March 30, 2021

The Concordian.

NEWS // Anti-Asian Hate Crimes / #Refund2020 / Sustainability Conference / +

COMMENTARY // Unpaid Internships / Thippi Thole Feature / Hate Crimes Essay / +

ARTS // Ecologies / Ocelle

MUSIC // Redveil Artist Discovery / Re-evaluating genre classification / +

VOLUME 38, ISSUE 13 TUESDAY MARCH 30, 2021

// theconcordian @theconcordian @theconcordian theconcordian.com

SPORTS // Mazepin and F1 / UFC’s future without Khabib / +

News.

NEWS EDITORS Hadassah Alencar / @Hadassahalencar Juliette Palin / @PalinJuliette news@theconcordian.com

NEWS

Anti-Asian hate crimes spike in Canada

Following a mass shooting in Atlanta that targeted Asian businesses, Canada reckons with its own anti-Asian racism problem

Photos by Chrisine Beaudoin

Diane Yeung Staff writer Spikes in anti-Asian hate crimes have been reported all around the world, including here in Canada. Anti-Asian racism has been present throughout the nation’s history, and this year, the Asian community reports racial violence is becoming increasingly aggressive, especially since the be- while he was carrying “the latest iPhone, the ginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. latest Apple Watch, the latest iPad and MacBook Pro,” but his attackers made no effort A recent study outlined that over 1,150 to rob him. incidents of anti-Asian racism were reported Days later on March 16, breaking news in Canada between March 2020 and February of a mass shooting in Georgia reported eight 2021. According to a report published by The dead, six of whom were Asian women. A Chinese Canadian National Council’s Toron- 21-year-old white gunman targeted three septo chapter (CCNCTO) and Fight COVID Rac- arate Asian-owned spas in Acworth and Atism, Vancouver has experienced up to a 700 lanta. The shootings sparked outrage among per cent increase in anti-Asian hate crimes. Asian communities across the U.S., with proIn Montreal, there were 30 hate crimes tests held in Atlanta and New York the same reported between March and December of weekend.

2020, up from just six reported in 2019. Last In the wake of that tragedy, MontreMay, a man of Korean descent was stabbed in al community leaders organized a march Notre-Dame-de-Grâce. against anti-Asian racism on March 21. OrgaIn September, two victims of Asian de- nizers led thousands of supporters on a three scent were killed in a double hit-and-run in kilometre march from Cabot Square to ChiBrossard. A 30-year-old man has since been natown, stopping at Quebec Premier François arrested and charged with second degree Legault’s office on Sherbrooke Street. Activmurder. ists demanded acknowledgement of the sharp Police insisted the hit-and-runs were not rise in anti-Asian sentiment within Quebec. hate crimes, but failed to explain why. Both Premier Legault continues to deny the exisvictims were of East Asian descent; Huiping tence of systemic racism in the province.

Ding, 45, was Chinese, and Gérard Chong Speeches made by leaders of MontreSoon Yuen, 50, was Korean. al’s Asian community outlined Canada and This year on March 11, a man of Korean Quebec’s own colonial and historically racist descent was walking in the Plateau when he treatment of Asians. Cathy Wong, councillor was attacked with pepper spray in broad day- of the Peter-McGill district, spoke passionlight. Initially, police were not investigating ately of the racist history that the Asian comthe incident as a hate crime, although the vic- munity has endured. tim considered the incident to be one. Howev“We march in remembrance of our hiser, following media coverage, the hate crimes tory, as racism against Asians did not begin squad was brought in to investigate. The vic- yesterday. It was not born from the pandemic. tim, a man identified as Nicolas, detailed that We march in remembrance of our history be-

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cause our history is coloured by racist laws that excluded the Chinese — targeting our great grandparents, despite building railroads in exchange for dreams of a new life,” Wong said to the crowd in French.

Among the speakers was part-time Concordia professor Jinyoung Kim, who identifies as Korean-Canadian. Four of the six Asian women who were killed in Atlanta were of Korean descent. “[It became] an immediate reality for me and for my friends, my parents, and everyone I know with Asian bodies in North America,” she said, before describing the threat of violence against Asians in the last year. “It’s been a year of fighting for justice, and it feels like nothing has gotten better.”

“I feel deeply the traumas that my BIPOC students go through,” Kim said, speaking of her Studio Arts students at Concordia. “I have heard stories from my students.”

The Atlanta shootings have sparked conversations about the fetishization of Asian women, with many activists citing the gendered violence and racism that Asian women face. In a press conference held shortly after the shootings, law enforcement officials said that the gunman confessed to the shootings, but denied racial motivations behind the attacks. Instead, the shooter saw Asian women as “temptations that he had to eliminate,” that he had a “sex addiction,” and that it was a “bad day.”

Following the Atlanta shootings, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau released a statement saying, “While we have made progress toward a more just and equal society, more still needs to be done, and the Government of Canada remains committed to this work.”

On March 22, New Democratic Party Leader Jagmeet Singh introduced the Anti-Asian Hate motion, which passed in the House of Commons. The motion called for the federal government to “properly fund” hate crime units across Canada, and make efforts to “identify best practices in countering this trend.”

But Singh echoed the sentiments of many, tweeting in response, “Justin Trudeau needs to do more than offer words, he needs to act,” in order to combat anti-Asian violence.

CONCORDIA

Concordia student groups cancel event with Turkish ambassador Armenian students saw having only the Turkism ambassador speak at event as harmful and offensive

Fern Clair Assistant News Editor

A panel on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was cancelled due to pressure from the Concordia Armenian Students’ Union (CASU) and other Armenian groups. The groups spoke out because Kerim Uras, the Turkish ambassador to Canada, was a speaker, and no other perspectives of the conflict were planned to be presented at the panel.

The panel was supposed to be held on March 19, and was organized by the International Relations Society, and the Strategic and Diplomatic Society at Concordia, which are funded by the Political Science Student Association (PSSA). The PSSA is under the Arts and Science Federation of Associations (ASFA), which is independent of the Concordia administration.

The Nagorno-Karabakh region is a disputed territory between the country Azerbaijan and its ethnic Armenian majority. Turkey and Azerbaijan have economic and military ties, while Turkey and Armenia have a history of hostility.

In September 2020, war broke out between the two groups, with Turkey siding with the Azerbaijan government, supporting the government with military resources. A ceasefire agreement was signed in November 2020.

According to an Aljazeera article, Armenia calls the killing of up to 1.5 million Armenians in the late

Ottoman period a genocide, while Turkey disagrees.

“As an Armenian, we’ve been persecuted with the intent of erasure, so to resist that, social cohesion among us is very important,” said Arad Banis-Khatchadourian, a graduate-level student in Chartered Professional Accountancy (CPA) at Concordia, and active member in the Montreal Armenian community.

Banis-Khatchadourian explained that he has always kept a connection with the CASU, and that when the organization found out about the Nagorno-Karabakh panel, they reached out to Armenian Concordia students, and Banis-Khatchadourian wanted to help.

“I wanted to voice how completely messed up this event was, and how the PSSA shouldn’t allow it to happen, at least in its present one-sided format that showcases the victor’s propaganda and enables the rewriting of history,” said Banis-Khatchadourian.

He reached out to a PSSA executive, who expressed sympathy but stated they would rather have the CASU and the organizers of the panel come to a solution. Banis-Khatchadourian stated he saw this as a lazy response to the issue.

According to Banis-Khatchadourian, the CASU wanted to make a joint event with both the Armenian and Turkish ambassadors, but the organizers of the panel insisted the Armenian ambassador speak on a different day, and have the Turkish ambassador continue with the original date.

“You will still get a bunch of students, smart as they may be, attending the Turkish event and internalizing some of their propaganda,” said Banis-Khatchadourian, who explained that while the CASU disagreed, they went ahead and confirmed the Armenian ambassador for a separate panel.

“Despite not getting the fair debate we want-

CONCORDIA

#refund2020: a student-led battle against Concordia’s tuition fees

Over 100 students have signed the #refund2020 petition, aiming for economic and academic justice at the university Bogdan Lytvynenko Assistant News Editor

A new student campaign called #refund2020 was launched on March 21, demanding a full refund of summer and fall 2020 tuition fees to all Concordia students.

The movement is based on students who are feeling dissatisfied with paying full tuition fees for an allegedly inferior quality of remote education, as well as limited access to on-campus activities and services.

Ace Baldwin is the founder of Economic Justice Concordia, a student group seeking to “break down financial and economic barriers to wellness for Concordia students.” Besides tuition-related demands, which also include a detailed report of Concordia’s expenditures in 2020, Baldwin’s campaign advocates for prioritizing student health on campus.

Nathalie Heller, co-organizer of #refund2020, says that it can take up to several months to schedule a mental health appointment at the university, even if a student only wishes to have a brief conversation with a specialist.

As an international student currently living

in Colombia, Heller also believes that non-Canadian citizens are at a disadvantage when it comes to health coverage at Concordia.

“My health care plan would be over $1,000 this semester, yet Quebec’s Blue Cross insurance can’t [always] be extended to other countries. I can’t even negotiate my coverage abroad, so it feels unfair since I had already paid for this service in the past,” she explained.

The campaign also wants to provide the Pass/ Fail and DISC options to every student, this time for an unlimited number of courses taken in the summer and fall of 2020. As of now, Concordia students are allowed to apply the Pass notation to just one course in the fall 2020 and winter 2021 semesters.

The platform also aims to eliminate all proctored exams at the university and to bring back course evaluations, which would allow students to

ed, Armenians were willing to get at least this much, the bare minimum,” he said.

Banis-Khatchadourian stated that the Turkish ambassador refused to speak at any event that involved the Armenian ambassador, forcing the panel organizers to choose between the two ambassadors.

According to Banis-Khatchadourian, he doesn’t know the direct reason, but soon afterwards, the event was cancelled.

The CASU and other Armenian organizations made a press release stating, “By choosing to provide a free platform to a representative of a State with an official policy of #ArmenianGenocide denial, and inviting them to speak about the Artsakh conflict, the IRS and SDS [organizers of the panel] failed to evaluate the harmful and offensive consequences of the “perspective” of the Turkish official.”

The Turkish ambassador, Kerim Uras, tweeted that it was an “Unfortunate decision for academic integrity and basic freedoms at Concordia University. A sad day for freedom of speech and Charter rights in Canada.”

In the tweet thread, Uras referred to the Armenian student groups as “radical Armenian groups.”

provide honest feedback for their professors.

While #refund2020 has collected over 130 signatures on its official website, the campaign is determined to take further action.

On April 3, Economic Justice Concordia will host an on-campus rally in collaboration with students from McGill University, according to Baldwin. Further details should be announced closer to the date of the protest.

“We are serious about this. It’s a joint effort to show our administration and the Quebec government that this is a pressing issue,” said Baldwin. #refund2020 also organized a tuition action night, which is set to take place on March 30 at 7 p.m. over Zoom.

The event will be hosted by Nora Loreto, a writer and activist specializing in social movement organization, especially for labour unions, women, and students.

“We will discuss how collective action works — and also how it looks — because there’s often a disconnect between the two concepts ... Despite living through a difficult period right now, the pandemic is actually a very fertile moment for political action,” Loreto explained.

The activist wants to inform Concordia students on how to organize general assemblies and have a detailed action plan, since movements such as the 2012 Quebec student protests have proven to be effective.

As of now, #refund2020 has not received an official response from Concordia’s administration.

However, Baldwin remains hopeful that their campaign will soon reach an agreement with the university, with both parties approaching this situation as allies rather than opponents.

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News.

NEWS EDITORS Hadassah Alencar / @Hadassahalencar Juliette Palin / @PalinJuliette news@theconcordian.com

CLIMATE CHANGE

What is the future of sustainability science?

Concordia’s fourth annual sustainability conference evaluated the climate crisis on campus and beyond Lorenza Mezzapelle Arts Editor

Hosted by the Loyola College for Diversity and Sustainability and the Loyola Sustainability Research Centre, in collaboration with 4TH SPACE, Concordia’s fourth annual sustainability conference took place from March 15 to 19.

The five-day series, Sustainability and the Climate Crisis, which was hosted via Zoom, featured a variety of lectures, workshops and discussions centred around the progressing climate emergency. Topics included global warming, loss of biodiversity, renewable energy, and examined Concordia’s position in addressing the aforementioned issues.

Guest speakers included professors, undergraduate and graduate students from various disciplines, including the departments of Biology, Communication Studies, and Geography, Planning and Environment.

The week kicked off with a series of presentations centred around Current topics in sustainability science.

Graduate students in the Advanced Seminar in Environmental Science course presented their research and the potential ways in which certain solutions can tackle sustainability issues.

Among the presentations was Brian Armstrong’s research on the importance of small-scale subsistence fisheries. Armstrong’s research is done in partnership with the Cree Nation Government and the Hunters and Trappers Association and explores food security, funding for hunter-trappers, and Indigenous knowledge of food sustainability.

“I believe cataloguing and understanding these initiatives and relationships can

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put fisheries and food security back into the greater context of cultural wellbeing, environmental stewardship and belonging for long term, intergenerational sustainability,” said Armstrong, adding that, on a greater level, this would entail fostering partnerships, respecting Indigenous communities, and reevaluating the way settlers conceive their role in the world.

In the next discussion, Insects: Indicators and agents of global change?, panellists examined climate change from an entomological perspective. More specifically, Concordia Professor Emma Despland discussed how climate change has been disrupting insect ecosystems and causing mass outbreaks.

