The Concordian - September 20th, 2016

Concordia University’s weekly, independent student newspaper

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VOLUME 34, ISSUE 4 | TUESDAY, SEPT. 20, 2016

theconcordian.com  /theconcordian  @theconcordian

theconcordian

Learning a new language Decoding financial

university statements

Life p. 7

also in this issue

news

arts

music

opinions

sports

Garneau talks An opera set in POPping perforIs artificial turf climate change p.3 Ancient Egypt p. 11 mances in Mtl p. 12 dangerous?

p. 14

Mental health and medication p. 18

news

NEWS EDITORS /// news@theconcordian.com SAVANNA CRAIG & NELLY SERANDOUR-AMAR ( @savannacraig @nellysamar03)

CITY IN BRIEF VALERIA CORI-MANOCCHIO COPY EDITOR Plamondon Metro Hit and Run

CAMPUS

Getting back on TRAC

Members vote for equal pay for all levels of study—TAs and RAs allotted a 1 per cent raise

Police are searching for the male driver of a silver Porsche Macan, who was involved in a hit and run outside Plamondon metro early Sept. 18, according to CJAD. A 25-year-old woman and 21-year-old woman were hit leaving the metro station as they crossed Victoria Avenue in the borough of Côte Des Neiges-NDG. CTV reported a witness saw the driver speeding and later failing to stop once the women were hit. The two women were taken to the hospital and are respectively in critical and stable condition.

Firebombs at local Haitian radio station The Montreal arson squad has taken over the investigation of a firebombing at a local Haitian radio station, CPAM 1410, on Sept. 18. CTV News reported no one was injured and the police said the station was not severely damaged.

Security footage from the scene reveals an individual spraying gasoline along the side of the building before chucking a brick through a window and launching a bottle with flammable liquid into the station. This is the third time since 2012 the St. Michel-based station has been firebombed, according to CTV News.

Arrest of two SaintHyacinthe teens for alleged plot to murder

Two Saint-Hyacinthe teens were arrested and later charged with three counts of conspiracy to commit murder and assault.

On Sept. 15, the 14-year-old and 16-year-old appeared in court. Their plot to kill three of their acquaintances was revealed after police conducted a search at the teenagers’ school, École Polyvalente Hyacinthe-Delorme,asreported by the CBC. It was a parent of one of the teenagers who alerted the police about her son’s disturbing online activities, according to the Montreal Gazette. They will remain in custody until their bail hearing scheduled for Sept. 20, 2016.

TA's and RA's voted to ratify to recieve a raise on Sept. 14. Photo by Alex Hutchins.

BY SAVANNA CRAIG CO-NEWS EDITOR Teaching and Research Assistants of Concordia University (TRAC) voted for equal pay grades for teaching assistants (TAs) and research assistants (RAs) at all levels of study at their general assembly held on Sept. 14.

Before the voting began, TRAC President Nader Jafari Nodoushan discussed that if TRAC members— being TAs, RAs and invigilators—were to vote to ratify a new pay grade structure, it would be implemented for both TA’s and RA’s, resulting in an increase to both of their minimum pay grades by one per cent. Jafari Nodoushan said TA pay grades in all faculties would be an equal pay rate of $24.93 per hour, while markers pay rate would rise to $17.11, regardless of faculty or level of study. Jafari Nodoushan said someone who marks work qualifies as a marker, however, someone that does anything more qualifies as a TA. Previously, the pay rates varied from faculty and level of study.

Following the meeting, Jafari Nodoushan told The Concordian markers at Concordia are receiving the highest pay rate for a university marker in Quebec, while TAs are being paid the second highest. “All other universities [in Quebec] except McGill have lower pay grades [for TAs] than Concordia University,” said Jafari Nodoushan. He stressed the fact that a time sheet created

by TRAC will ensure members will be paid properly for the hours they worked.

Robert Sonin, former TRAC president and a current member of the organization due to his work as an invigilator, claims TRAC is disorganized—he said they didn’t release the agreement prior to the general meeting.

He said members were not given the actual agreement at the event, only a summary which did not allow them enough time to assess the agreement.

“That paper they got, it’s not what they signed. It’s just an explanation of what they signed,” Sonin said.

Sonin said he believes that, as a result of higher pay rates, the hours

allotted to TAs will be reduced.

“Concordia will do what it has to do to keep within its budget,” said Sonin. “If you have a limited budget to pay for TA hours and the price goes up, you can afford fewer hours.”

When asked if pay raises could result in hour cuts, Jafari Nodoushan said it is hard to say whether hours will be cut.

“Our members are receiving the difference between the new pay structure and also the old pay structure in the summer—we have the numbers, and it’s showing that there hasn’t been any cut on the hours,” said Jafari Nodoushan. This means members will have their pay compensated from the hours they worked in the summer to be paid the new raise that was voted after the general assembly. “It can’t be said easily that Concordia will cut the hours because the pay grade is increasing,” he said.

When asked if Concordia is increasing their budget towards TAs and RAs this academic year, Jafari Nodoushan said not all the contracts had been paid in full. “We don't have the exact numbers of

how much the TA budget has been increased in the summer.” He said it would be released in Concordia’s financial report.

Regarding the budget allotted to TAs and RAs this academic year, Concordia University spokesperson Chris Mota said, “the agreement in principle hasn’t been approved by the board yet, so there is no number available to share at this point, making a comparison impossible.”

Jafari Nodoushan believes the pay raises will result in more equal payment for members, because pays will no longer vary between department and level of study— undergraduates were previously being paid less than graduate students. “Equity is to treat all the labourers in an equally bound way, not to hire cheaper labourers or make them overloaded because they are cheaper labourers,” he said.

Jafari Nodoushan said he believed this new pay rate would not result in graduates being picked over undergraduates, now that they have equal pay. “As far as I know, many professors prefer to have undergrad students hired, especially those in the third or fourth year of their bachelor [degree], to get more experience.” he said. “I believe this intention will remain.”

Last April, Sonin filed a complaint against TRAC to Quebec’s branch of the national labour union Public Service Alliance of Canada. Sonin had requested access to financial history due to a discrepancy of $16,348.93 in financial reports.

Being a member, he was entitled to these documents. However, he was only allowed to view an Excel spreadsheet, being refused access to financial documents and receipts.

When The Concordian asked Jafari Nodoushan if he had an update regarding the discrepancy we reported on in April 2016, he said that a follow-up will not be released until later. “We are in the process of an investigation and it needs to be done first,” Jafari Nodoushan said. “After we will be able to release all the results.”

Graphic by Florence Yee.

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

ENVIRONMENT

Liberal minister discusses climate change

Minister Marc Garneau meets with Montrealers to talk about environmental issues

BY NELLY SERANDOUR-AMAR CO-NEWS EDITOR Transport Minister Marc Garneau discussed climate change while giving a voice to Montreal citizens to voice their concerns, at the Loyola chapel on Sept. 15.

The conference started with a quick presentation regarding the federal government’s goals to prevent climate change from worsening.

“It is clear that it is a subject very dear to Canadians,” said Garneau.

“Last December, our Prime Minister and Minister of the Environment were very much involved at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris,” said Garneau, adding that it was at that moment “Canada took a serious engagement towards greenhouse gases.”

During the UN conference, according to The Globe and Mail, Canada had pledged to, by 2030, cut its emissions by 30 per cent from 2005 levels. Emission reduction goals set by the 1997 Kyoto Protocol were not met. On an international level, developed countries committed to spend at least $100 billion a year between 2020 and 2025 to help emerging economies deal with the effects of climate change. Finally, all countries were urged to save their remaining intact forests and leave fossil fuels in the ground.

Given that climate change is one of the greatest challenges humans face, Garneau said the Liberal government believes it’s time to build a strong, clean and sustainable economy for the sake of Canadians and the environment.

According to the official Canadian government’s website on climate change, the country’s temperature

has warmed up by 1.6 celsius, in the last 50 years—double the global average—causing more extreme weather patterns and increasing snowfall in the northwest arctic, which puts many Canadians and indigenous communities at risk.

Garneau emphasized that taking on this challenge of creating a greener economy will require help from the entire Montreal community and the rest of Canada.

He then presented Canada’s plan for dealing with climate change: • Mitigation: How and where will we reduce these emissions?

• Innovation: Seeking ideas for new technologies and jobs • Carbon pricing: A-must-be paid price for the right to emit the gas into the atmosphere • Adaptation and resilience: A plan to prepare for any impact that climate change will have on Canadians and the rest of the world The minister also presented a chart that broke down Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions across sectors: Oil and Gas (26 per cent), Electricity (11 per cent), Transport (23 per cent), Energy-Intensive, Trade Exposed (EITE) industries (10 per cent), Buildings (12 per cent), Agriculture (10 per cent), and Waste and others (7 per cent).

As his presentation came to an end, Garneau asked a few questions to the audience. For example, he asked: “What measures can individuals and governments take to reduce greenhouse gas emissions?” He also asked: “What are some ideas to promote innovation, new technologies and job creation aimed at reducing greenhouse gases?”

About 40 people stood up for their allotted two minutes to voice

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NATION IN BRIEF KATYA TEAGUE HEAD COPY EDITOR

New nation-wide carbon price Federal Environment Minister Catherine McKenna announced the Liberal government will be imposing a minimum national carbon price on any province that fails to implement its own carbon tax or cap-and-trade system, according to the Globe and Mail. According to the same article, the plan is already meeting resistance or opposition from various premiers. Quebec, for example, which already has a cap-and-trade system, is worried federal intervention will force them to toughen their policies. Nonetheless, the article states that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hopes to establish a national plan before early November.

Marijuana exhibition in Vancouver

Minister Marc Garneau listens to Montrealers concerns. Photos by Ana Hernandez.

opinions and share their concerns.

When Raphael Côté, a student from UQAM, took the microphone, he spoke about the pie chart breaking down Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions.

He explained how the majority of greenhouse gas emissions, including electricity, oil, gas, transport, EITE, buildings and water all come to a total of 90 per cent of the gas emissions. “The only vital

A group of Montrealers asked Garneau questions after his presentation. Photo by Nelly Serandour-Amar.

need [for greenhouse gases] is [in] agriculture,” Côté said. “Would you be ready to attack the industries responsible for producing these greenhouse gases?”

Garneau answered by saying the government is working with the UN to reduce activities of industries that produce greenhouse gases.

Garneau invited those who hadn’t had a chance to speak to email him questions and suggestions. Similarly, Shane Johnston, a volunteer from VraiPlan Climat, was also a part of the event. Vrai-Plan Climat is a non-profit organization developed after Trudeau’s government’s new national climate strategy for Canada came out. They work to ensure no one is being left behind in this government plan. Vrai Plan Climat believes that the following three principles should be at the center of the strategy: They want a plan that aligns with the science of climate change, a plan that builds 100 per cent renewable energy economy and a plan that is justice-based.

On Thursday night, Johnston was collecting emails to stay connected with audience members, so the organization can plan different events related to implementing the three goals Vrai-Plan climat has for the government’s plan. She added that it is extremely important that the Montreal community works together at a time when the environment is so fragile.

Lift Cannabis Co. hosted a two-day marijuana exhibition this past weekend in Vancouver, which welcomed more than 100 exhibitors — from seed sellers to firms offering financing for marijuana-related businesses, according to Global News. A Lift Cannabis Co. spokeswoman told Global News that the event was organized in the hopes of breaking down stereotypes and giving more credibility to the industry. The exhibition also hosted various panels on a wide range of marijuana topics, including parents sharing their experiences of treating their children with cannabis, reported Global News.

Trudeau to address the UN General Assembly Justin Trudeau will speak before the United Nations General Assembly for the first time as Prime Minister on Tuesday to present his plan to re-engage Canada’s involvement with the UN. Robert Fowler, former Canadian ambassador to the UN, told the Globe and Mail he anticipates Trudeau’s speech will “drive home the message thatCanadaisintentonresuming its role as a committed, constructive and creative UN member state.” Part of this role includes the recent commitment of up to 600 Canadian Forces troops to UN peace operations, and investment in a new $450 million peacekeeping program, according to the Globe and Mail.

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theconcordian

WORLD IN BRIEF KATERINA GANG COPY EDITOR New York and New Jersey bombings linked to same suspect New York and New Jersey were the sites of three bombings this past weekend. According to CNN, on Saturday, a garbage can exploded near the start of a Marine Corps 5k race in Seaside Park, N.J. and later that evening, a bomb exploded in Manhattan’s Chelsea district, leaving 29 people injured. On Sunday, a backpack containing several bombs was found in Elizabeth, N.J – further investigation lead to the detonation of one bomb. According to CBC, police believe the bombings are tied to a foreign terror cell operating in the two states.

Ahmad Khan Rahami, 28, was apprehended by police after a shootout Monday morning in connection to the three bombings, according to CBC.

Paralympics come to a close The Rio 2016 Paralympics came to a close this past Sunday.

According to The Star, China finished first, winning 239 medals. Britain came in second with 147, and Ukraine in third with 117. Canada placed 13th overall, winning 29 medals.

According to The Star, 2 million tickets sold for the Games, making this the second most attended Paralympics in history.

The closing ceremony was marked with a somber note, however, as a moment of silence was planned for Iranian cyclist Bahman Golbarnezhad – the first Paralympian to die while competing.

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

PROTEST

Montrealers get decorative with parking spaces

Park(ing) day is an international event that 35 countries are a part of FREDERIC MUCKLE VIDEO EDITOR Parking spaces around the globe were decorated last Friday, as part of the annual international Park(ing) Day. The way the event works is simple: find yourself a parking space and use this otherwise bland piece of asphalt as a blank canvas to create a temporary park or creative public space.

According to Park(ing) Day’s website, the event is designed to bring attention to the need for more urban open spaces and to facilitate a discussion regarding how public spaces are allocated and used.

The Concordia University Young Greens participated and designed their own green space during the event. They had a few plants set up in their space. William Gagnon, the President of the Concordia ambassadors group for the Green Party of Canada, explained the event is great for showing people alternative ways to use parking spaces and the effect that those have on a larger scale.

“It has a lot of effect, because everything that is little disruptive gives some food for thought, ” said Gagnon. “It just brings awareness and education.”

The annual event started back in 2005, with only one parking space in San Francisco occupied by art and design studio Rebar. Now, people and Check out organizations are taking theconcordian.com for over parking spaces a video interview with in 35 countries around Concordia University the world on every third Young Greens President Friday of September.

The Concordia William Gagnon.

This was the fifth year University the event was held in Young Green Montreal. participated, along with otherMontrealers. Photos courtesy of Young Greens and by Mishkat Hafiz.

ENVIRONMENT

Sharing concerns about pipelines

Indigenous community members ask the public to join them in defending their land

Vanessa Gray, Kiona Akohserà:ke Deer and Onroniateka Diabo spoke at the event. Photo by Ana Hernandez.

Syrian ceasefire ends

Sunday saw the first airstrike in Syria since a U.S. and Russian truce went into effect last Monday. According to the CBC, Syrian opposition activists are claiming rebel-held neighbourhoods in Aleppo have been hit. Several people were wounded in the process.

According to the CBC, insurgents agreed to the truce in order to address the dire humanitarian situation in areas under their control – Russia is being blamed for undermining this truce.

According to the CBC, the ceasefire was meant to last until Sunday at midnight, but both sides claimed violations occurred before that.

JOSHUA DE COSTA STAFF WRITER On Sept. 13, Divest Concordia and the Concordia Student Union (CSU) invited three Indigenous activists to discuss the effects of climate change and why they oppose oil companies, which they s ay a re d e s t roy i n g t h e i r communities.

The speakers included Vanessa Gray, a youth activist from the Aamjiwnaang First Nation near Sarnia, Ont., and Kiona Akohserà:ke Deer and Onroniateka Diabo, who are both from the Kahnawake Mohawk Territory. Akohserà:ke Deer and Diabo recently returned from Standing Rock, where protests over the North Dakota Pipeline are taking place.

The discussion began as Gray outlined the challenges facing the Aamjiwnaang First Nation community.

She said the area is surrounded by over 60 high-emitting facilities, which make up over 40 per cent of Canada’s petrochemical industry.

Even then, it is “impossibly hard,” she said, to mobilize the 800 residents against climate change.

“Climate change is not the subject people want to talk about in Sarnia,” she said. “In a place where education is shared—let’s take Concordia for example—talking about climate change might be easier than [in] a place where everyone’s livelihood is based off [gas companies like] Shell or Suncor.”

Companies that are not being held accountable for negligence are damaging the environment, said Gray, and the population is also affected by it.

According to Gray, thirty per cent of women in Aamjiwnaang have experienced miscarriages or stillbirths within their lifetime. “This

is just based on where they live—not based on diet or what the mother is doing,” she said.

In an ongoing court case, Gray said she is facing heavy charges for her role in the December shutdown of Line 9—a pipeline with the capacity to carry 300,000 barrels of oil a day between Sarnia, Ont. and Montreal.

This year, the pipeline turned 40 years old.

“We cannot survive a pipeline rupture like Line 9 because there’s no way of cleaning it up. This is why I’m facing life in prison—because there is no other choice at this point,” Gray said. “It’s just one of the many issues that connects us all. It connects me to you, because this pipeline starts in my backyard and ends here [in Montreal].”

Akohserà:ke Deer shared what changes she recently noticed taking place in her Kahnawake community, and what she had learned since

returning from Standing Rock.

She said she had been approached by young people outside the community who were looking for a way to work together. A lot of the elders are still reluctant to welcome those not of Indigenous descent, Akohserà:ke Deer said, however, claiming she believes her generation is more open.

She further encouraged people to get the word out via social media, about the social injustices faced by Indigenous communities not just locally, but globally as well.

For anyone looking to get directly involved, Akohserà:ke Deer said: “Try to educate yourselves a little bit before you walk into somebody else’s community. There’s different protocols everywhere. In Kahnawake, how we mobilize is completely different from how they mobilize now in Standing Rock.”

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

theconcordian

ng for i k o o l rdian is s to o t c n n e o m C t r a e p h T all de m o r f wspaper! s e n e m writer o s ur awe o p u e c spi R OFFICE, U O Y B P O ST AT NOON. Y A D I R F AN.COM ARE EVERY !

I D S R G O N C I N T O E C E E U WEEKLY M O MEET YO L US AT EDITOR@TH T E V O L D I WE WOUL LA OR EMA O Y O L T A CC -431

The Concordian is looking for a

Business Manager

Do you have bookkeeping experience?

We are looking for someone with knowledge of QuickBooks or comparable small business accounting software.

The business manager is our day-today office administratorw

Your Responsibilities: Handling payroll, paying suppliers, banking, invoicing advertisers, paying taxes, accounting & various other duties

Anyone interested should contact the board of directors, directors@theconcordian.com with an attached CV.

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life

LIFE EDITOR /// life@theconcordian.com DANIELLE GASHER

WELLNESS

The steps to standing up to sexual violence Concordia’s Sexual Assault Resource Centre hosted a workshop on bystander intervention

At the workshop, the four "D"s of intervention were explained. Photo by Andrej Ivanov.

MINA MAZUMDER ASSISTANT LIFE EDITOR Concordia’s Sexual Assault Resource Centre hosted a bystander intervention workshop for students as part of Concordia’s CSU Wellness Day on Sept. 15.

The purpose of the workshop was to increase safety on campus and provide support for survivors of sexual assault.

Jennifer Drummond, coordinator of the Sexual Assault Resource Center, led the workshop. She explained that sexual violence is an umbrella term that includes sexual abuse, sexual assault and sexual harassment. She defined sexual assault as

involving non-consensual sexual contact such as kissing or penetration, while sexual harassment constitutes unwanted looks, comments or jokes of a sexual nature.

Drummond said “bystander intervention” is when a person sees a potentially dangerous-looking situation and speaks up about someone else’s language or behaviour, whether it is inappropriate, hurtful, abusive or dangerous. “It’s about preventing situations from escalating to sexual violence. We teach people how to intervene and to become active bystanders. It helps to shift the culture to one of consent and respect,” she said.

Drummond said it is important to have these kinds of workshops because sexual

violence is all too common. According to Statistics Canada, one in four women will experience some form of sexual violence during their lifetime—the most vulnerable period being between the ages of 18 and 24.

In addition, one in six men will face sexual violence, but it is usually more common during childhood.

Drummond said that there are many reasons why a bystander would not want to intervene, including due to the “bystander effect.” “[The bystander effect] is a phenomenon [where] the more bystanders are witnessing a violent situation, the less likely … anyone will do anything because everyone thinks that someone else will intervene and no one does,” Drummond explained.

Many bystanders tend to feel awkward about intervening or think that it's none of their business, but it is better to be safe than sorry, Drummond said. Another barrier for intervention is safety. Drummond said she does not encourage people to intervene if it would put their own safety at risk. In such cases, Drummond suggested getting support from friends, other bystanders or even the police.

Drummond also explained the four “D”s of intervention strategies, which are crucial actions for every bystander think about before taking action. The fours “D”s are distract, direct, delegate and delay. The first “D” is about distracting the victim or the

attacker with an irrelevant question. This takes the victim of the harassment away from the situation, allowing them to find an escape route. “Direct” intervention is about directly addressing the situation and calling out the attacker’s inappropriate behaviour.

The “delegate” method involves getting immediate help from other people such as friends, other bystanders or an authoritative figure to intervene in the situation. “Delaying” works as a last resort. If for some reason or other, a friend insists she or he doesn’t need help, or is comfortable with the person or people accompanying them, then you can delay your intervention to the next day. You basically don’t want to force your help on, but you want to check in with the victim as soon as possible.

The Sexual Assault Resource Centre also offers other workshops, trainings and presentations about consent and bystander intervention.

If you are a victim of sexual violence, please contact the toll-free helpline for victims: 1-888-933-9007, or visit Concordia University’s Sexual Assault Resource Centre located at the Sir George Williams Campus in room GM-300.27.

For immediate danger on campus, you can reach security at 514-848-3717.

DISCUSSION

Black, big, beautiful: a “Real Talk” about body-shaming DESTA hosted a talk about the preconceived notions surrounding overweight black women DANIELLE GASHER LIFE EDITOR A discussion about the stereotypes and negative connotations associated with overweight black women, and the media’s effect on the way society perceives black women’s bodies took place at last week’s DESTA Black Youth Network “Real Talk” session.

DESTA, an acronym for “Dare Every Soul To Achieve”, is a non-profit, community-based organization that serves marginalized and at-risk youth, aged 18 to 25 in Montreal.

According to DESTA’s website, the organization’s mission is to mentor these youths in the areas of education, health, personal development and employment through activities, workshops and mentor support.

Personal accounts, understanding and attentive ears filled the room in DESTA’s basement on Sept. 14. Sitting in front of a half-moon-shaped crowd of about 30 attendees, 22-year-old LaSalle college fashion marketing student Nyoka Hunter led her first “Real Talk” discussion entitled “Fat Black Women: How We Do Them Wrong.”

The “Real Talk” monthly discussions are

part of a new series DESTA has launched.

The discussions are open to the public, with the goal of providing a learning centre, and a welcoming environment to address different social issues affecting Montreal’s marginalized youth. The discussion sessions don’t feature any experts or specialists, but instead have only one facilitator—someone to guide the talk, open the floor for discussion, and to present the matter in a researched, but personal way.

The success of DESTA’s “Real Talk” on cultural appropriation inspired Hunter to create this event. “I heard a lot of different perspectives surrounding the topic, and that motivated me to want to do this event based on fat black women and how they are perceived in the media, [by] their families, friends, just in general,” she said.

Hunter began the discussion by talking about how the media portrays overweight black women. She addressed black women’s place in Hollywood, and the types of acting roles that leaner black women might get, in comparison to overweight black women.

According to a Vice News article released on Sept. 7, a new University of California study found that out of 35,205 characters from the 800 films studied between 2007

DESTA stands for "Dare Every Soul To Achieve." Photo by Danielle Gasher.

and 2015, only 31.5 per cent of speaking characters were female, and only 26.3 per cent of the total amount of characters were racial minorities.

Not only are black women underrepresented on the big screen, but like other minority groups in the area, they are also not necessarily being well represented.

In a 2013 USA TODAY article, journalist Arienne Thompson discussed how the roles available for black women in Hollywood still lack depth. In the article, interview subject Jubba Seyyid, the senior director of programming of TV One, a black-oriented cable network, said the roles available are one-dimensional. She explained how black

women are always depicted as agressive and “bitchy,” creating characters that lack balance.

Hunter also talked about the fashion industry and “fatphobia,” as well as the so-called “plus-sized models” of the industry.

“The industry advertises these average-sized girls as being ‘acceptable fat,’” said Hunter.

However, she said body-loving and feminist social media personalities and activists such as Ashleigh Shackelford and Mercedes Brissett are shedding light on black women and weight. Hunter said it is important to raise new questions and discuss different perspectives to keep the dialogue rolling.

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

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COVER STORY

Learning the language of university finances The CAUT releases a new guide to help decode university budgets and financial statements

DANIELLE GASHER LIFE EDITOR The Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) released a financial guide to facilitate the reading of post-secondary institutions’ financial statements and budgets.

The 27-page guide, which was made available on Sept. 8, was written by University of Manitoba accounting professors Janet and Cameron Morrill. According to the association’s website, the document is a step-by-step guide with the goal to assist academic staff in identifying and understanding the revenues, including types of funding, coming into post-secondary institutions.

The CAUT is a professional association that was formed in 1951 with the purpose of advocating for its members and academic freedom. Today, the association represents 68,000 teachers, researchers, librarians and other academic staff across the country.

David Robinson, CAUT’s director, believes the guide can benefit everyone.

“I believe it’s useful for anybody who wants to know what the true financial status of an institution is,” he said in an interview with The Concordian. “So when institutions are saying: ‘We have to raise tuition fees because we’re out of money,’ here’s a way that you can interrogate that.

It might be true, it might not be true,” said Robinson.

According to the guide, institutions get their money mainly from provincial governments, tuition fees and private donors. Professors Morrill and Morrill explained their approach to analyzing university and college financial statements is to identify the amounts and origin of the resources available to universities, in order to determine what kind of additional support for academic teaching and research the institutions’ revenues can provide.

Essentially, the guide not only makes reading financial statements easier, but it also ensures that the reader

can begin to comprehend universities’ budget-cutting strategies to further analyze or question these strategies.

In a message posted on Concordia’s website on June 29, Concordia President Alan Shepard explained that the university’s revenues from grants and tuitions fees for the 2016-17 year weren’t enough to see a significant lowering of the deficit.

As a strategy to diminish the university’s $6.3 million deficit, this year’s budget included two different Voluntary Retirement Programs—one for full-time

full-time professors.

Academic institutions’ financial statements contain a lot of columns, rows, and most of all, a lot of big numbers. Many of these numbers have been on the rise over the past decade. According to a Canadian Federation of Students statistic cited in a 2015 CBC article, during the 1960s and 1970s, governments covered more than 90 per cent of costs for post-secondary institutions. By 2013, that figure was down to 57 per cent. According to Statistics Canada, public funding is lowering, and

faculty, and one for parttime faculty.

These buyout programs, whereby profe s s or s are offered a certain amount of money to retire early, are a way to reduce university expenses by spending less on tenured,

therefore, being dramatically replaced by rising tuition fees.

According to Statistics Canada, for the 2014-15 year, total expenditures were approximately $560 million higher than the previous year. Revenues from tuition fees was close to $500 million higher than the previous year. The total revenues of all Canadian colleges and universities for the 2014-15 year were close to $36 billion, a big jump up from $35 billion, the year before. According to Morrill and

Morrill, many institutions claim to be in bad financial situations, but the numbers tend to make it seem otherwise.

The numbers are there, the numbers are big, and they can be confusing. What exactly does the “other fees” row in the financial statements refer to? And why is it only ever on the rise, whereas Health Canada revenues and “miscellaneous” revenues fluctuate from year to year?

These are the kinds of questions that the guide sets out to answer, or at least, to clarify. “We try to establish whether the institution has unexpended resources that it could use to improve employee compensation and the sustainability of those resources,” explain Morrill and Morrill in the guide.

Concordia’s direc tor of media relations, Chris Mota, says Concordia fully supports this guide, and what it is trying to accomplish. “Financial literacy is something Concordia puts high priority on,” she told The Concordian.

Mota said this kind of guide is useful for everyone, but student associations and the student press can especially benefit from it, as they are often faced with the task of dissecting university budgets and numbers. “You can’t be an expert on everything, and universities have their own language,” Mota added.

The CAUT guide, and the questions it sets out to answer, are all part of the larger issue of academic institutions’ spending. While the CAUT guide cannot directly address the larger issue of where money should be going, it can provide information to help answer the crucial questions of where the money is going, and whether or not institutions are hiding anything in their cryptic rows of numbers and monetary amounts.

“It’s important for institutions to be transparent in their financial dealings.

We think this [guide] provides an interesting way and a helpful guide to allow [CAUT] members, but also students and the general public, to get a clearer sense of the actual state of the university and college finances,” Robinson said.

Graphic by Thom Bell.

arts

ARTS EDITOR /// arts@theconcordian.com JESSICA KINNARI & TIFFANY LAFLEUR

INSTALLATION

When office supplies become art

We Make Carpets, a three-person Dutch collective, uses elastic bands and paper clips to create art TIFFANY LAFLEUR CO-ARTS EDITOR Who would have anticipated that the modest paper clip would have its big break as a carpet?

In Bend and Stretch, the three-person Dutch collective We Make Carpets uses everyday office supplies to construct intricate and enthralling pieces. Two of their installations, one assembled with paper clips and the other with elastic bands, are featured at Diagonale centre des arts et des fibres du Québec and were created in the gallery itself.

The piece made from elastic spans the length of the room, with the coloured bands stretched out between nails hammered into the wall.

The bands connect and intersect, forming geometric patterns such as triangles, squares and lines.

The second piece, made from thousands of paper clips, spans over roughly six feet of the floor of the exhibit. Hundreds of paper clips of different colours, which are placed in various directions, create a pattern. The rows of paper clips mostly run parallel to each other but are broken up here and there by slanted pieces, adding texture.

The installations are interesting both in their complexity and simplicity. The use of

We Make Carpets uses everyday items in their artwork to produce intricate yet grandiose designs.

Photos by Tiffany Lafleur.

one material to create these works, such as elastic bands or tons of paper clips, makes them appear simplistic. However, from afar, the viewer can take in the colour and geometrically-inspired patterns, enjoying the overall cohesiveness of the piece. The distance at which you view the piece impacts its effect. It is fun to view them from a few steps back, but it is equally interesting to get in close and take in the details. The closer you get to the piece, the more you appreciate the

thousands of little parts that form the whole.

If an elastic were to snap or a paper clip were to be nudged, the synchronicity would be thrown off and the installation would lose its significance.

The relationship these works have with space is intriguing. These installations are supposed to imitate carpets: the lowly rugs that children wipe their hands on and adults vacuum once in a blue moon—the item we've traditionally brought outside every spring, whacking with a broom to dislodge the dust. These pieces could very well be carpets – except that to step on them would destroy them. Typically, a carpet wouldn’t inspire such minute scrutiny. But in the space of the gallery, the carpets become a valuable object to be admired and interpreted.

The fragile nature of these art pieces makes us question how we use their parts. If paper clips can create something as elaborate as a carpet, maybe they are meant to do more than just secure a bunch of papers together. The exhibition overall makes you wonder about our relationship with common, everyday stationary objects. If an elastic band can become a work of art, then practically anything can have artistic value. It just requires us to look differently at mundane objects and see their uniqueness. öö Bend and Stretch is open until Oct. 15. Diagonale is open Thursday to Saturday from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m, and admission to the gallery is free.

PHOTOGRAPHY

Diving down into the depths of Honduras

In Liwa Mairin, the interactions the Moskitia people have with water are represented through portraits

Liwa Mairin tells a story about the Moskitia People. Photo by Valérian Mazataud.

TIFFANY LAFLEUR CO-ARTS EDITOR The Moskitia, an indigenous group in Honduras, have a very interesting relationship with water.

Their survival and livelihood depends on it, as it provides them with the lobsters,

sea cucumbers and other marine wildlife that they harvest to sell. However, it also poses serious risks, with an estimated 2,000 to 3,000 divers in Honduras currently suffering from spinal cord injuries resulting from long deep dives, according to National Geographic. Valérian Mazataud, a marine biologist-turned-photographer, examines this relationship in Liwa Mairin, his series of portraits.

Mazataud said he first learned about the Moskitia from an article featured in a diving magazine. The author, a physician, discussed the dangers of deep diving using compressed air tanks, and the effects on the Moskitia divers. Mazataud said he was moved by the story, and saw it as an opportunity to combine his love of aquatics and marine life with his current passion for photography and journalism.

These photographs are as beautiful as they are informative, each portrait telling a part of the overall story. They bring out the serene beauty in a dangerous occupational hazard, while also illustrating the complex relationship the Moskitia have with water. It is a practice that fuels their economy, but which

is also inherently dangerous. The nitrogen build-up in the blood from long dives can cause bubbles to form in arteries, the spinal cord and the brain, Mazataud said.

Intentional or not, the photos seem to be set up in a linear narrative in the form of a story, as you follow peoples adventures into the water. The first shots depict family excursions into waist-deep water, or fishing as a family activity. As the shots progress, you come across underwater shots of the Moskitia, with a cloud of bubbles around them while they remain suspended in the endless blue ocean, on the hunt. Then, we see pictures of divers who have suffered crippling spinal cord injuries, and are faced with various levels of paralysis. The final shot is the tombstone of a diver who succumbed to the consequences of a long, deep dive into the ocean.

“Their whole life, all of their history and all of their mythology revolves around water, and all the time you see them swimming, fishing, doing things in the water,” Mazataud explained.

A particularly strong shot from this series is of a diver holding a spear gun, standing shoulder-deep in murky water. As he stares

straight into the camera, you face the uncertain reality that he might not come up for another breath. These are the everyday struggles of the Moskitia, whose livelihoods depend on exploiting the resources of the ocean in order to survive, despite the costly bodily consequences.

Their lobster exports alone are worth $40 million US annually, according to a written statement about the exhibit. The North American demand for lobster can allow for potential injuries, because it is this export that motivates the divers to risk their lives.

“I think it’s important that we look at where our food comes from,” said Mazataud. “Not only lobsters but in general, there's always a price for the products we consume in North America, and there is a history linked to it. Along the trade routes, you kind of lose the origin of a product.”

The exhibition goes on until Sept. 29 at the Maison du développement durable. The photos are displayed in the entrance, and admission to view them is free. The Maison is open Monday to Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., as well as Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

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COMEDY

Feminist comedians take over Reggie’s

Funny women took to the stage to talk life, love and to get some laughs JESSICA KINNARI CO-ARTS EDITOR Concordia students crowded into Reggie’s as the second annual Feminist Stand-Up Comedy Night kicked off on Sept. 16.

Put on by the Cent re for Gender Advocacy, the evening’s lineup of comedians featured some newbies as well as a few veterans. The event began with an open mic session and was followed by sets from two renowned feminist comedians, Kalyani Pandya and Ify Chiwetelu.

The packed event kicked off with local comedian Nicole, who is relatively new to the comedy circuit. Last year’s Feminist Stand-Up Comedy Night was one of her first forays into the stand-up world. Originally from Saskatchewan, she started off by welcoming everyone to group therapy, and followed up with some poignant jokes about the cost of therapy and women’s haircuts.

“When I do my finances every month, I’m like okay, do I want to be a functioning member of society or do I want to look good,” she said amidst applause. “We

can all tell by my hair which one I chose this month.”

Right before the headlining act, Pandya took the stage and treated everyone to her hilarious stand-up, which focused on the fact she is queer and South Asian.

She kept the room laughing during her entire set with jokes about her parents and their trip back to India. However, while she impersonated her parents for the skit, she also made it clear that cultural appropriation would not be tolerated.

“Now when I say these stories, I am going to use [my parents] accents, because it is their voices and I couldn’t hear it any other way,” she said. “But it is not okay for you to go and make those accents unless you are related to them or know them.”

Branded “Ottawa’s funniest dyke” by Ottawa Xtra!, Pandya was part of the CBC’s Human Library series. She has performed at various venues across Canada, including Yuk Yuk’s, the Palais des congrés, and the Vancouver Queer International Film Festival.

Following Pandya was the night’s headliner, Toronto-based comedian Ify Chiwetelu. Winner of the 2015 Bad Dog Theatre Breakout Performer award, she joked about growing up black in Calgary and modern-day dating and using Tinder.

Walking back and forth across the stage, she described what it was like to use the popular hook-up app after a weird or uncomfortable interaction: “You delete the app for like an hour, then look beside you like, oh my bed’s still empty, time to re-download that shit.” Featuring jokes about boobs, boys and life with parents who had escaped a civil war in Nigeria, Chiwetelu provided a set that was also

relevant to all kids who grew up in Canadian cities and loved rap music way too much.

This event was part of the Centre for Gender Advocacy’s annual fall event series, Another Word for Gender: An Intro to Feminist Organizing and Action. The fall series runs until Oct. 4. The next event, an ask-and-answer with multi-disciplinary artists Vivek Shraya and Chase Joynt, will take place on Sept. 22. For a full schedule of the events check out the fall events series page on Facebook.

Graphic by Florence Yee.

FILM

Blair Witch: A return to the Black Hills Forest

While not fully living up to the original, Blair Witch still has frights and fights MATTHEW TURNBULL CONTRIBUTOR Hidden under the title of The Woods during production, Blair Witch is the latest sequel to The Blair Witch Project (1999), a film that is considered one of the pioneers of found-footage horror. While this new instalment is a significant upgrade from the catastrophe that was Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 (2000), viewers should still not be expecting a classic this time around.

Fans of the original should be advised to leave their expectations for another Blair Witch at home, as this instalment feels like a fan fiction that somehow managed to become a feature film. The filmmakers did make the effort to continue the found-footage tradition and even staged the film in its original location.

However, the shaky camera style quickly becomes distracting and the woods somehow feel smaller than in the original film.

The story is painfully straightforward. James, the brother of Heather (who disappeared in the original), finds newly discovered footage on YouTube that he thinks features his sister.

This opens up the possibility that she could

still be alive. He decides to round up his three closest friends to go investigate, reluctantly bringing along the two people who found the footage for guidance. What follows is the typical, predictable filler of character conflict that leads to the group splitting up for no good reason, a flurry of jump scares and some mediocre deaths, which all lead up to the abandoned, decrepit house from the original.

There are many fatal flaws that plague the film, the biggest being that there is never a sense that these characters have any kind of chance of making it out alive.

It resembles a one-sided fight between a wolf and six blind lambs. Moreover, rather building up any kind of substantial suspense, Blair Witch is just a basic monster movie shot exactly like Cloverfield (2008). The monster in this movie being an amalgamation of Jason Voorhees, Freddy Krueger, Slender Man, and a self-aware forest. Worst of all, there really is not much of a point to the film. It fails to build on the original, all the while being predictable just like every other horror movie made in the last 10 years.

However, for all of Blair Witch’s faults, it must be said that the third act inside the house

Blair Witch manages nothing new, despite having an acre of potential.

is well worth the price of admission. This is where the film finally jumps into top gear. It is the kind of scary that will keep most viewers frozen in their seats. There really isn’t a logical reason for the characters to go into the house, but the movie needs to go inside more than its characters do. While the ending is not something that will stick with many people, the sequence is a genuinely fun time. If I were to compare the film to anything, it would be to a rollercoaster ride. There is a lot of time spent waiting for something to happen, then a

few bumps to get your attention, and finally a sudden rush that slows down right before you’re let off.

Those who are looking for something new should stay away, but anyone who enjoys a fright should check it out.

BLAIR WITCH

 Directed by Adam Wingard Starring Valorie Curry, Callie Hernandez, Brandon Scott Released on September 16, 2016 Duration 91 min

10 theconcordian

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

PHOTOGRAPHY

More than a traditional show of puppy love Upcoming art show puts local artists against breed-specific legislation in Montreal

Art show organizer, Lindsay Campbell, with her parents’ pit bull rescue, Otis. Photo by Lindsay Campbell.

SOFIA MISENHEIMER CONTRIBUTOR If every dog has its day, then Montreal’s pit bulls deserve next Saturday. On Sept.

24, over 40 artists with a love of all things dogs will display their original works in support of the maligned breed at Pit Bull: An Art Show.

The event, which according to organizers, is dedicated to a widely feared, yet misunderstood dog, aims to counter negative stereotypes associated with “bully breeds,” a breed type which includes boston terriers, American pit bull-terriers and bulldogs. It will also be supporting Sit With Me Shelter Dog Rescue. Half of the art sale’s profits and all refreshment sale profits will go to the volunteer-run organization, dedicated to saving, rehabilitating and rehoming abandoned dogs who are most at risk for being put down.

“The dog-loving community of Montreal

has been so overwhelmed with bad news that we really need a positive night to celebrate our dogs and the love we all share for them,” said Lindsay Campbell, the art show’s organizer and a participating artist.

According to the Montreal Gazette, the proposed breed-specific legislation (BSL), drafted in the wake of a fatal dog attack this summer, may soon make it illegal in Quebec to own not only pit bulls but also pit bulltype dogs, such as American Staffordshire terriers, Staffordshire bull terriers, and American pit bull terriers. As well as any pit bull mixed breeds and dogs with physical characteristics similar to pit bulls, like bull terriers and bulldogs. If BSL moves ahead, public muzzling and sterilization of already owned “bully breeds” will become mandatory in Montreal by early next year.

“Putting a muzzle on my boy will instantly give people the wrong idea, and they won't want to stop and say hello to him anymore,” said Campbell of her dog. “They will fear

him and this breaks my heart … because he thrives on attention. He will still try to give kisses and his tail will wag, but he won't understand what he's done to deserve this punishment.”

The possibility of having her dog viewed as a danger to the public when he is anything but that, prompted Campbell to contact fellow dog-loving artists and curate the show. “I knew I needed to do something.

Art is all I have to offer. Art is powerful and I hope our efforts can create positive change,” she said.

By bringing together locally and internationally acclaimed artists who use a wide variety of mediums, Campbell hopes to remind viewers of the beauty, diversity and individuality of these breeds. According to Campbell, if public opinion doesn’t visibly sway against BSL, thousands of healthy, happy, and temperamentally-sound pit bulls and bully breed mixes could lose their lives because of the way they look.

Starchild Stela, a graffiti artist, illustrator and online magazine maker best known for their feminist street art, agrees. “I'm ashamed of my city ... Montreal has big problems with animal welfare,” they said.

They referenced the April 2011 Berger Blanc Shelter animal abuse controversy, and the increasingly high number of stray and abandoned pets. “I am incredibly sad to think about the repercussions a [pit bull] ban will have on communities.”

Stela plans to contribute a series of femme-presenting girls interacting with their dogs to the event, in an effort to “spark discussions, encourage folks to take action,

and even adopt if they’re considering it,” they said.

Participating freelance illustrator and muralist, MC Baldassari, is focused on capturing the dignity of the underdog.

“I want to make a positive and beautiful representation of a pit bull, highlighting what cute and kind dogs they can be,” she said.

“I hope that we're able to touch people with our representations of these dogs. They’re not the villains you see in the papers … we want to propose another way to see them.” öö Pit Bull: An Art Show will host an opening event on Sept. 24 to at MainLine Gallery (3905 St Laurent) from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. In case you miss the opening the gallery will also be open Sept. 26 to 28.

Various artists’ work will be displayed in support of the bully breeds.

From top left clockwise: Lindsay Campbell, MC Baldassari, Sophie Gamand, Starchild Stela.

WANT TO GET PUBLISHED? THE CONCORDIAN IS LOOKING FOR ARTWORK, SUCH AS BUT NOT LIMITED TO: PHOTOGRAPHS, DRAWINGS, POEMS, CREATIVE WRITING, COMICS AND EVEN DIGITAL WORKS. SHARE YOUR PROJECTS WITH US AND WITH THE CONCORDIA COMMUNITY! EMAIL OPINIONS@THECONCORDIAN.COM FOR MORE INFORMATION

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

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OPERA

Love and loss in ancient Egypt comes to Montreal The Opéra de Montréal begins its 2016-17 season with Aida, a timeless story of anguish

a slave of Amneris (Olesya Petrova), daughter to the Pharaoh, who also loves Radames.

The opera, which had its premiere in Cairo at the Opera House in 1871, was written and composed by Giuseppe Verdi. The story is timeless: a love between two people who cannot be together, and unrequited love for someone whose heart is already taken. The live orchestra accompanying the drama made the performances that much more powerful. Instead of a flat recording, the music rose and fell with the tension Radames (Kamen Chanev) and Aida (Anna Markarova) stand and drama onstage. together in the tomb which will be their grave. Photo © Yves The opera is performed Renaud. in three acts. The first act, TIFFANY LAFLEUR which takes place in a temple in the city of CO-ARTS EDITOR Thebes, sets the tone and stage for the conflict that would develop later in the piece. In it, In Aida, the Opéra de Montréal’s first we realize that Aida is in fact the daughter of opera of the season, you are taken back Amonasro (Gregory Dahl), king of Ethiopia. to ancient Egypt, during the time of the Under the unwavering eye of the God Pharaohs. War looms on the horizon, yet the Ptah, Ramades is given the command of the heart of the conflict rests with a forbidden Egyptian troops, and sent to defend Egypt. The love. assembled crowd pray for Ptah to protect him Aida (Anna Markarova) has caught the and guide him on his journey. At the end of the eye of Radames (Kamen Chanev), captain of first act, Radames has returned from war as the Egyptian guard and the hero chosen to victor, trailing behind him a host of prisoners defend Egypt against the invading Ethiopians. captured on the battlefield, of which Aida’s Aida loves Radames as well, however, she is father is included. In a cruel twist of events,

the king offers Radames the highest honor: guidance and protection, now the priests are his daughter Amneris’ hand in marriage. praying for his condemnation. Together, the The second act saw the capture of Ramades lovers embrace as the light from the torches by the Egyptian guard, for accidentally slowly fades, leaving the tomb dark as Amneris disclosing to Amonasro the route that the watches from afar, realizing that for Radames Egyptian troops were to take on their march and Aida, a death together was worth more towards Ethiopia, betraying his country in than a life apart. the process. Amonasro and Aida flee while If Aida is any indication of the strength of Ramades is taken away by the Egyptian guard the rest of the opera season, it should be one for his betrayal. to look forward to.

The third act brings us back to the original öö Aida will be shown again at Salle setting of the temple in Thebes. There, Ramades Wilfrid-Pelletier at Place des Arts on is sentenced to death by live entombment. In Sept. 20, 22 and 24 at 7:30 p.m. this scene, Petrova, who plays the part of Amneris, delivered Aida (Anna Markarova) and Amneris (Olesya Petrova) become a fantastic performance, rivals after they discover they both love Radames. Photo © as she stood by in helpless Yves Renaud. anguish while her love was tried and sentenced to death, unable to use her influence in order to save him.

The final scene in the third act begins with Ramades entombed. He wishes for death, for death would be an escape.

Without Aida by his side, life is meaningless. But lo and behold, she has snuck into the tomb in order to be with him, foreseeing the outcome of his sentencing.

This final scene is incredibly powerful, as it circles back to the first act. Whilst in the first act, Ramades was receiving Ptah’s blessing,

TIFF

La La Land will make you dance in the clouds Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone’s chemistry will make you believe in the old magic of cinema again Sebastian (Gosling) and Mia (Stone) are two happy-go-lucky dreamers in a world that forgot how to dream.

ELIJAH BUKREEV STAFF WRITER Somewhere along the way, the film industry forgot how to inspire hope, or decided it was no longer necessary. It used to be that, as the world grew gloomier, the movies grew happier. This was a natural counterbalance to the uncertainty and unquietness of real life.

Today, as the world approaches pre-WWII levels of tension and confusion, the big screen is not being a source of comfort—gritty is still the new cool, and some like to speculate that cinema is altogether dead, with Netflix offering the hip alternative. This present context is what makes Damien Chazelle’s La La Land all the more significant, meaningful and timeless.

The film will not be released until December of this year, but it already has the feel of an

established classic.

The mood is set with a virtuoso opening dance sequence that takes place on a Los Angeles highway. You watch as dozens of people are kept waiting in a traffic jam, when suddenly magic happens, and irresistible joy is breathed into the most ordinary of proceedings.

It is during this opening dance sequence that a chance encounter occurs between Sebastian (Ryan Gosling), a struggling musician, and Mia (Emma Stone), an aspiring actress.

They are two dreamers in a city that couldn’t care less about them, and yet it inspires in them visions of love and enchantment, of star-bathed backgrounds and lushly coloured skies. Life circumstances ensure that they continuously cross paths—they meet again and again. First they dislike each other, then like each other, and finally they fall in love. All that jazz. The duo have a chemistry so pure that you know

it is fate that brings them together, and not a team of screenwriters.

What a strange concept it is to make an old-school musical in our day and age—but it works, both as an ode to dreams and to the power of cinema. Gosling and Stone are not professional dancers or singers, but the film doesn’t require them to be. The music

by Justin Hurwitz—a key collaborator of Chazelle’s—is out of this world, written to emphasize tenderness and melancholy over vocal prowess.

The film is made with such nostalgia, and Chazelle—known for the 2014 sensation Whiplash—has such love for the history of music and cinema, that you almost expect the characters to make a wrong turn and be transported a century back, like in Midnight in Paris (2011).

The way La La Land confronts cinema’s

dying past in a largely indifferent present recalls Sylvain Chomet’s animated L’illusioniste (2010)—although the latter mourned the retirement of magic, while Chazelle’s film all but screams that magic is still possible, even though it may not always offer a path to happiness. La La Land packs in all the pleasures of a musical, while offering a depth of emotion and a richness of form. It is a triumphant, generous masterpiece that feels bound for serious Oscar glory. You are right to be excited for it. Until the next time I see it, my heart will beat to the tune of Hurwitz’ songs.

music

Quickspins

MUSIC EDITOR /// music@theconcordian.com SANDRA HERCEGOVÁ

WILCO

Schmilco

PROFILE

POP Montreal turns 15

Interview with co-founder and creative director of POP Montreal, Dan Seligman 1 (Dbpm Records, 2016)

Dan Seligman is the brains behind the underground event POP Montreal. Photo by Richmond Lam. SANDRA HERCEGOVA MUSIC EDITOR An underground music event that brings together over 400 local and international musicians and hosts, four days worth of events and performances all across town—is this too good to be true? In Montreal, it isn’t, because it’s happening. The annual music festival POP Montreal is back and celebrating its 15-year anniversary between Sept. 21 to 25.

Dan Seligman, POP Montreal’s co-founder and creative director, is responsible for the festival’s musical programming. He launched the festival as a McGill graduate back in 2002, along with co-founders Noelle Sorbara and Peter Rowan.

“I was pretty young—just graduated from McGill, majoring in comparative religion. A friend of mine approached me with the idea of getting involved in creating a musical festival,” said Seligman. At the time, he was doing some work in music, managing his brother’s band, Stars. “For the first edition of POP Montreal, it took us six months to make it happen,” Seligman said. “We made contacts, sponsorships and we invited a few international bands.”

The event was a success and the trio decided to make it an annual festival. “Every next edition has been a continuation,” said Seligman. “It’s a lot of fun and it’s always

challenging to manage a festival.”

As they grew and developed their brand, the trio realized that Montreal has a huge music scene with lots of opportunities in the industry.

Bringing in countless music legends every year, POP Montreal’s 2016 lineup is no exception.

John Cale, the founder of the rock-and-roll group Velvet Underground, will be flying in to perform as a headliner at the Rialto Theatre.

He will also host an “artist talk” at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

“I’m really looking forward to John Cale—he’s a musical legend,” said Seligman.

“This is an exclusive show. He isn’t doing any other shows in North America. He’s flying to Montreal specifically for us.”

POP Montreal will also be hosting a series of late-night shows at the Rialto Theatre. The band 69 Boyz will be playing their 90s top hit “Tootsee Roll” and young hip-hop artist Princess Vitarah will also be performing.

Besides showing performances in the main theatre hall, there will be special shows on the rooftop. The first floor area is their club house lounge, where different chefs will be there every night. It’s free and open to the public. “It’s a hangout area in between shows,” said Seligman.

POP Montreal brings together a variety of music, art and people from all over the world to participate in the festival. “We have industry people coming from all over the world to

check out local acts—local emerging artists can help develop their career and territories across the world,” said Seligman.

Every year, local artists are invited to submit samples of their music to POP Montreal for a chance to perform at the festival. They can submit their music through POP Montreal’s website. “Certain artists, such as the headliners, we solicit and ask them to perform and some of the up-and-coming artists go through our submission process, where you can apply to perform at the festival,” said Seligman. Over 1,000 artists submitted their music this year, but only 100 made the cut. “We listen to all the music we receive with our committee.

We invite journalists [and] artists to come and listen to it all. We work with the programming team to select artists and put it all together,” said Seligman.

As the festival’s creative director, Seligman is constantly meeting new artists. “People are always sending me new music,” he said.

“I really enjoy programming and bringing different artists together.”

POP Montreal also launched a new monthly video series called “POP Shots” which aims to give visibility to local artists. “It’s an initiative we did this past year,” said Seligman. “It was cool to work with local artists.” Espace POP, which is a space built for artists to perform throughout the year, is where these artists perform while our team films them and post the videos online. “It’s a showcase of local artists all year round. We’re always doing stuff throughout the year,” said Seligman.

POP Montreal “adds a nice flavour to the city,” Seligman said. “I think it’s a special event.

I hope that people love it, support [it] and buy tickets and have a good time.”

A word of advice from Seligman to all bands interested in trying out for the festival next year: “Try to make really good music that stands out and that isn’t boring. Keep practicing, keep playing shows and keep doing your music if you love it.” cc For more information about tickets and the lineup, visit the festival’s website: www.popmontreal.com.

Graphic by Florence Yee.

Wilco’s 12th album opens with the simple, folky tune “Normal American Kids.” It sets the tone of the record, as the bulk of the album consists of short, acoustic odes—many of which clock in at three minutes or less.

Despite the simplicity of the melodies, Jeff Tweedy’s breathy voice gives each song texture and an extra kick.

Lyrically, Tweedy explores themes such as childhood memories, existentialism and doubt. The gentle guitar rhythms and soft percussion, coupled with the darker, bitter lyrics gives the album a bit more complexity. Though you won’t hear anything overly experimental or climactic in comparison to their previous albums, Schmilco has a softness to it that makes it an easy listen, and a pretty relatable one.

Short and sweet seems to work for Wilco.

11 Trial track: “Someone to Lose”

7/10

— Cristina Sanza, Editor-in-Chief

KT TUNSTALL

KIN

(Caroline Records, 2016)

2 Cheerful and feel-good tunes are what KT Tunstall brings to her newest release, KIN. The 11-track opus has an early 2000s power-pop vibe to it. It features loads of chant-y background “ooh”s and “ah”s, subtle electronica sounds and simple guitar progressions. Although the majority of the record elicits happy feelings in the listener, the lyrics are not overly giddy or sickly sweet. The album embraces themes such as starting anew and being true to yourself. The record’s main love song and duet, “Two Way,” features James Bay. Tunstall and Bay’s voices complement each other effortlessly and work beautifully in harmony, but the song is typical in structure and instrumentation for a pop ballad. However, KIN proves itself to be a fun and danceable record—it’s filled with confidence-boosting, motivating anthems, perfect for someone who is embarking on a journey of sorts.

11 Trial Track: “Love is an Ocean”

7/10

— Cristina Sanza, Editor-in-Chief

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

theconcordian

13

RECOMMENDATIONS

Women in old-school hip-hop

Some of the first female hip-hop artists to influence a whole generation

DANIELLE GASHER & SANDRA HERCEGOVA LIFE EDITOR & MUSIC EDITOR

3

USHER

Hard II Love (RCA Records, 2016) Hard II Love is Usher’s 8th album, and if I could explain how I feel in one word, it’s impressed. This new release demonstrates how Usher has evolved the sound of his voice so that his vulnerability and his depth are deeply felt. His song, “Hard II Love,” is the artist saying that, although he may be hard to love, he is worth the try. This is Usher showing he is willing to put his heart and soul out there on this album, for all to see. Although there is no denying the song “No Limit,” featuring Young Thug, is also catchy, it isn’t what makes the album rise to a whole new level — it is the rest of the songs on the album that portray his sensitivity and his artistry. So if you’re ready to hear the inner thoughts and emotions of a great artist, give this album a listen.

11 Trial Track: “Stronger”

8/10

— Emily Vidal, Music Assistant

MNDSGN

4

Body Wash (Stones Throw Records, 2016)

Body Wash is MNDSGN’s second fulllength album for Stones Throw, and to be quite frank, it is mind-blowing.

Their music is a blend of 80s boogie/ funk/jazz/fusion wave and—get this—90s R&B. Yet they make this seemingly impossible fusion of music from two eras not only work, but make sense together. The way they mix their psychedelic beats makes you feel as though you are being magically transported into the future, instead of going back to the past. Their song, "Cosmic Masterpiece", is the perfect example of this. It has a funky, yet futuristic beat, and transports you to a whole other place and time. This masterpiece of psychedelic, yet nostalgic, music is wor th—not only listening—but experiencing at least once in your life. So what are you waiting for?

11 Trial track: “Use ya Mind (Twenty fourseven)”

9/10

— Emily Vidal, Music Assistant

These influential women made it in the game and left more than just their mark behind—they left a hip-hop legacy. Their determination, confidence and raw talent have influenced both male and female artists to this day.

THE FUGEES- THE SCORE The Fugees, comprised of Lauryn Hill, Pras Michel and Wyclef Jean, were active in the 90s, and blew fans away with their 1996 album, The Score. The hip-hop album, timeless and enchantingly cool, is listed on the Rolling Stone’s “500 Best Albums of all Time” list. The group’s reggae vibe, as well as the presence of Hill’s enchanting R&B voice distinguishes this group from any other alternative hip-hop trio of the 90s. The album includes Hill’s infamous cover of Roberta Flack’s “Killing Me Softly,” and even an effortlessly cool cover of Bob Marley’s “No Woman, No Cry.” The trio is one-of-a-kind in the way they fused soul, reggae and hip-hop, all while maintaining flawless rapping and powerful lyrics. Hill would go on to have an equally successful solo career after The Fugees split in 1997.

Thankfully, Hill is still active—you might even have seen her at the Montreal Jazz Festival this summer. Both The Fugees, and 90s hip-hop, would have been lost without Hill.

11 Trial track: “Ready or Not”

ROX ANNE SHANTÉ- THE BITCH IS BACK Roxanne Shanté’s 1992 album, The Bitch is Back, is your typical record-scratching, beat-mixing, drum machining, emceeing, hip-hop album. It will remind you of the music of Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing.

It’s the essence of the early 90s— a time

when clothing and music were as colourful as Shanté’s style. Shanté’s career was s h o r t, b u t f a r f ro m t r a n q u i l . T h e Queensbridge, N.Y. native became known thanks to the Roxanne Wars—a series of rap rivalries during the mid-80s between Shanté and another Roxanne. The rivalry began with a dispute over a cancelled show. The disses began with Shanté’s track “Roxanne’s Revenge,” produced with the help of New York record producer Marley Marl. Diss tracks and rap battles have always been an important part of hip-hop culture—a culture where pride and egos are important. “On stage tryin’ to recite like me, but what I really see is Creepshow 3. I size em’ up to die and pulverize em, so bad her own mother won’t recognize em,’” raps Shanté in her first track off The Bitch is Back, “Deadly Rhymes.” The Bitch is Back was Shanté’s second and final album.

11 Trial track: "Award Tour"

SALT-N-PEPA - HOT, COOL & VICIOUS If you mess with them, they’ll take your man. They made that damn straight with their very first album, Hot, Cool & Vicious.

The album was launched in 1986, making Salt-N-Pepa one of the first all-female groups out there. From Queens, N.Y., the ladies formed a trio with confident and feisty raps. They were the hip-hop feminists of the 80s. If you think you’ve never heard any of their songs, think again. Does this ring a bell: “Push it. Push it real good?”

Ooh baby, baby, their hit “Push It” has played in one too many commercials.

Salt-N-Pepa’s overall energy during stage

performances is remarkable. Their jams from Hot, Cool & Vicious were also great hits in clubs that still play on the dancefloors of today. “Shoop” is a perfect example, as it still plays in dance clubs and is frequently used for hip-hop choreographies in dance studios. These ladies were way ahead of their time in terms of musicality. Hot, Cool & Vicious will definitely get you hooked on the groups vivaciousness. A definite must for all who appreciate the classic hip-hop genre.

11 Trial Track: “I’ll Take Your Man”

DA BRAT – FUNKDAFIED Da Brat knows how to let the funk flow. If this album doesn’t convince you that she is the badass queen of rap, then you’ll have to listen to her track “Funkdafied” one more time. This was her very first solo album, launched back in 1994, back when the female rap game was still very fresh. Her style is known for mixing R&B rhythms with smooth rap prose. She demonstrates strength and confidence in her verses. Da Brat is 90s hip-hop from head to toe. She brought the funk, and a sleek smooth tone of voice, with lyrically-genius content. Not to mention, her 90s house party music videos were the bomb. Her jam “Fa All Y’All” is super funky and cool. The hella cool music video for the song demonstrates her class and poise. She is an inspiration to all female rappers out there. If her jam “Sittin’ On Top of the World” doesn’t inspire confidence, then I don’t know what does.

11 Trial track: “Funkdafied” Graphic by Thom Bell.

sports

SPORTS EDITOR /// sports@theconcordian.com ALEXANDER COLE ( @a_cole39)

SOCCER

The horrors of an artificial soccer field How fake soccer fields are causing devastating injuries to unsuspecting athletes

Parents and professionals alike are concerned about the risks and injuries that come with playing on turf fields. Photo by Alex Hutchins.

MEGHAN KELLY CONTRIBUTOR Injuries are not uncommon for athletes and are especially fequent for soccer players. It seems as though every player has had to endure one type of injury or another during their career. For some, it may be a concussion from an opponent’s heavy hit, for others, it may be a sprained ankle from being stepped on or landing awkwardly.

For other players, however, severe injuries seem to occur at random: a player collapses on the field without anyone or anything around them, leaving referees, coaches, parents and fellow players concerned. This was the case for 23-year-old Vanessa Bianchi.

In August, 2010, the first-year CEGEP student attended a tryout for the John Abbott College soccer team. During a scrimmage on the second day of tryouts, Bianchi tried to turn with the ball to avoid her opponent. It was a simple move she had done hundreds of times before. However, this time, it was different.

“I had no idea what happened,” Bianchi said.

“I’d never felt pain like that in my entire life.”

Bianchi had placed her right foot on top of the ball and planted her left foot onto the artificial field for balance. As she turned, the right half of her body pivoted, while her left leg stayed stuck in the field.

“As soon as I moved, I felt that my entire foot was stuck— and then I heard the pop,” Bianchi said.

For Bianchi, the turf was the only possible culprit. “The other girl wasn’t close to me at all, and I didn’t trip over the ball,” Bianchi said.

“I never thought I could have injured myself that badly just by playing.”

After undergoing an MRI on her left knee, doctors concluded she had torn her ACL and needed surgery if she ever wanted to play again — which she did.

Parents and players alike are concerned about the frequency and severity of injuries occurring on the turf fields.

“Every time I went for physiotherapy, there was some other player there with the same injury as me— some were even worse,” Bianchi said. The medical community has slowly started listening to the public's comments and concerns.

Dr. Raoul Daoust, a surgeon at the Jewish General Hospital, said links can be drawn between artificial turf and the injuries that have been happening.

“Playing on turf is very different than playing on grass,” Daoust said. “Grass is much more forgiving on the body, and is a lot softer to land on.”

Pivoting, turning and making quick movements is difficult on turf because of how stiff it is, according to Daoust, and can ultimately lead to severe muscle and ligament damage.

As the parent of a soccer player, he too is concerned about his daughter potentially hurting herself during games and practices.

“Turf, as we know, is very rigid. So not only do I worry about her tearing ligaments and muscles, I also get nervous when she comes home after games all bloody and scratched from sliding on it,” Daoust said. “It can be very painful and lead to some serious infections.”

The turf can be especially unforgiving to players attempting to make post-recovery comebacks. Following surgery on her ACL, Bianchi took the required six month rest.

As she regained the strength in her leg, she gradually began practicing and playing again.

It took less than three months before history repeated itself. A similar incident occurred when, during a game, she attempted to make a quick turn to catch opponent with the ball.

“I guess I moved too quickly and my knee just totally gave out again,” Bianchi said, shaking her head. “That was the end of my soccer career.”

Thankfully, recent innovations in footwear

are beginning to make their way onto players’ turf over grass, since grass fields are often feet—aiming to keep them on the turf as not well-maintained and are easily damaged opposed to on the sidelines. by aggressive weather. Additionally, she said Turf cleats are designed more like running she finds that turf provides a more stable and shoes, rather than regular soccer cleats, and even surface for the ball to travel on. offer athletes a more stable landing on the With regards to injuries in past seasons, stiff, yet spongy surface. the younger Bianchi has had her fair Mario Buttino, former owner of the soccer share—but none, to her knowledge, were specialty store Evangelista Sports West Island, related to playing on turf. However, some said recent sales of turf cleats have risen as recent unexplained pains have made her players become more aware of the benefits question this belief. they hold.

“This summer, I had some ankle problems, “Injuries on turf have been becoming more but I can’t be sure if they are necessarily related and more frequent, it seems,” Buttino said. “I to playing on artificial turf or not,” Bianchi said. think players realize that maybe wearing a Despite certain concerns, artificial fields are simpler-looking, safer cleat holds more value becoming more and more common. According than wearing the cleats that the pros do.” to the Montreal Gazette, Pierrefonds-Roxboro The studs found on the base of the cleat made a deal with the Lester B. Pearson School are always rounded when designed for turf. Board to install a second artificial turf field at This allows players to pivot without getting Pierrefonds Comprehensive High School. caught in the stiff surface, helping evade severe The field will be accessible to both local injuries like ACL and MCL tears. For soccer children’s teams and students. The project will players that play on artificial turf, investing cost approximately $2.5 million, and is the most in a specialized pair of cleats is well worth it, recent project in a series of new artificial turf according to Buttino. installations being built on the West Island. Other Despite objections from various sport and projects include a field at Terra Cotta medical communities, artificial turf seems to Park in PointeClaire and be the best way to practice and play games a field at Grier P ar k in for some athletes.

Julia Bianchi, a first-year soccer player for the Concordia women’s soccer team and younger sister of Pierrefonds.

Vanessa Bianchi, trains on The artificial turf fields five to current six times a week, and trend is to go hasn’t stepped foot on artificial—and a grass field in years. it doesn’t In terms of the seem like qualit y of that is about playing to change. surface, the younger Bianchi Graphic by Thom Bell. prefers

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

theconcordian

15

WOMEN’S HOCKEY

Continuing the war cry of Les Lawton

Concordia Stingers women’s hockey head coach Julie Chu talks about developing the team for this season

ALEXANDER COLE SPORTS EDITOR Last season, former Concordia Stingers women’s hockey head coach Les Lawton gave his team a motto to play by. The motto was simple: “Everything is earned.”

When Lawton fell ill, and current head coach Julie Chu replaced him, she kept that motto going. “[The motto] was something that was initially going to be for last season, but it’s at the heart of what we believe in as we continue to move forward,” Chu said.

“Lawton is still a great mentor for myself and our entire team. We always ask him for advice and he’s still involved in our program.”

Chu, who replaced Lawton last August, has high expectations for her team this season.

Last year, the team finished the season with a record of 6-12-2, placing fourth out of five teams in the Réseau de sports étudiant de Québec division—something that Chu hopes to improve on this year.

“For our team, we’re looking to make it to our playoffs, win the RSEQ and get to Nationals,” Chu said. “We have a lot of work to do to get to that point. We have to make sure that every day at practice we step on the ice prepared to work and get better—even if it’s just a little bit each day.”

In order to succeed this year, the Stingers

will have to beat teams like the Université de Montréal Carabins, who won the RSEQ division and the National Championship last year. For Chu, the Carabins are a threat, but the whole division poses a large challenge as well.

“Our conference in general is a strong one,” Chu said. “We need to allow ourselves to go through growing pains—that will kick us off in October to be successful against any team we play against, whether it’s Carleton or the Carabins.”

opportunity to see what the team needs to improve on.

“Do we want to go to every game we go to and win? Yes— we’re competitors. But the bigger picture is that we want to make sure we’re learning and growing,” Chu said.

“We do a ton of video analysis, so we understand where we go wrong and where we can improve.”

Chu added that the exhibition games are also a great time to test individual players’ strengths and weaknesses, while also gauging The who should get starting positions Stingers once the season starts. played well against “Once we get into the season, the Carabins last season, nothing is guaranteed,” Chu said. who are the defending national “It’s about who earns what playing champions. Photo by Marie-Pierre time, and what position and role each Savard. player earns. It’s about how people are performing and executing, and This past weekend, the Stingers played what roles and styles fit best.” three exhibition games in three nights against Chu said, to earn a significant role on the University of Toronto, the University of the team, players have to be able to learn Guelph and the University of Waterloo. The from their mistakes and come together to Stingers defeated Toronto 2-1, beat Guelph work as a team .

2-1 and lost to Waterloo 2-1.

“Always giving a full effort and being The team will also be playing exhibition great teammates is a non-negotiable,” games against Clarkson University on Chu said.

Sept. 23, Union University on Sept. 24 and ¡¡ The Stingers will play their first game a big match-up against Les Canadiennes of the regular season at home against de Montréal on Sept. 30. the University of Ottawa Gee Gees For Chu, these games are a great on Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m.

MEN’S HOCKEY

The Élement of CIS hockey success

Stingers men’s hockey coach Marc-André Élement talks about the team's goals for upcoming season ALEXANDER COLE SPORTS EDITOR With the head coaching job up for grabs, Concordia's men's hockey program had a big decision to make during the off-season.

After a summer of deliberation, the Stingers chose last year’s interim head coach MarcAndré Élement as the man to take over as full-time coach. Élement, who now has a year with the Stingers under his belt, is ready to apply his skills and experiences from last season to this season.

“Every day as a coach, you learn. I learned a lot last season,” Élement said. “We had a good

team last year, and I’m expecting this year to have a better season. When you have good people around you, it makes it a lot easier.”

For Élement, having good people around him means bringing in a strong recruiting class that not only has talented players, but good-hearted players as well.

Among the recruiting class from the Stingers this year, Anthony Deluca and Philippe Sanche of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) are touted to provide the Stingers with much needed goal-scoring this season.

“We have a very good recruiting class this year,” Élement said. “What I’ve learned is that if you want to win a championship, you need to win with good people. All of our recruits

are really good people.”

Last year, the Stingers had a young team with 15 first-year players. Although those players are going into this season with an extra year under their belts, Élement still feels like he has a young team.

However, Élement expects his young squad to be able to compete with the strongest teams in the league, while playing to the best of their abilities night-in and night-out.

“I always have high expectations for my team,” Élement said. “I think we will be capable of doing the job and I just want the guys to be playing all-out every single game.”

The Stingers will not be without leadership, as captain Olivier Hinse is returning for his fifth and final year of eligibility in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS). Élement said having Hinse return is great for the young players—they will have someone on the team who acts as a role model on and off the ice.

“We had a good discussion with Olivier and he’s going to be Marc-André the mentor for all the Élement is optimistic new guys,” Élement about the upcoming season. said. “When you have a young team like that, Photo by Marie-Pierre Savard. you need a guy to look

up to. He leads by example, and they’ll see his work ethic on and off the ice.”

One challenge that Élement will face this year, however, is the goaltending situation.

Last season, the team switched between Miguel Sullivan and Robin Billingham on a regular basis, with Antoine Marchand acting as the third goalie.

This season, the Stingers have added QMJHL goaltender Philippe Cadorette, who holds 13 QMJHL records and Marc-Antoine Turcotte, who plays in the QMJHL as well. While Turcotte will only be eligible to play in December, the addition of Turcotte and Cadorette means five goalies will be competing for the starting job.

“We will make a decision on who starts for us after the exhibition games,” Élement said.

“We’re still in training camp, so you never know what’s going to happen.”

With exhibition games on the horizon, Élement is also looking for players who will go all out and give all their effort on a consistent basis. Élement added that he is confident in his team, and that team chemistry is at an all-time high.

“The team is working hard. They have a good work ethic. They work their ass off on the ice and they work hard in school,” Élement said. “Those are the three things that are most important to us, so we’re excited.” ¡¡ The Stingers next exhibition game will be played against the University of Acadia in Nova Scotia on Sept. 23 at 6 p.m.

opinions

OPINIONS EDITOR /// opinions@theconcordian.com DAVID EASEY

EDITORIAL

The Concordian blacklists MTL Blog How do we put this nicely? MTL Blog is essentially a low-grade, local tabloid that uses clickbait tactics to attract readers to their site.

There’s no denying their popularity has skyrocketed in the past few years, with more than 200,000 likes on their Facebook page—but their content quality has plummeted just as quickly.

This past week, the website released two lists featuring the “hottest” women and men at Concordia, using Instagram photos to populate these lists. The stories immediately drew criticism on social media, with multiple users commenting that it was “creepy” and “objectifying.”

The Concordian agrees with these comments, and our staff was shocked that these articles got the greenlight.

Why is a local ‘news’ website discussing the physical appearances of our student body? This is an institution of higher learning—our students should be praised for their intelligence or accomplishments, not their physical appeal. The blatant objectification of these men and women feels like a scene straight out of Mean Girls.

Users on social media were also commenting that many of the individuals featured in the two lists reportedly had no idea their photos were being used.

The writer never messaged them to ask for their consent, instead, they simply embedded the Instagram posts from the individuals' Instagram accounts.

Although asking to use photos from social media technically doesn’t break any copyright laws, it’s ethically responsible, as a journalist and as a kind human being, to ask permission to use someone’s photo—especially before it’s made public to thousands of readers. One of our editors briefly interned with one of the ex-writers of MTL Blog last summer, and was disturbed to discover that this is common practice at their headquarters.

The Concordian is calling upon MTL Blog to consider removing these two articles immediately and to seriously reexamine their publishing guidelines.

We also call upon the student body to fully boycott the website until they have taken down these two stories.

Graphic by Florence Yee.

SOCIETY

Freedom of speech fused with the right to protest Violent protests are inciting further chaos instead of looking at the root cause of the problem JOSHUA DE COSTA STAFF WRITER Last month on Aug. 26, while the American national anthem was being played at an NFL preseason game at California’s Levi's Stadium, San Francisco 49ers’ quarterback Colin Kaepernick refused to stand.

He told the media after the game that he sat out the anthem to protest the recent acts of police brutality in “a country that oppresses black people and people of colour.” Last week, USA TODAY reported the union of police officers who normally patrol the 49ers’ stadium threatened to boycott in response to Kaepernick’s protest.

The exchange adds tension to an already strained relationship between police and those associated with the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, according to an article from the BBC. BLM supporters long been calling for systematic reforms amongst police forces in the US. Meanwhile on the other end of the spectrum, police view these supporters as violent criminals who wish to incite violence against organized authority.

Some BLM supporters have resorted to violence— but such acts are cases of the few spoiling it for the many. Profiling every supporter as violent is no different than blaming every police officer for the heavy-handed ways of the trigger-happy few.

Last July, I attended a Black Lives Matters gathering at Cabot Square— one of the first of its kind to be held in Montreal. Organizers were careful to call the event a “gathering,” a “rally” or a “meeting”—anything other than

a “protest”.

It shows just how explosive the word “protest” is— not only here in Montreal, but around the world. The word elicits fear in the hearts of police who have watched protests snowball into riots—something those officers have every right to be afraid of. Unfortunately, there are some radicals and anarchists often spoil what should be a peaceful practice.

Instead of finding workable solutions, these individuals only worsen the problem.

Violence only leads to more violence.

Earlier in the summer, six police officers were killed at a BLM rally in Dallas, Texas, which was widely reported in the media. The violence against the police force did not help the BLM movement and in fact spurred further debate and anger against those on either side.

According to a CNN report in late August, 6 U.S. police officers have been fatally shot this year. Needless to say, killing cops hasn’t fixed a corrupt system. It’s only torn apart families— whose only crime was having a police officer for a father, a mother, a daughter or a son.

Real change is hard because it takes time—something that radicals and anarchists are unwilling to understand. There is no getrich-quick scheme for social change. It takes continued patience and resilience in the face of opposition.

As students, as teachers and as civilians, a protest is our only way to voice our pains. When we are violent, our voices become distorted and no one can hear what we have to say.

In 1955, when Rosa Parks was ordered to the back of the bus, she didn’t kick and

scream and set fire to the bus. She quietly and stubbornly refused, making enough noise for Martin Luther King Jr. to hear her and carry her protest out into the streets and onward to revolution. She is the kind of protester we need to emulate today.

It is good advice to be flexible in our form of protest —be it sitting out during a national anthem or taking to the streets—but we must remain inflexible in our way: always peaceful, patient and persistent.

Photo from a Black Lives Matter protest in Montreal from the spring. Photo by William Fox.

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

theconcordian

17

ENTERTAINMENT

YouTube’s monetization policy is anti-free speech Content creators have to watch what they say if they want to be advertiser-friendly ALEXANDER COLE SPORTS EDITOR In the past few years, YouTube has established itself as more than just a video-sharing platform. With Google AdSense and advertisements on every video, the website’s content creators have been able to make a living off of their videos. One would just have to look at gaming YouTuber PewDiePie, who according to Forbes , makes close to $7 million a year—to see how successful content creators can become.

However, recently, more and more YouTubers have been noticing that their videos can no longer be monetized from ads because YouTube has been flagging their videos as not “advertiser-friendly.”

This means that they cannot make money off of the ads played on their videos. For YouTubers who use the platform to make a living, the demonetization of their videos can affect their livelihood.

The biggest YouTuber to bring this issue to light was news and entertainment host Philip DeFranco. On Aug. 31, he posted a video called “YouTube Is Shutting Down My Channel and I'm Not Sure What To Do.” In the video, DeFranco said 12 of his videos had been demonetized for inappropriate language and graphic content.

According to YouTube’s policy, the things that DeFranco was flagged for were considered unsuitable for advertising. The policy states that content that has sexually suggestive elements, violence, inappropriate language and controversial and sensitive topics, will not be able to be monetized.

This practice that YouTube has adopted is especially concerning, considering that news channels reporting on hot-button issues are being flagged as well. The progressive news outlet, The Young Turks, reported on their YouTube channel that hundreds of their videos were flagged for containing words such “feminism,” “ISIS”

have always been in place, but reports of demonetization only began around the same time that DeFranco made his video denouncing it. An article by observer. com, showed that YouTube has had their advertising policies in place since March of 2015. YouTuber and Concordia University professor Gad Saad reported on

Graphic by Thom Bell.

and “terrorism” in either the video’s title or metadata. Metadata provides a description regarding other data data, and essentially categorizes and analyzes the item’s content, according to techterms.com.

Before, YouTube did not have these rules in place and content creators were free to talk about whatever they wanted to—without having to worry about not making money. YouTube claims these rules

The Rubin Report on Aug. 8 that he had been hit with demonetization in the past, however, due to his channel not being as large, the story was never reported. Saad’s case is a perfect example of how YouTube has been lowkey hurting it’s content creators, without the public knowing.

YouTube’s new terms of service when it comes to advertisements is deeply disturbing, not to mention very anti-free

speech. News channels that rely on YouTube are now going to see a decline in revenue, since many of the topics they report on are no longer advertiser-friendly, according to YouTube.

Furthermore, YouTubers like MrRepzion, The Amazing Atheist and Saad will no longer be able to make as much money on YouTube due to their stances on issues such as religion, feminism and the Middle East.

In the past, YouTube was regarded as a platform for free speech, but now it has become part of the political correctness hysteria. These new monetization rules are essentially telling content creators that certain opinions and topics are okay to profit off of, while others are simply too provocative or controversial. If YouTube is going to have monetization, it should either be for all or for nobody.

To add insult to injury, YouTube is not looking past titles and metadata to assess the content. YouTuber Boogie2988 reported on his channel that a video of his had been taken down for having the word “suicide” in the tags. However, the video was about his personal struggle with depression.

Boogie2988 was just trying to help other people by detailing his experience, yet his positive message was deemed “not advertiser-friendly”.

YouTube’s new rules are ultimately a sly attempt at silencing those who are controversial, without simply deleting their accounts—that would be too obvious.

However, in addition to limiting free speech, YouTube has failed by falsely flagging people and putting their livelihoods at stake. If this policy isn’t changed, the end of YouTube might be closer than we think.

SOCIETY

Advocating for a full ban of the controversial burkini

Why you should think twice before making up your mind about the controversial burkini Graphic by Florence Yee.

TAREQ SHAHWAN CONTRIBUTOR Images depicting police in French municipalities enforcing a ban on the burkini have flooded the mainstream news outlets and social media feeds across the world last month. The issue has been sensationalized by the media to the point where the French are now considered by some to be misogynistic, bigoted and illiberal. However, I think that most of the discussions surrounding the burkini

have only scratched the mere surface of the issue.

Let’s start off with a fundamental normative idea: no one should force anyone else to wear anything they don’t want to.

If we agree on this, then we should also agree to apply this concept consistently and equally to both sides of the moral equation.

As such, the French police have no right to tell women what to wear—whether it’s a law or not. On the other side, religious texts written from a male perspective also have no right to tell women what to wear

or to criminalize their bodies. Encouraging women to cover up because men are unable to control their sexual desires is emphasized in Islamic texts.

For example, a verse from the Quran (24:31) says that women should conceal their entire bodies and should only reveal themselves to their husband or close family members, according to translations provided by clearquran.com.

These verses, among others, promote placing the blame on women who are the victims of sexual harassment and rape, rather than on men who are saturated with patriarchal values—'she should have just covered up.' The issue of blaming women for their own sexual harassment does exist in the Middle East and South Asia as a result, and is a major factor in explaining why a significant number of Muslim women chose to wear the veil. And this is just the tip of the iceberg.

“If you take uncovered meat and put it on the street, on the pavement, in a garden, in a park or in the backyard, without a cover and the cats eat it, is it the fault of the cat or the uncovered meat?” said Sheik Taj Aldin al-Hilali, a religious leader based out of Australia, in an excerpt quoted by The

Guardian back in 2006. “The uncovered meat is the problem,” he added, further lamenting his point of view.

This cloud of fear that religious institutions have been creating for hundreds of years in Islamic countries is the antithesis of women’s empowerment and freedom of choice. If women wear the hijab, the niqab or even the burkini because they would otherwise face punishment, how can we view wearing these garments as a choice made freely, and not simply a response to coercion?

The liberal critique of the burkini ban ignores the religious and historical aspect of this issue. It doesn’t highlight the fact that the burkni by and large disempowers women, disabling them from taking full control of their bodies.

Those who are for the ban are seen as bigots opposed to immigration by mainstream media. This disallows healthy and panoramic discussions about these issues, and creates smokescreens to prevent people from thinking more deeply about the issue, which often prevents discussion about the issue’s root causes, whether it’s why France chooses to ban the burkini, or the historical and religious contexts of such garments.

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theconcordian

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

MENTAL HEALTH

What it really feels like to take antidepressants Why I decided to start taking medication to treat my depression and anxiety

Twenty per cent of Canadians will experience a form of mental illness at some point in their life, according to the Canadian Mental Health Association. Photo by David Easey.

DAVID EASEY OPINIONS EDITOR The sun rises over the sleepy city, and I’ve already been up for several hours, lying in bed having an early morning existential crisis—the usual. The winter semester has just ended, and instead of feeling relaxed and elated, I feel tense, exhausted and utterly tortured.

My entire body is extremely bloated, and I struggle to find the energy to get out of bed.

My skin itches and burns all over, and my jaw is locked shut from fiercely clenching it throughout the long, arduous night.

The last few months of university had proven to be extremely challenging for me.

I could barely manage to stay afloat. I defied all deadlines for my schoolwork, pulling crazy stunts—like handing in a research project nine days late—and constantly asking for extensions. I also struggled to produce my opinions section for The Concordian on a weekly basis, and felt that I didn’t deserve my editorial position. I saw myself as an imposter hiding amongst a bevy of accomplished and ambitious journalists.

The pressure felt overwhelming, and the cracks in my life were becoming fissures.

Over time, everything became complicated and difficult, and my emotions went into overdrive. Even writing—my one true

passion—became almost impossible. I was barely able to type out a single word.

Staring at the blank screen, I felt infuriated and cursed.

I entered a period of self-imposed exile, where I withdrew from society—only speaking to a handful of close confidants.

Everyone knew something was wrong and urged me to speak to a medical professional.

Almost a week later, I found myself in the doctor’s office, feeling like a wounded animal. I spoke with my family doctor for almost 45 minutes, and we filled out a survey together that asked general questions regarding mood, behaviour and appetite. By the end of the appointment, he concluded that I was suffering from severe anxiety and depression, and sent me off with a prescription in tow.

The news hit me like a ton of bricks.

I’ve always been an anxious person, but I’d always kept it under control. I was too naïve to realize that all these struggles could be related to mental illness. And now I’d be taking medication that would alter my brain chemistry?

Well, it turns out, 20 per cent of people in this country will experience some manifestation of mental illness at some point in their life, according to the Canadian Mental Health Association.

It’s a lot more common than we think. In an article published in MacLean’s in 2009, Lev Bukhman, the executive director of a student insurance program, revealed that antidepressants were the number one drug purchased by students.

“Mental health issues are one of the biggest challenges facing students today,” Bukhman said in the same report, highlighting that many students become susceptible during their time at a postsecondary institution.

Citalopram—the drug I was prescribed—is an antidepressant from a class of drugs known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI). They are commonly used to treat both depression and anxiety, since they increase the amount of serotonin in the brain, according to Mayo Clinic—a renowned medical nonprofit based out of the U.S.

As one can imagine, I was incredibly anxious and cynical about taking these pills.

The fear of losing my artistic abilities and personality were my main concerns, and I desperately loathed the idea of turning into a mindless buffoon pumped full of sedatives.

After doing a lot of research, I decided to take the plunge and swallow the first pill. Expecting to feel an immediate sense of euphoria, I was disappointed to discover that I didn’t feel any different. Everyone kept saying that I’d only begin to see a change in four to six weeks, but I didn’t want to wait.

All hope seemed lost, and I felt once again lost at sea. Was this what rock bottom felt like?

Small victories were made, though—one afternoon I found the will to find a new therapist. My old one had been a vapid creature with frazzled baby hairs and a medieval approach to mental health.

New research indicates that the most effective treatment for depression is a combination of both therapy and medication, according to research published in JAMA Psychiatry in 2014. This study followed 452 depressed individuals—some were given medication, while others were given

medication in conjunction with cognitive therapy. The findings showed that the latter group fared far better, and their symptoms improved faster compared to their counterparts only taking medication.

Things gradually improved—albeit at a snail's pace — and I began to notice tiny changes. I was able to get more than four hours of sleep each night, and on certain days, I successfully made it to the gym.

My body returned to a normal state as I regained my appetite and the scars from those nasty rashes began to heal.

A huge debate continues to rage around the topic of antidepressants, with many diminishing the reality of mental illness, stating that they shouldn’t be treated with drugs. Giles Fraser, a journalist for The Guardian, wrote in his weekly column: “Happiness can be reclaimed by doing a bit more exercise or being more sociable. This sounds healthier than pills.”

I’m not saying antidepressants are for everyone, but I can definitely say they helped me tremendously. Although the process was painstakingly slow, my chutzpah has returned, and the very fact that I’m writing this article is a testament to the fact that you can recover from anxiety and depression.

Graphics by Florence Yee.

öö Visit the offices of Counselling and Psychological Services on campus at H-440 (SGW) or AD 103 (Loyola ) to request to see a counsellor. You can reach them at 514-848-2424 ext. 3545 (SGW) or at ext. 3555 (Loyola ). öö Visit a nurse at H ealth S ervices on campus at 1550 D e Maisonneuve W. Room GM-200 (SGW) or AD 131 (Loyola).

You can reach them at 514-848-2424 ext. 3565 (SGW) or at ext. 3575 (Loyola ). öö Visit the Centre for Gender Advocacy at the SGW campus for support at 2110 M ackay St. between Monday and Friday from 9 a . m . to 5 p. m . or at (514) 848-2424 ext. 7431. For peer support call (514) 848-2424 ext. 7880. öö If you are in immediate danger on campus, call 911 or security at (514) 848-3717— option one .

etc

Comic by Anthony Labonte.

The Concordian’s team Graphic by Pauline Soumet.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF CRISTINA SANZA editor@theconcordian.com MANAGING EDITOR GREGORY TODARO managing@theconcordian.com PRODUCTION MANAGER PAULINE SOUMET production@theconcordian.com PRODUCTION ASSISTANT PARISA FOROUTAN JEN FARROW NEWS EDITORS SAVANNA CRAIG NELLY SERANDOUR-AMAR news@theconcordian.com NEWS ASSISTANT OPEN LIFE EDITOR DANIELLE GASHER life@theconcordian.com ASSISTANT LIFE EDITOR MINA MAZUMDER

ARTS EDITORS JESSICA KINNARI TIFFANY LAFLEUR arts@theconcordian.com

Concordia University’s weekly, independent student newspaper VOL. 34, ISSUE 4 SEPT. 20, 2016

MUSIC EDITOR SANDRA HERCEGOVÁ music@theconcordian.com

SPORTS EDITOR ALEXANDER COLE sports@theconcordian.com ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR JAMES KIERANS

OPINIONS EDITOR DAVID EASEY opinions@theconcordian.com PHOTO EDITOR ANA HERNANDEZ photo@theconcordian.com PHOTO ASSISTANT ALEX HUTCHINS GRAPHICS EDITOR

OUR COVER THIS WEEK “Finance”

by Florence Yee.

FLORENCE YEE graphics@theconcordian.com GRAPHIC ASSISTANT THOM BELL HEAD COPY EDITOR KATYA TEAGUE COPY EDITORS KATERINA GANG REBECCA LUGER VALERIA CORI-MANNOCHIO copy@theconcordian.com CONTRIBUTORS Sofia Misenheimer, Emily Vidal, Elijah Burkreev, Matthew Turnbull, Meghan Kelly, Joshua De Costa, Tareq Shahwan.

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COME TO OUR WEEKLY STORY MEETING AT THE LOYOLA CAMPUS CC-431 FRIDAY AT 12 P.M. PITCH. WRITE. EDIT. Editorial office 7141 Sherbrooke St. W Building CC - 431 Montreal, QC H4B 1R6 (514) 848-2424 ext. 7499