestation of how irrelevant Canada had become to the UN. It is time to look outwards, not inwards. Canada must re-engage with the UN immediately and aggressively. The Liberal government has announced that they are spending 450 million on a new peacekeeping project, likely to be located somewhere in Africa. Current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has also announced his intentions to bid on a seat in the Security Council for 2021-2022. John McCallum, the Minister of Education, has also recently announced that Canada would be partnering with the UN to help countries implement their own versions of Canada’s private sponsorship program of refugees, and at least 13 countries are interested in implementing the Canadian model. This is just one example of how Canada can use its relationship with the UN to expand its global outreach, lead by example, and work to resolve major, transnational issues like the refugee crisis.

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http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/justin-trudeau-united-nations-security-council-1.3764441

12 Keenan Gibson CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER