Volume 84. Issue 7.

pp. 3. BREAKING: UOSU WGA passes motion in support of Palestine

pp. 4. Palestine Protests Continue Despite Charges and Fines

ARTS

pp. 5. Campus Creatives: Author Meadow L. Marie pp. 7. The Oscars 2024 – still worth watching?

SPORTS

pp. 9. Gee-Gees earn second bronze in as many years at U SPORTS Final 8

pp. 10. Game On: a Glimpse at Esports Showcase Week

SCIENCES

pp. 11. An Open Letter to Eels: How do you guys have sex?

selected fiction submissions

pp. 13. The Bloomsbury Backstreets

For the past few weeks, the Fulcrum has called upon University of Ottawa students to submit short literary pieces of fiction for our quasi-annual fiction issue. See page 13 to read some of the best submissions we received! news

the fiction issue

pp. 14. So When the Sounds of the Stream Go Quiet

pp. 15. Hello Goodbye

pp. 16. Ivy Decides to Live

OPINIONS

pp. 18. Liberals Introduce Online Harms Bill

pp. 18. U of O, do you even want my money? Inquiring disabled students want to know

BREAKING: UOSU WGA passes motion in support of Palestine

85.5 per cent in favour, 10.6 per cent against, and 3.9 per cent abstain

Bridget Coady & Amira Benjamin

The University of Ottawa Student’s Union (UOSU) passed a motion in support of Palestine at the Winter General Assembly on Mar. 10. Motion C (and Agenda item 9.3) passed 306 students (85.5 per cent) voted in favour, while 38 (10.6 per cent) voted against and 14 abstained (3.9 per cent).

ditionally moves that the PAC will “author a statement re-affirming the UOSU’s solidarity with Palestinian students every year on Nakba Day” which is on May 15.

it’s not just Israel, we have our Indigenous allies at the University taking a stand against settler colonialism, is something that is important. It’s practical but also very simple.”

in the motion from “anti-semitism” to “antisemitism” was declared friendly and adopted.

broader equity issue.

The amendment to the motion failed. Debate returned to the main motion.

The motion, written by S. Kheireddine and seconded by S. Odeh, recognized Israel as a settler-colonial apartheid state and moved that UOSU create a Palestinian Advisory Caucus (PAC) which would be composed of “one (1) Executive, one (1) Board member, and open to Palestinian members of the organization”.

The motion ad-

As well, the motion additionally outlines UOSU’s divestment from purchasing products “that are complicit in the occupation of Palestinian territory within itself and its services [Pivik] as soon as legally possible”.

Sumayya Kheireddine, president of Integrity Not Spite Against Falestine UOttawa (INSAF), spoke with the Fulcrum following the meeting’s adjournment: “I am very very happy to see the students made the right choice. We asked them to stand on the right side of history and I think that’s what we did. This is a fight against a whole settler colonial regime,

The vote came after significant debate, which touched on the place (or lack thereof) of Jewish students on the proposed caucus, which is specifically open to undergraduate Palestinian students.

Touching on the debate that proceeded the motion’s approval, Kheireddine said: “I think there were valid concerns to bring up and I understand that everyone has the right to feel a certain way. We never meant to diminish anyone’s voice. We simply wanted to amplify ours and make sure we’re being heard.”

An amendment to change the language

An amendment was moved by Daniel Vorotyntsev regarding the divestment line of the motion, suggesting that Kosher products might become less accessible on campus. Many students argued against the amendment, feeling as though it was a distraction from the true intention of the motion.

Former UOSU Advocacy commissioner

Maisy Elspeth spoke on the importance of ensuring Kosher foods are provided to students through services like PIVIK, but found the amendment to be a distraction from the spirit of the motion, and included that ensuring the needs of religious minorities on campus is a

After the amendment and further discussion from students who were in favour of the motion, the voting began. With one of the highest vote turnouts of the WGA, the motion passed.

Following the motions passing some in-person attendees participated in pro-Palestine chants. The chair reminded participants of the rules of decorum and gave a final reminder of the active listening services being offered on the 2nd floor of UCU.

Photo: Hannah Vigneux/Fulcrum Archives.

Palestine Protests Continue Despite Charges and Fines

Labour 4 Palestine to file charter challenge against Ottawa

JAN 19 — The Palestinian Youth Movement’s (PYM) Sarah Abdul-Karim stands on a dimly lit stage addressing a cafe full of supporters. It is the Ottawa Peace Council’s Potluck for Palestine, a fundraiser for the PYM’s legal defence against Ottawa by-law.

Abdul-Karim denounced the city for punishing a group already grappling with the grief of genocide. The crowd erupts with chants of “SHAME.”

Since Dec. 23, By-law and Regulatory Services (BLRS) have issued over 30 fines and two charges against Palestinian protestors. The actions are being heavily criticized for violating charter rights and expressing a political bias.

BLRS has been ticketing people for using sound reproduction devices (megaphones and speakers) on highways or public places. An email attributed to the director of BLRS, Roger Chapman, claims that “enforcement during demonstrations is a result of escalated actions by the participants, which may pose nuisance and public safety issues.” The email also states officers issued 140 verbal warnings before charging anyone.

In a later interview with the Fulcrum, Abdul-Karim said these warnings were issued with no prior notice. “Out of nowhere by-law and police came up to us and informed us that they will be giving tickets for sound machines, including our main sound system, and any megaphones in the crowd. We had not been

informed before then. And as I mentioned, we had done over 10 protests [prior] with no issues.”

With protestors ready to fight their tickets in court, advocates are concerned law enforcement is escalating its action.

Hassan Husseini is an organizer for Labour 4 Palestine and has received two fines for demonstrating. He says police are becoming increasingly aggressive, “I can tell you we’ve got individual police officers pushing and shoving young women demonstrators. And in one instance, when I confronted the police officer, I said, ‘What are you doing?’ And he said, ‘She pushed me first.’ Completely childish […] behaviour by the police in trying to intimidate our community.”

Both Husseini and Abdul-Karim point to a recent incident where six police officers and bylaw followed two young women into an underground parking lot to ticket them. Bystanders immediately stood up for the women by calling the police out on the intimidation tactic, and ultimately no charges were issued.

Videos circulating on social media show bylaw officers showing up to demonstrators’ homes late at night to ticket them. Husseini says instead of giving tickets out at protests, law enforcement collects people’s personal information to “harass” and “terrorize” them in front of neighbours.

Husseini, Abdul-Karim, and most demonstrators believe these actions from law enforce -

ment are inherently political. When asked about surveillance, Husseini says he is concerned but believes it will backfire since

Abdul-Karim says Mayor Sutcliffe should take accountability for this “attempt to suppress Palestinian

As of Feb. 26, Husseini notes a halt in ticket issuance for the past two to three weeks. He believes authorities

the movement is not doing anything illegal.

“We are not engaging in any actions that are contrary to what the Charter of Rights and Freedoms allows us to do. So if the bylaw officers and police officers engage in the kind of surveillance, that encroaches on our privacy, […] that violates our rights.” Husseini revealed that he and others are in the process of filing a charter challenge against the city of Ottawa. The legal defence fund set up by Labour 4 Palestine will finance this challenge alongside fighting tickets and criminal charges thrown at protestors.

voices.” She believes his choice to target Palestinian protests, in particular, is a “racist form of discrimination” and highlights he has not called for a ceasefire like other city mayors.

Husseini said the city’s attempts to suppress protests are only unifying supporters at a faster rate. “If anything, [all] they’ve done is that they have increased my resolve as an individual and our resolve as a community to stand up even more forcefully. In the past, maybe I would skip a demo […] but I will never skip a demo right now. I am always there. And I can tell you everybody is feeling the same way.”

recognize they crossed a line when they followed the young women in the parking lot.

At a recent rally commemorating the freedom convoy’s second anniversary, Husseini observed that no attendees were fined for using megaphones or fireworks, a statement supported by Chief Eric Stubbs. Contrarily, Bylaw Services communicated to the CBC that they did in fact issue several violations. Why the answers differ is not known.

Arya Gunde

Photo: Ömer Yıldız/Unsplash.

Arts

Campus Creatives: Author Meadow L. Marie

Third-year theatre student Meadow L. Marie publishes their debut novel, King in the Clouds

Sydney Grenier

The Fulcrum (TF): So firstly, how are you doing? How’s the book launch coming along?

Meadow Marie (MM): It’s good. So my book [King in the Clouds] has been out for two weeks now, and last night was like my big official event for it. I had it at Haven Cafe in the Glebe. I had an interview with a fellow performer and entertainer; they interviewed me and I had some questions from the audience. Then I read the first chapter of the book in front of everybody, and I signed a bunch of books last night as well.

TF: I wonder first, if you could introduce yourself to the student community. Are you currently a student at the U of O?

MM: Yes, I’m in my third year of the theatre program.

TF: What classes have you taken that have helped you in your creative journey?

MM: [My classes include] writing for theatre, [which] allows me to visualize my work a lot more. So [writing a novel] has been a very interesting process for me. But also, I’m writing now for theatre and so I’m finding it to be interesting to go between prose and writing scripts. It kind of helps me both ways, developing my writing skills.

TF: Between novels and theatre, there are a lot of parallels but

surely a lot of differences. Could you tell me a little bit about your book like where did you get the idea? What is it about?

MM: I started writing [King in the Clouds] five years ago for a little bit of perspective. I had come up with this idea at one point; I think it must have been even years before I started because I kind of already had the idea but didn’t have the time to write it. And so I started writing just before [the COVID-19 lockdowns] for the first time in 2020, [which] gave me a lot of free time to write. My story is about a prince named Alexander, he’s about to be crowned king in his kingdom. But it’s not a title that he wants, or he thinks that he deserves, but he’s forced into the title anyways. On the day of his coronation, his younger brother falls dead, so he kind of takes

it upon himself to solve the mystery of his death. It’s very much a story about grief and how different people deal with it, but also about the relationships between different siblings. And so it’s kind of how each of them have grown up in different ways and they grow apart, they grow together.

focus on that because I think it’s very fascinating. Yeah, that was definitely a major inspiration.

TF: Nice. And in terms of the setting and the main characters being royals, is that something you can escape or does it come from other stories you love?

MM: I love fan-

ested in reading, but they want to get into fantasy, what do you recommend?

MM: Oh, Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. That duology will forever be one of my favourites. I’ve just reread it in January and it is still fantastic. That one for sure.

So it’s kind of really focusing on those sibling relationships.

TF: I wonder if, for you, it’s a personal inspiration or what other stories do you draw inspiration from?

MM: For my theme with siblings, it was definitely a personal thing because I have one younger, full sibling. I have two older half-siblings and two younger step-sisters. And so it’s kind of all over the place. I have different relationships with each of them. And so I really wanted to

tasy books so much. It’s definitely what I consume the most, any fantasy story. So it’s definitely something that I can escape to. But it also draws parallels to real life as well, because a lot of what Alexander deals with in his story, his journey is that he feels like he’s trapped [in his role], even though he has a very privileged life but he still feels like he is physically trapped in his duty and his castle.

TF: I’m also curious, what’s your favourite fantasy series or author? When people are inter-

TF: I love that story so much. And I think one of the things that Leigh Bardugo does so well is character building. How has that influenced how you write your characters? theatre?

MM: I’d say in some cases. Now that I’m thinking about it, I think one of my characters is a little bit like Jesper in a way. I think dialogue doesn’t always come easy, but I think the ‘bantery’ dialogue comes a little bit easier because that’s what I like to consume. It’s more of the dramatic dialogue that I think takes a couple of rewrites before

Image: Kai Holub/Fulcrum.

I think “Okay, this sounds genuine and natural”.

TF: Okay, so we talked a little bit about your creative development. In terms of finding time as a student and a busy person, what’s your advice to students who might be trying to do the same thing?

MM: Put writing time right into your calendar. I find I’ve especially been doing it this term where I just have chunks of writing time in my calendar. It doesn’t always work out that way because work comes up and homework comes up, but I think putting at least a visual thing in your calendar is helpful, even if it’s just fifteen minutes or half an hour. Whatever you can do that day, you’re still writing. If you write three sentences, it’s still writing — everything, everything counts. I haven’t written in about a week and that’s okay. I think as long as you put the effort into sitting down and writing and doing your project, you’re working

towards your goal.

I find talking out loud really helps. When I was plotting out the end of Book Two, I was home alone for a couple hours and I paced my entire floor. I was just talking out loud to figure out how to get to the end. You might seem like you’re crazy, but you’re not. Just let it happen.

I’ve also done the unfortunate thing where I’ve split up my ideas in separate notebooks and have to go searching in different places for all these things. So try to keep things in one document.

TF: In terms of publishing, I wonder if you could speak a little bit about your experience. Let’s say you finish your first draft. What goes on from there?

MM: A couple more drafts at least. First drafts, you get the bare bones of the story and then edit it through. I will never let my first drafts see the light of day —no one’s allowed to see them

but me. I tried to do traditional publishing originally, when my book was a two-parter book, [but] it was too big and the story wasn’t quite there yet.

If you are going to go to traditional publishing, finding a literary agent is probably your best bet. But it’s not going to happen right away. Unfortunately it’s a very, very tricky business to get into —you could be querying for months or years before you find an agent to represent you. But that’s the way you want to go if you want traditional publishing. Agents get you in contact with publishing houses and editors, and then they kind of take forward from there.

I decided that I wanted to do self-publishing because this is my first book, and my first book is my baby, and I decided that I wanted control of it. I decided eventually to do the self-publishing route, so I published this book through Kindle Direct Publishing. I’m going to be going a different

route for my next books, because I don’t love giving Amazon part of my money. But for this first book this was the easiest and the cheapest option for me right now. But it means if you’re self-publishing, you’re doing everything yourself and you’re paying for everything yourself. I had to I pay for my own editor, I paid for my cover artist. I’m doing all my marketing on my own and so it’s definitely a lot of work, but it means that you get more control of everything as well. So there’s pros and cons to both.

TF: Are there any milestones recently that you’re proud of that have marked the growth of your project?

MM: I mean, just getting it out there two weeks ago was crazy. It’s something that I definitely wanted to do. For my book launch event, I had three sponsors. I just wrote out a bunch of emails (I had way more than three emails) but three people reached

back and said, “Hey, I’d love to sponsor your event”. And so that was something cool to see at the bottom of my little poster that I have three people right here in the community that wanted to support me, so that was definitely a big one.

But even something a little bit smaller than that is I’ve been building up my Instagram a bit for this. I have people from all over the world who are interested in reading my book, which is crazy, so it’s always little things. Like I had someone from Slovakia who can’t really get access to my book — because I’m publishing through Amazon and so it’s not available everywhere — but they messaged me and asked “I really want to read it. How can you help me solve this?”

You can purchase Meadow L. Marie’s debut novel King in the Clouds on Amazon.

Image: Meadow Marie/Provided.

The Oscars 2024 – still worth watching?

“Anyone can be anything”, but only if the Academy says so

Content warning: This article references the documentary ‘To Kill a Tiger’, which contains themes of sexual violence.

The 96th edition of Hollywood’s biggest event, hosted by latenight show host Jimmy Kimmel, captivated thousands Sunday night. It was my first time watching the Oscars, and I don’t regret it in the slightest. An unapologetically glamorous and mildly entertaining event, the frequent blunders and flagrant favouritism weren’t enough to dull some heart-warming speeches and memorable performances.

terest (United Kingdom)

Oppenheimer was nominated 13 times and swept up an impressive seven awards, dominating major categories such as “Best Director” and “Best Picture”. Cillian Murphy, who plays the titular character, won his first-ever Oscar for “Best Actor”.

It was also a good night for Poor Things, which I have yet to watch; the film triumphed in the hair and makeup, production, and costume design categories. Emma Stone delivered a tearful acceptance speech for “Best Actress” amidst a wardrobe malfunction. This is the second time she’s won the title; the first time was in 2017, for her role in La La Land. Many were disappointed that Lily Gladstone, the soul of Killers of the Flower Moon, didn’t take home the Oscar. Indeed, she is the first Native American woman to be nominated for “Best Actress”.

Let’s start with a rundown of a few of the other winners (Source: CBS News), then conclude with some thoughts from a first-time Oscar watcher.

Best supporting actor: Robert Downey Jr., Oppenheimer

Best original screenplay: Justine Triet and Arthur Harari, Anatomy of a Fall

Best adapted screenplay: Cord Jefferson, American Fiction

Best animated short: War is Over! Inspired by the Music of John Lennon and Yoko Ono

Best international feature: The Zone of In-

Best documentary feature: 20 Days in Mariupol

Best documentary short: The Last Repair Shop

Best live-action short: The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

Best score: Ludwig Göransson, Oppenheimer

Best sound: Tarn Willers and Johnnie Burn, The Zone of Interest

Best cinematography: Hoyte van Hoytema, Oppenheimer

Best editing: Jennifer Lame, Oppenheimer

The acting awards were preceded by short introductory speeches from former winners of the title, praising the nominees. The presentation before announcing “Best Supporting Actress” felt the most sincere to me, like the actresses were genuinely friends and proud of each others’ accomplishments.

In stark contrast, the presentation before “Best Actor” featured close-ups of an exasperated Robert DeNiro — an 8-time Oscar nominee, without winning a single one — and what felt like impersonal and rehearsed commendations.

Da’Vine Joy Randolph delivered a memorable and heartwarming speech as she accepted the first award of the night, “Best Supporting Actress” for The Holdovers. It was short and to the point: she acknowledged all those who had encouraged and guided her in her career, and thanked the audience for “seeing her”. She spoke

from the heart, and her raw emotion brought a tear to my eye.

Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell took home their second Oscar for “Best Original Song” after an angelic rendition of “What Was I Made For?” from Barbie. The siblings’ first Oscar was in 2022 for “No Time to Die”. Billie Eilish is the youngest person to win two Oscars in the show’s history, at 22 years old.

In a way, the Oscars are an embodiment of the American Dream, the “self-made man”, and the notion that “anyone can be anything”. In an interview last year, actor Ryan Gosling shed light on the true risks and countless rejections an acting career entails: “[Actors leave] their families, homes, their friends, their jobs to pursue a dream where they know that the percentage of them achieving that dream is never, and they do it anyway.” From this standpoint, it’s inspiring to see truly passionate and talented people getting recognized and rewarded for their work.

As a cinephile myself, it’s exciting to try and predict which films will win and to see familiar faces presenting and accepting awards. The reason we tune into this event that doesn’t directly involve us is because we have gone out of our way to watch the nominated films, at home or on the big screen. These films have impacted us in some way and we’re anxious to know if they affected others as deeply. However, through the veneer of glamorous garments,

dripping with dizzyingly expensive jewellery lies an elite largely disconnected from reality.

Crude jokes punctuated the inconsistent tone of the award presentations.

For example, John Cena scooted onstage practically naked to present the award for “Best Costume Design”.

The decision to have two comedians present the year’s “Best Documentary” (America Ferreira and Kate McKinnon) also seemed incongruent with the serious subject matter addressed in that category (the Russian invasion of Mariupol and the atrocities of war in 20 Days in Mariupol, and the pursuit of justice for the gang rape of a 13-year-old girl in To Kill a Tiger, among others).

How do you decide what is the “best”, anyway? How can the Academy, an exclusive, insulated board of wealthy individuals, determine whether one story merits to “win” against another?

Especially in the documentary segment, every single subject addressed is of vital importance. They shouldn’t be pitted against each other, competing for attention.

At the night’s end, we were privy to a horribly anticlimactic unveiling by Al Pacino for Oppenheimer winning Best Picture.

I was shocked by the flagrant favouritism displayed by the Academy. Certain winners were allowed to drone on, thanking long lists of people unknown to the greater public, while others were rudely cut off by loud music signalling for

them to “wrap up”.

Despite Oppenheimer being a known front-runner for the title, and Emma Thomas and Charles Roven (the film’s producers) having “dreamt” of this moment, they apparently hadn’t been expecting it; their speeches were disorganized and uncomfortably long.

On the other hand, the Japanese visual effects team spokesperson (winners of “Best Visual Effects” for Godzilla Minus One) attempted to read a speech in English, despite it clearly not being his first language. I suppose the Academy’s showrunners got tired of trying to understand what he was saying, because they started playing music to drown him out and usher him offstage.

Instead of spending an undoubtedly significant sum of money to get tequila for everyone in the audience, they could have at least provided the Japanese visual effects team with the option of an interpreter. A memorial segment honoured those who passed away in the last year, featuring a slideshow to the tune of “Time to Say Goodbye”. This segment was instituted in 2014, and has been subject to change and critiques over the years; indeed, it has become a delicate affair as the editors are forced to pick and choose who will appear during the limited time allotted to the segment. Some actors are bound to be better known and receive more applause than others. It’s also difficult

for a deceased marketing executive or a publicist to follow big names like Matthew Perry and Tina Turner, since they aren’t necessarily known to the greater public.

Some pictures of the departed were left up for longer than others, and some people were just reduced to names flickering on and off of the screen. I found the whole thing to be rather inappropriate and disrespectful to those who have passed – reducing a person to a name flashing on a screen is hardly a suitable tribute to their impact on the world.

The crowd of interpretive dancers frolicking about onstage during the segment was also rather distracting; the whole performance felt out of place alongside

a rendition of “I’m Just Ken” performed by Ryan Gosling (which was absolutely iconic by the way, it had the whole audience on their feet).

That being said, the show was divided into digestible segments, with the presentation of two awards at a time before an ad break. Entertaining musical numbers and amusing banter was peppered throughout. Messi, the dog who stole the show in Anatomy of a Fall, made a few welcome appearances, even “clapping” in the audience (a clever bit of movie magic).

I happened to watch the show live at the Mayfair movie theatre in downtown Ottawa. I enjoyed viewing it on the big screen with a live audience, who were outspo-

ken about their reactions as the show progressed. The cinema’s owners also organized diverting trivia with prizes, such as vintage movie reels and Blu-ray DVDs. Someone tirelessly sifted through Oscars ballots the audience had filled out during the pre-show, to determine who had predicted the most wins for a prize. Entrance for the event was free, so I encourage you to tune into the Oscars next year at either the Mayfair or the Bytowne if you want a good laugh. It helps to support our local, independent movie theatres, who took a hit during the COVID-19 lockdowns with prolonged closures.

Though far from perfect, the Oscars are still an awe-inspiring affair.

Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images.

Gee-Gees earn second bronze in as many years at U SPORTS Final 8 Ottawa shows at-large selection was warranted with third-place finish

After earning the at-large berth in the U SPORTS Men’s Basketball Final 8, the Gee-Gees proved that their selection was warranted with a 91-83 victory over the Dalhousie Tigers in the bronze medal game on Sunday afternoon at Laval University’s Amphithéâtre Desjardins.

The win secured back-to-back bronze medal wins at the tournament for the Gee-Gees, and their fifth medal alltime at the event. Here’s a further look at the road to bronze for the Gees.

Quarterfinals vs. UQAM: 78-71 win

The Gees had a lengthy layoff between

game of the Final 8, a 1 p.m. meeting on Friday with the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Citadins, but there was no evidence of rust in their game.

Recently named Second-Team All-Canadian forward Brock Newton seemed to be extra excited to be in Quebec City, and employed some bully ball tactics on his way to a personal 8-0 run to begin the game. The third-year would score the first 10 points of the game for the Gees, but the Citadins would rally to tie the game up late in the first frame.

From there, the teams would battle for the lead until the fourth quarter, when the sixth-seeded Gees would start to

finish with a team-high 23 points, outdone in the game only by Citadins guard Bahaide Haidara — who finished with an impressive 24 points on just 13 shots off the bench.

Three former Gees played large roles for the Citadins. Fifth-year guard Kevin Civil was the most prominent of that group — which also included Elie Karojo and Quincy Louis-Jeune — as he finished with 14 points and grabbed four steals.

Derouin was complimentary of the team’s defence, saying “We just got stops, our defence was just a little bit better. We were able to turn them over and made enough plays in the end. It was really our defence in the third and early

Semifinals vs. Queen’s: 8477 loss

All season long, it’s been Queen’s. In January, the Gaels handed the Gees their first loss of the season. In February, the Gaels took down the Gees in overtime, securing themselves the first seed in the OUA playoffs. And now, in March, the Gaels ended the Gees’ hopes of competing for what would be the program’s first national championship.

The game started off close, and the teams battled for ownership of the lead throughout the first half. Midway through the second, GeeGees point guard Dragan Stajic would regain the lead for the sixth-seed-

and hit a heat check from deep three-point range which would extend the lead to four points.

Then, Newton would find his older brother, Cole open in the right corner. The older Newton would sink the three to make the lead seven and cause the Gaels to call a timeout. The third-year guard enjoyed perhaps his best stretch of games the entire season at the tournament, a season that was put on pause due to a lower-body injury.

The guard finished with 28 points in total over the three games after making 10-of-24 field goals and 5-of-12 threes. Derouin had talked about Newton’s intangibles when he returned

fourth quarters that gave us the lead and that was the difference today.”

ed Gees with a three. After a defensive stop, the fourth-year would pull up

the loss to Brock on Feb. 24 and their opening

pull away from the RSEQ champion third-seeded Citadins. Newton would

in February, before his offence had yet to fully return.

Andrew Wilimek

Photo: Greg Mason/Gee-Gees.

“It’s huge [to have him back],” said the coach at the time, before continuing to talk about how important Newton’s voice is in the defensive end. “Having him back on the bench, in the locker room, at practice, calling out their plays before they call them out, is really instrumental.”

But the timeout would end up working for the Gaels, probably better than they had even dreamed it would. Led by brothers Cole and Lukas Syllas, the Gaels went on a 14-0 run out of the break, before Brock Newton drove for an and-one to end the dominance.

Fifth-year Cole Syllas would then drain back-to-back threes, bringing the lead to 4333 Gaels. The Gees would battle to get the lead within two points late in

the third, but once again the Gaels would pull away.

Another Brock Newton-assisted corner three by Cole Newton would bring the Gaels lead down to five with just minutes remaining, but that was as close as they would get. Queen’s would ultimately go on to be shockingly upset in the gold medal game by the host Laval Rouge et Or.

Bronze Medal Game vs. Dalhousie: 91-83 win

After Dalhousie was surprisingly upset by the host Rouge et Or in the semifinals, they would face the Gee-Gees in the bronze medal game. The Tigers were carried by Malcolm Christie in the game but lacked much secondary scoring.

Once again, the score was close after one

quarter, with both teams knotted at 12. The game was noticeably less tight defensively, as the Tigers were not as physical on the glass and in the paint as the Gaels were. With under 10 seconds to go in the first half, fifth-year guard Kevin Otoo would tip in a missed three from Cid Ruhamyandekwe, two of his 16 points on the night.

The game would be Otoo’s final in his collegiate career which saw him play three years at Humber before winning back-to-back bronzes with the Gee-Gees. Split between the two programs, Otoo notched his 1000th collegiate point back in January in a win over Algoma.

Backcourt partner Dragan Stajic joined Otoo in double digits, racking up 14 points

Game On: a Glimpse at Esports Showcase Week

while also dishing out 10 assists. Brock Newton scored 15 points, while first-year Gee Justin Ndjock-Tadjore led the team with 26 points and nine rebounds.

Ndjock-Tadjore, a 6’7” forward, threw down three dunks during the game, perhaps the biggest of which came with just over six minutes left in the fourth quarter. With the Gees clinging to a seven-point lead, Ndjock-Tadjore drove to the paint and attempted a layup over a defender that was missed. Ndjock-Tadjore would grab the rebound and slam the putback back over a defender with one hand. Christie would finish with 31 points, including 5-of-12 shooting from beyond the arc, after a dominant season which saw him average

22.1 points per game and collect the AUS Most Valuable Player award — but it just wasn’t enough for the Tigers. The Gees would hold onto and extend their lead, and ultimately come away with a 91-83 win.

The medal was the fifth all-time for the Gees, and their second bronze in as many years. The Rouge et Or would go on to win Gold in an instant-classic on home court in front of 3200 fans against the Gaels, 77-71. Laval — who only qualified as hosts after posting a 6-10 record in the RSEQ — is the first French-language university and third RSEQ team overall to capture a national championship.

“It’s just a better opportunity to create a more inclusive space where friendships can grow even stronger.”

the uOttawa Esports club has been the group’s top priority, says club co-president, Scarlett Ramos.

From March 11 to 17, the uOttawa Esports club will be hosting will hold Esports Showcase Week, an event which will include open play, coaching sessions, presentations, and a competitive weekend tournament. The event will be held at the University of Ottawa’s Brian Dickson Law Library (FTX).

The showcase, a collaboration between Professor Thomas Burelli, the Library and the uOttawa Esports club, will highlight popular games such as League of Legends, Teamfight Tactics, Dota 2, and Valorant. Registration links for presentations are now open.

Since their founding in 2019, finding a physical space for

“For many years, since our predecessors, we have been trying to possibly get a room for esports at the University of Ottawa, because esports is [progressing] so fast,” she said.

“This year, with help from professor Burelli, the Faculty of Law and many other people, we were able to secure a room in the [Brian Dickson Law Library]. Our plan at the moment is to do a trial of how an esports room could look in the future.” Ramos added how planning towards the showcase week has been ongoing over the past year.

Co-president Jessica Guo added how other Canadian universi-

ties have physical spaces for their esports teams, usually computer labs, for members to meet and play together.

“The reason why we’re looking for an esports room is to create space, physically, for a community of students who are equally passionate about gaming,” she said. “It’s just a better opportunity to create a more inclusive space where friendships can grow even stronger.”

On Dec. 2 and 3, 2023, the University of Ottawa’s esports club held their first pan-university event: Pandemonium. The face-off between U of O’s team and Carleton’s esports team was a tournament, modeled after the infamous Panda Games held every year between the two schools.

Ramos high-

lighted how in-person events, such as Pandemonium, help further establish a greater presence in their university communities.

“I think that is always the endgoal for any esports club across Canada or across the world. They want to be able to host LAN in-person games so that people can come see the universities, see what we have to offer, but also see what the esports club has to offer.”

(And yes, the U of O won this tournament too). Like their namesake, the uOttawa Esports team hopes to hold Pandemonium every year, growing their following year over year.

Both Guo and Ramos are hoping that both gaming and non-gaming members will not only enjoy the opportunities to play or learn new games, but also enjoy the presenters and workshops, such as a panel on health and wellness in Esports with Doc Respawn (Dr. Jordan Tsai), an Esports physical therapist.

“For our esports players, I want them to take this as an opportunity to play in-person and be able to see that little by little, we’ll gain a room at the university,” Ramos explained.

On the first day of Pandemonium, teams competed at Call of Duty and Overwatch 2, both of which Carleton’s team won. Turning the competition around the second day, U of O’s team swept League of Legends, Rocket League and Valorant, clutching the overall win 3 to 2.

Kavi Vidya Achar & Amira Benjamin

Sciences

An Open Letter to Eels: How do you guys have sex? eels!

Here’s an incomplete explanation of everything we know about eels, according to the Fulcrum.

Philosophers were very concerned about eels

The idea that eels have sex in the first place is quite new. In the fourth century BCE, Aristotle remarked that fish do lay eggs and breed, but that eels are the exception. They’re neither female nor male and they neither lay eggs or mate. He hypothesized eels are born of mud from dried

up ponds and are brought into existence simply by the first rain that falls and fills said pond.

One of Aristotle’s contributions Historia Animalium, marks the first attempt to systematically sort the animal kingdom. Within it, he detailed his scientific discoveries including the hidden insides of the eel, the relative placement of its organs and the construction of its gills. Most notably what’s lacking from his research was any evidence of eel reproductive organs, eggs, or milt (fish sperm).

Apparently, eel

reproduction was a heavily discussed topic at the time and Aristotle’s eggless eels sparked great conversation among other philosophers. This, however, was the extent of the conversation and through the centuries many great scientists would try in vain to find the eel’s sexual organs.

Eventually, in 1824, German scientist Martin Rathke would be the first to identify a female eel with fully developed reproductive organs and later eggs. All that remained was the second half of the biological equation, the eel testicles.

To my surprise, the next scientist to step up to the plate would be the man, the myth, the legend…Dr. Sigmund Freud.

In search of lost balls, by (Marcel Proust) Sigmund Freud

This pre-suitwearing, cigar-smoking, sex and dream-obsessed Sigmund Freud was tasked with dissecting hundreds of eels in search of their balls (excuse me, testes). Just imagine a young 19-year-old Freud in Italy, elbow-deep in eel guts and desperately hoping he’ll find any evidence of a ball sack, so

he can prove to himself and the world that he is a serious researcher and biological scientist.

For almost a month this man reeked of dead fish and had examined over 400 eels but sadly not one testicle was found. It’s a little ironic to know that the man who would make his life’s work about human sex and sexuality and could not, where eels were concerned, even locate their sex organs. That had to have changed him in some ways.

A few decades after Freud’s attempt and eventual failure, two sci-

Emma Williams

Image: Kai Holub/Fulcrum.

entists by the names of Giovanni Battista Grassi and Salvatore Calandruccio were able to catch larval European eels (Anguilla Anguilla) off the coast of the Mediterranean in 1896, which they would later determine as the birthplace of the eel. What they caught, however, looked nothing like their adult form, but rather appeared more similar to a transparent leaf-shaped creature with tiny heads.

These researchers went on to later observe these larval eels transform into their juvenile stage, more commonly known as glass eels.

A Quick Aside: Black market glass eels

Just as a quick aside, and skipping forward to the early 2010s, glass eels were and still are one of the most expensive fish in the world on a per pound basis, costing more than $2000. They also happen to be highly trafficked by organized crime — these are no ordinary fish, these are black market fish. Why? Well, I’m no economist but I would bet $2000 it has something to do with supply and demand.

To speak to the demand part, glass eels are considered a delicacy in many European countries like Spain, but are also used in Asian cuisine. For example, Japan, which happens to be the world’s top consumer of eels, serves a popular dish known as unagi, grilled eel with cucumber over rice.

For the supply part, it becomes a little tricky because steadily since the early 1980s, the European eel population has been decreasing as a result of overfishing. Since so little is known

about eel mating, they cannot be bred in captivity or factory-farmed in the traditional sense; this adds fire to the flames, so to speak. All of this has resulted in a perfect storm of high demand, but low supply and really no means of understanding how to breed more.

Circling back to the black market, the business of catching and selling glass eels became so lucrative and profitable that some dealers were buying glass eels from places where it was illegal to fish them. They trucked them to destinations where they could be mixed with legal eels, doctoring shipping dossiers, and exporting them to Asia.

Interviews published by National Geographic detailed how one American fisher in particular, “hired a bodyguard…who keeps a Glock visible in his holster at all times to protect against thieves. Most other [fishers] armed up too.”

Turf wars broke out between fishers, robberies and fist fights were a common occurrence. Put simply, these were the early days of the eel fishing gold rush.

Around this time the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission was clamping down on the amount of eels that could be caught and sold. The federal government also launched an investigation named ‘Operation Broken Glass’ — which continues to operate to this day.

Back to in search of lost (balls) eels

Returning now to the groundbreaking discovery of eel larva, which caught the attention of many. One of whom was Johannes Schmidt, a biologist from

Denmark, who was left unsatisfied with the determination of what was scooped up on those beaches.

Instead, he believed those were not the earliest life stage of an eel since they were three to four inches long and were obviously not newly hatched. He was thus determined to find the actual birthplace of the eel and their true larval form.

Schmidt would dedicate 20 years of his life patiently sailing up and down the coasts of Europe and eventually out into the open ocean collecting smaller and smaller eel larvae, finding himself being pushed farther and farther west. Finally in 1923, he found his smallest one yet on the southern edge of the Sargasso Sea, which is northeast of the Caribbean and to the southeast of Bermuda.

Armed with this new knowledge of understanding where eels come from, we must’ve been able to observe them mating, right?

Apparently not, since to this day we have never found adult eels or their eggs there and we don’t know how the adults got there. This left us stuck with indirect evidence for where eels come from up until late 2016 when a team of researchers finally published how they tracked adult eels back to their breeding ground.

Only then could we conclusively state European eels are catadromous fish, which means they spend most of their lives in freshwater environments before returning to the ocean to breed as their adult form (known as silver eels at this point).

There was honestly a bit of a lull in re -

search after Schmidt — hard to follow the guy who sailed across the ocean for 20 years. However, eventually, during the 1980s, marine biologist James McCleave and Gail Wippelhauser would pick up the torch. They had a devious plan to lure the eels out from the depths where they bred.

The plan was as follows, step one: catch 100 adult female eels, inject them with hormones and induce sexual maturity. Great, step two: use said females as bait to attract males to the surface.

Step three: watch the eels boink.

However, this plan did not work. As it turns out, female eels who are sexually mature are also pretty close to death, so a big chunk (95) of those 100 eels died before they even reached the Sargasso Sea. Secondly, it seems the male eels were rather unimpressed with the five remaining females presented because not one male showed up. I guess they didn’t want to mate in cages in front of two random people — fair enough.

Where does that leave us? Well, we can go back to 1973 when Japanese scientists actually managed to catch sexually mature eels; one male and two females. If we learned anything from the last guys though, they would’ve anticipated the females dying pretty shortly after capture.

However, they did not die in vain. Researchers were able to extract the eggs from the female and inseminate them artificially. If we can’t watch them mate in the wild we can at least watch their development in a lab setting right? Please tell me I’m right. Nope! The trans-

parent leaf-shaped larva kept dying. Why? They simply refused to eat. Are you kidding me? No really, these researchers could not figure out what these newly hatched eels wanted to eat. They tried a whole range of foods, plankton, roe, octopus, jellyfish, shrimp, rotifers, nothing worked. Imagine dying simply because you’re a picky eater.

It wasn’t until 2001 (30 years later) when they finally learned these larvae would accept a plate of powder made of freeze-dried shark eggs. I want to say things went better from here, but it didn’t. Although they had successfully gotten them to eat and transform into their glass eel stage, it wouldn’t be until 2010 that the scientists succeeded for the first time in completing the life cycle of the eels.

The eels were given hormones to make them grow faster, which lead to severe deformities in their offspring: leaf shaped larva that didn’t look anything like the ones caught in the sea, their heads strangely misshapen, and the animals themselves unable to swim.

To quote Patrik Svensson, a fellow eel enthusiast, “it was as though the eel[s] were refusing to let anyone else control its creation. As though its existence was its own business.”

And that’s the most recent findings to date, that’s it folks that’s all she wrote.

Fiction

The Bloomsbury Backstreets

by Shailee Shah

Beware, oh gentle one!

Be guarded, chary.

One score and three years ago, Came a rap tap tapping on the beaten down frame of a sunken ship.

It’s captain Atlas, commandingly, answered.

Her first mate, present. There.

And at the hatchway, Her newfound fortune, The Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up.

Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee day, “I shall try to be worthy of my post!”

Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee day, Following the leader for a score and three more.

What would have betided, if the Boy had never knocked?

Would the captain and her first mate have kept sailing

Through tempestuous currents and placid waters?

Or would she have made him walk the plank, Niggling and lingering until the he could feel the jarred edges of plywood on his chisled feet, The bristle of the salty air slapping him across his face,

Teary eyes staring out into the vast stretch of known and unknown, Until there was no difference between the jaggers of the wind and the murky beneath?

Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee day, Send me down the darkened alleyways, The Bloomsbury backstreets, the captain and her defeats. He sprints down the darkened alleyways under the lampposts, the Boy.

Shadowless, the Boy. He prances and leaps and juggles, the Boy. Unaware of his missing silhouette, the Boy.

If the first mate had a resume, Would taking the helm have been on it? Would lifting the captain’s anchors? Would navigating harsh waters? Probably not.

That’s what a captain is for, after all, so He cannot.

Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee day, One score and three is today. Today the Boy learns to bleed, Fingers cracking, red oozing, As he threads the tightly wound string of twine From his flesh and flesh divine, Into his shadow, back and forth, Until they are one and the same going North.

Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee day, No longer a Lost Boy lost at bay,

Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee day, No more follow the leader. Disobey.

Image: Sanjida Rashid/Fulcrum.

So When the Sounds of the Stream Go Quiet

by Daniel Jones

On Sunday, Mama watches a baby swim upstream in the water, mistaking it for fish scales or maybe seal fur with blubber hunted for sport – getting them while they’re young. In the night, distinguished from the pool, there’s the whooping bellows of whaling.

The window cleaner drops oil into the view, Mama will hear about it a week later on television.

Beaching is a dry birth. Growing legs while thumbing the sand, rolling eucalyptus oil on their feet, swatting away the bird confusing the glass of a window for fish scales when diving neck first.

They’ll pick her up the next Tuesday. Splattered like whale blubber or eucalyptus mixed in a candle.

On Sunday, he’ll watch the water run downstream for the first time. Remember the running swirl and his younger brother, still bellowing in the torrent. He’ll find the bird, spiraling on the concrete floor for a moment, he goes on crying.

Mama won’t rattle, thinking there it is again, that bird in the window stretched and marched down the block older; grizzled sailors all look the same.

Image: Kai Holub/Fulcrum.

Hello Goodbye

BY Evan Chan

“Henry!”

I turn my head and there she is, Alice in the flesh. Her hair’s much longer now, not iconically short and red, instead long wavy blonde. But it’s those black boots that she always wore that I recognize and I know it’s definitely her.

It feels like a dream.

I leave my spot in the concession line and quickly make my way towards her.

“Oh my god,” she says and we hug. I’ve forgotten how tight her hugs are and I reflexively know that she’s on her tippy toes. What has it been, three or six years now?

I let go and ask, “How’s it going?”

“Good good. You?”

It’s true, Alice does look good. But something’s different than how I remembered he. I can’t tell what. Her long hair is throwing me off.

“I’m doing good too,” I say. I saw this scene once in a movie where two lost friends find each other at the movie theatre. I forget the name of the movie, as well as how it ended.

“What the hell are you doing here?” she asks.

“Here to see a movie,” I say with a smile.

The movie playing tonight is some romance movie that is going to start in a few minutes.

“Not that! In the city.”

I reply saying the words slowly, “Long story.”

A flash of a memory when Alice and I spent an entire night sharing long bullshit stories to each other until the sun rose. I blink and the memory disappears.

“Well, how long you staying here in town?” she asks.

“Just the week. Leaving tomorrow actually.”

“And where’s that.”

“Far away,” I laugh.

“I’ve missed your bullshit no-answers.”

“Yeah.”

There are so many things I want to ask and say. So many stories that she would like to hear and I’m certain she’s got her own adventures that I can’t fathom. But nothing comes out. Nothing meaningful could be said right now and here, nothing that is real or matters.

“You here just by yourself?” she asks.

“Nah I’m actually with a girl.”

“Ouuu.”

“Fiancée actually.” She laughs, “Wow congrats. Mr. Committed.”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

I always did want to keep in touch when I left. There’d be days where I remembered her and wondered where she was. I figured she was still here in the city, and I imagine she’s living in the tiniest apartment above the bookstore. But it was more than that. I used to wonder where she exactly was, what room, what chair, was the rays of sunlight shining on her hand. What music was playing

in the background.

“I’m on a date too,” she says causally. “I had no doubt.”

Memories feel more like dreams than facts. Does she remember them too? Sometimes when I’m home I wonder if she existed at all. Everything outside, never seems to exist. I would sit on my balcony and think that there’s no way she was out there, breathing the same air and standing on the same Earth, having the same moon illuminate our nights. She’d be miles away but she’d be there, having real thoughts and conversations. Were we ever thinking the same things at the same time? Sounds of movie trailers

begin in the other room.

“I guess we shouldn’t keep our dates waiting.” “I suppose not.” “Enjoy the movie.” “You too.”

She leaves and I return to the concession line. I exhale for the first time. By the time I have the snacks the final ad is playing. I find my seat in the dark and pass the drink and popcorn to my partner. She leans to my ear and whispers that I missed one of worst trailers she’s ever seen. I try to spot Alice in the theatre but the room is too dark to see anything.

The movie starts and plays and time skips by.

The movie’s setting is now

a very sunny ski resort.

It’s enough light to illuminate the theatre to see the silhouette of a woman with wavy blonde hair several rows in front. She’s sitting next to someone tall, her head resting on his shoulder.

The scene changes to night time and I lose her in the darkness. But every now and then I get a glimpse, a flash of an outline.

When it ends, I contemplate waiting at my seat to bump into Alice and her friend.

“Shall we,” says my partner.

“Yep,” I reply and we exit the theatre.

Image: Kai Holub/Fulcrum.

Ivy Decides to Live

by Sydney Grenier

(For Jayne, Jaanvi and Charlie)

A young girl in her ballet costume and her mother entered the cafe.

When she was 8 years old, Ivy wanted to be a ballerina. Her ballet teacher, Mrs. Dott, insisted she could do it, under a few conditions.

“Maintain your elegant demeanour,” she said, pinching the skin around her ribs. Mrs. Dott continued in a seething tone, “And attend a ballet school”.

These conditions were impossible for her to meet. At home, her dad drank away her tuition money. When she was home, Ivy felt as if there were security cameras hidden in the corners of the house–watching all the ways she failed her father.

Every few hours, there was a clang of glass on glass downstairs, as her father added his empty beer bottles to the growing stack. Ivy set a daily routine by figuring out how much time she could spend outside the house. She was her own hope and worst enemy.

A glass clattered to the floor in the kitchen and she was shocked back into reality.

Daydreaming at work offered an escape from reality and people. When she finished school, she would buy a ticket to the most isolated part of the world and stay there until she rotted. Ivy’s mind slipped away from her body and she felt as if she Image: Sanjida Rashid/Fulcrun.

was no longer in the cafe.

Suspended in time, people buzzed at hyperspeed and she moved slowly. Her coworker, Clara, looked over at her as she tidied up the counter in robotic motions. Ivy was not new to this experience of slipping away. Sometimes, when her father was unbearable, she could will this split to occur.

Clara, however, was alarmed and asked Ivy, “Are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” There were no ghosts in the cafe. Only the haunting presence of regrets and hopes that Ivy heard humming in small talk between strangers. Ivy thought she saw beyond the facade of daily life. She felt a perplexing sense of pride that she wasn’t afraid to die. It made her immune to the expectations she imposed on herself. She had long ago given up the dream of becoming a ballerina. The only appealing thing left in her life was leaving. But she was too tired to face even the most mundane reality.

So to cope she detached herself from it entirely.

Maybe if Clara was also hopeless, Ivy’s distance would make sense. But Clara smiled with ease and said things like “When I get married...” or “When I graduate...” as if she had a personal deal with the future and it would deliver right when she ordered.

“My own ideas of the future dissolve with every second”, Ivy thought, “And if I am just living misinterpreted ideas, why

am I here?”

Ivy had read that humans are made of the same things as stars–carbon, dust and envy.

It struck her as deeply wrong to compare breakable things like humans to eternal, fiery stars.

Humans bruise and break and cry, and stars shine and float and burn.

She felt that people could not be trusted to make accurate judgements of beauty. Beauty got her far in ballet. But it was all a hoax–unnatural and difficult to maintain. People saw her through stained glass, a distorted illusion that wouldn’t last. When Mrs. Dott slathered gel into Ivy’s gravity defying hair and she didn’t recognize what was most important was under her hair.

In a dark fluid floating in her skull was the twisted thing that allowed her to breathe, walk, and dance. Ivy thought, “So am I my body?”

Clara fumbled around, quickly closing the cafe and shooing customers out the door. Ivy stood dumbly behind the cash register, counting change. The little ballet girl and her mother were among the last to leave. As they passed Ivy she caught a slice of their conversation. “But I love that story,” wined the little girl, “they live happily ever after!” Her mother replied “People are not stories. And happy endings are hard to come by.”

Ivy agreed. Stories end happily ever after, and

she didn’t drink because of her father. Her past was infected with the darkness they shared and now Ivy was buried in an avalanche of uncertainty. Ivy thought, “Am I my history?”

Ivy and Clara went their separate ways into the inky indigo night. Ivy noticed the way the street lamps ahead lit the sidewalk intermittently. Sometimes it is washed with glowing light other times, it’s obscured by pockets of shadow. The sidewalk stretching into the abyss of the horizon reminded her of the invisible future. The dark tiles of sidewalk called to Ivy like graveyard soil.

How peaceful it must be to lie there in the dirt, relieved of my thoughts, yearnedIvy. Up in front of her she saw an old lady with greying, gravity defying hair. As the older Ivy walked alone in the crisp night air she appeared and disappeared in the street lights. Ivy was mesmerised, “She is me and I am her. Trying to pin down who we are is like trying to pin down a star. Now I’m here, now I’m there, I’m made of dust and I’m nowhere.”

The sidewalk laid still, inviting Ivy to dance. The option to escape her claustrophobic life at her father’s house made her chest flutter with anticipation.

Ivy was growing out of the darkness. Instead of burying herself, she would bury her father, Mrs. Dott and the cafe. And she would dance on the grave.

Opinions

Liberals Introduce Online Harms Bill

Bill C-63 adds fuel to the fire of already heated debates on Parliament Hill

On Feb. 26 2024, the long-awaited Bill C-63 (or the Online Harms Act) was tabled by the Liberal government, nearly three years after the party’s initial promise for further online safety legislation during their 2021 election campaign.

Justice Minister Arif Virani presented the legislation, emphasizing that the Bill will work to target harmful content and bad actors, focusing on protecting the internet’s most vulnerable users: children.

“Harmful content” under the new legislation is divided into seven categories, two of which would require a 24hour takedown response by the platform hosting the content, or companies can expect to face up to millions of dollars in penalties. Types of harmful content discussed include content that sexually victimizes children or re-victimizes a survivor, non-consensually shared sexual media, content that purposefully incites

hate or violence, violent extremism or terrorism, and content that is used to bully a child or encourage self-harm.

Additionally, the bill would see the establishment of a new digital safety commission to oversee the enforcement and subsequent success and failures of the new legislation, even equipped with its own ombudsperson.

the definition of online “hate speech” to be added to the Canadian Human Rights Acts (CHRA). This subsequently allows for hate-motivated crimes to be standalone offences, as well the expected sentencing would increase from a five-year maximum to a life in prison maximum. Further, individual victims of online hate speech are now allowed to file formal complaints

The most controversial element of the legislation is that Bill C-63 proposes the enshrinement of “hatred” in the Criminal Code, as well as

with the Canadian Human Rights Commission. Parents, victims of sexual abuse and hate crimes, and others simply in favour of stricter internet

regulation have rallied around the new bill.

However, Bill C-63 is also adding fuel to the fire over already heated debates on Parliament Hill concerning censorship and freedom. Opposing arguments emphasize that Bill C-63 could infringe on Canadians’ right to freedom of expression and that penalties such as life in prison may be too harsh.

However, Minster Virani did express in his following press conference that while hate speech will not be tolerated, being mean or awful will still be lawful.

Where one stands on this bill will likely be determined by how much you value protection and how much you value freedom. A delicate balance between both is surely what most would say, however, the literal formulation of this is impossible as it’s entirely subjective.

Who is the government to tell people what they can and can’t do on the internet? I fear someone who has never

been impacted by the disturbing and dark things that come from the internet, especially in terms of the targeting, exploitation, and sexual abuse of children may argue the latter. I would like to point out that there seems to be a non-existent presence of victims, whether sexual, hate, or bully-related, who are speaking in opposition to the bill and that silence speaks volumes.

Unfortunately, the empathy gap in Canadian society seems to grow by the second, and I wonder how many would continue standing in opposition if they or someone they loved had been a direct victim of these online harms. While this legislation may have come at an agonizingly slow pace I believe it is a step in the right direction for Canadian online safety. Quick tip: if you don’t want to be monitored while using public internet spaces, don’t use public internet spaces!

U of O, do you even want my money? Inquiring disabled students want to know Disabled? Don’t Be!

After studying for five years at the University of Ottawa as a disabled student, I think it fair to say that it isn’t the pillar of accessibility. Yes, most buildings on campus have at least one wheelchair-friendly entrance, and the U of O’s Student Academic Suc-

cess Service (or “SASS”) promises to meet a variety of needs a student with disabilities might require to finish their degrees…

On paper. Or well, in PDFs, really. But those needs better not include note-taking, hybrid learning, or elevators – all of which, I think, require

much more tactful reporting than what I am about to offer.

And so, in simple spite and celebration of my favourite Fine Arts building (100 Laurier) getting the last of its yearlong stone makeover, let’s go over a sample of the (un)accessible oopsies the U of O main campus has to offer.

100 Laurier

Home of painters, potheads, and missionary ghosts, 100 Laurier (LRR) has all of the charm of a Gothic Revival castle paired with polished linoleum flooring. Given that it precedes the University’s Building Code, it’s unsurprising that barrier-free paths are

non-existent.

Heavy doors welcome visitors. Two sets of three flights of stairs traverse the building, once on the main floor. The main one has ample space for a stairlift, though its addition might detract from the aesthetics of warbled flooring and loose tiles. And really, who would ever want

Kai Holub

Kyla Perry

Image: Alex Martin/Fulcrum.

to improve the interior of the building when its exterior rocks are in dire need of polishing?

Anyways!

LRR’s bathrooms in the basement and on the second floor are gender-inclusive, cool. That being said, none of them are wide enough to accommodate a wheelchair user, let alone larger bodies. Plus, for the basement ones at least, there are staircases barring their use, if somehow a wheelchair user could make it down two flights of stairs or over a step at the ground level entrance.

Current or future disabled students hoping to study Fine Arts are forced to either contend with the discriminating infrastructure or study elsewhere entirely.

Pérez Hall

Of all of the Fine or Performing Arts buildings, the department of music’s is the only one with an elevator. A big win when it’s functional.

Pérez is also the only one of the Arts buildings to be connected to the passerelles system; a long stretch of indoor walkways connecting Pérez to Morriset, to Jock-Turcot… all the way to Vanier. And, since Pérez’s (occasionally) working elevator does lead to the passerelles on the third floor, folks with mobility limitations can follow along a winter-proof, barrier-free trajectory.

That is, only if they can get to it. Admittedly, Pérez does have power-operated doors right off of University Private. Its other Cumberland entrance, though, does not. Two doors lead to a rounded hallway where there’s the Freiman Hall for performances on

one side, and washrooms on the other.

The lovely, universal sign for accessible stalls is pasted on the two gendered doors. Funny thing is, I couldn’t find a button to open any of the washroom entrances.

And this quirky little washroom sign incongruence isn’t only reserved to Pérez. Even some of the more contemporary additions to the main campus seem to struggle with recognizing accessible bathrooms as a basic need. Cute!

STEM Complex

Unsurprisingly though, the science and engineering building has no toilet troubles. Disabled students and staff have access to ADA-compliant universal rooms, as well as braille-marked multi-stalls on every floor.

Beyond just having an overall light-inviting design, the STEM Complex is also almost entirely barrier-free. A large sinuous platform leads to the power-operated main entrance. Generous hallways surround laboratories and offices. Two elevators allow for 6-storey travel. It’s perfect.

Almost.

As I was making my way throughout the building, I stumbled upon an underground tunnel leading to Marion Hall. Curious, I pressed on the button to see a) if it worked, and b) if it was as wheelchair accessible as the blue sign seemed to suggest.

Imagine my surprise when, at the very end of the tunnel, I was met with a regular, crash bar door. The best part was that, once on the other side, a cute little panel informed me of the mobility-friendly access point down the hall. Right

over there. Behind the second pair of doors.

Marion Hall

As my first official introduction to Marion Hall, the tunnel gave me little hope in terms of accessibility. Still, I walked through the basement until I reached my destination: the promised elevator. None of its buttons lit up when pressed. It did, however, finally rattle and creak its way up to the first floor once I closed the elevator.

Aside from the wonky ride, Marion Hall does also have a stairlift that leads to Auditorium 150 on the ground floor. The hallways surrounding the classroom, however, could prove to be cumbersome given their width. But hey, at least there’s a ramp to get through the building, so who’s really complaining?

Desmarais Building

Finally, who could forget the U of O’s cinderblock poster child: the Desmarais Building (DMR). Home to the Telfer School of Management, the Faculty of Social Science, as well as our friends at SASS, the DMR is an impressive 12-storeys of

glass and concrete. Coincidentally, the campus’ pride and joy was also the inspiration for this piece.

Weeks ago, as I was heading to my 8:30 am class, the marriage of early morning exhaust and disability-induced fatigue urged me to test the ADA power plate. To my surprise, the door didn’t budge. I tried it again another day, to no avail. Since then, I’ve had to enter by the Mackenzie King bridge entrance. Note that the doors open slowly. Slower, when the wind pushes them back. But hey, at least there’s a button.

The same can’t be said for washroom entrances above the third floor. Much like the ones in Pérez, some DMR facilities include and promise an accessible stall within the room (by way of having that trusty symbol), but have no nearby activator to even get through the first door.

This sort of design flaw is somewhat forgivable when it comes to older buildings on campus, but to have inaccessible washrooms in one built in 2007 by an “award-winning architectural firm” is beyond in-

sulting.

Final Thoughts

As a disabled student with fibromyalgia, I don’t need accessible entrances and stuff all the time. I can run (sometimes), walk a few flights, and hold doors for the pals (again, sometimes). And I’ll only really find out if I shouldn’t have the next day. But some people desperately need the aid at all times. Some folks have classes on Desmarais’ 9th floor and can’t just “hold it in” because some guy forgot to add a few wires to doors.

Students with disabilities deserve to be able to move around campus and to attend the classes of their choosing — especially in a society that consistently demands higher education. If the University of Ottawa truly does believe in the core values it promotes on its website, then it should “strive to deliver the best experience to every student” regardless of physical or psychological ability. And, surprise surprise, it isn’t doing great. But, who knows, maybe accessibility will be “in” next year? Fingers crossed.

Image: Sanjida Rashid/Fulcrum.

AcknowledgementS

CONTRIBUTORS

The Fulcrum would like to thank

Arya Gunde

Angélique Pinto

Kyla Perry

Alex Martin for their contributions to this issue.

EDITORIAL BOARD

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Bridget Coady (she/her) editor@thefulcrum.ca

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Shailee Shah (she/her) news@thefulcrum.ca

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