Despland explained how warming temperatures lead to an influx of insects to a specific region,

policies and emissions targets offered an overview and analysis of carbon budgets and how this data and information is applied in creating corporate policies and targets.

The carbon budget is essentially the amount of carbon dioxide emissions permitted to prevent the Earth from warming above its threshold.

Whereas in Emission targets and a challenge to capitalism?, postdoctoral fellow Anders Bjørn and PhD candidate Daniel Horen Greenford discussed how applying science-based emission targets and considering alternatives to capitalism can potentially help the climate crisis. Science-based emission targets are goals developed by businesses and corporations in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

For a more biological approach to the climate crisis, Climate Change and Natural Systems, and The future of biodiversity in a changing planet explored the ramifications of human impact on forestry, marine life, and its threat to ecosystems in general.

In one of the presentations, Clara Freeman-Cole delved into protected areas, such as national parks. Freeman-Cole described the concept of land-

in turn, causing damage to forests as a result of the insects’ eggs — or larvae — feeding on growing and underdeveloped bark. Thus, this disrupts not only the insect’s ecosystem, but forestry as well.

From a more economical perspective, Concordia Professor Damon Matthews’ lecture Implications of the remaining carbon budget for climate

scape fragmentation, a process by which habitats are broken up into smaller areas as a result of infrastructure, agriculture, and natural resource extraction, among others.

Sahar Alinezhad’s discussion on the importance of community gardens

as a tool to promote social wellbeing, and Jacques Simon-Mayer’s research on remote mapping and monitoring of chlorophyll levels in the water were among the other panels that presented findings on the future of sustainability in Canada.

In PhD candidate Alexandre Pace’s lecture, he presented his research about recording the events of climate change via the observation of tree rings, whereas Clare O’Neill Sanger delved into her research about pollen records. The two presentations offered a glimpse at the ways in which the observational analysis of living systems can provide us with information about the climate crisis and state of the environment for the past, present, and future.

Later in the week, Concordia Professor Pedro Peres-Neto, whose research centres around community ecology and biodiversity from a statistical and theoretical approach, discussed the Earth’s declining biodiversity. He further discussed the difficulties and concerns where policies and models are concerned, and the models aid in understanding these occurrences and phenomena.

Building on Peres-Neto’s discussion, Lilian Sales, a post-doctoral researcher in the Department of Biology, delved into her research, which uses statistical and mathematical models as a means of further understanding the distribution of various species on different scales. Species distribution models (SDM), mentioned throughout both Peres-Neto and Sales’ discussions, are models which use locational data of species in order to better understand and predict their locational distribution.

Of course, while considering the climate crisis on a global and national level is of great importance, it is equally as important to recognize the ways in which we can take action on a local level. Various discussions introduced viewers to initiatives for cli-

mate action on campus and in academia.

Climate action at Concordia: A panel discussion aimed to educate students about Concordia’s Sustainability Action Plan, which was launched in 2020. The plan presented the university’s vision and plans to divest from greenhouse gases and reduce waste. The presentation centred primarily around a Q&A session wherein students could ask questions about the fiveyear plan and its implications.

For those interested in careers focusing on the environment and sustainability, Careers in Sustainability offered students a glimpse at the various paths that can be taken upon graduation. The talk featured Faisal Shennib, Concordia’s environmental specialist at the Office of Facilities Management, Katerina Fragos, manager of sustainability and climate change at mul-

in the climate crisis, even without a formal education in science.

To end the week off on a more interactive note, attendees were invited to join the Climate Emergency Committee for an engaging game of Climate Geopardy. The committee consists of students and professors from the department of Geography, Planning, and Environment who are aiming to raise awareness about the climate crisis throughout the province via a series of workshops, lectures, and events.

The game, which takes a similar form to the popular American game-show, Jeopardy!, was meant to educate the public on the current climate emergency and its underlying science. By introducing scientific concepts and research in an engaging man-

tinational accounting firm PwC, and Anthony Garoufalis-Auger, climate emergency organizer at Rapid Decarbonization Group, a non-profit organization. The panel demonstrated the ways in which students can become actively involved

ner, players were able to educate themselves and test their knowledge, all while putting an entertaining spin on an important issue.

The series left viewers with a variety of topics to think about, both where personal and institutional changes and policies are concerned. The speakers and presenters offered a well-encompassed glance at a simultaneously distressing and hopeful possibility for our future. Regardless of one’s area of expertise, one thing is certain, the future of the climate emergency is in our hands: as citizens, students, scientists, consumers, and beyond.

The recorded lectures from Sustainability and the Climate Crisis are available for viewing on 4TH SPACE’s YouTube channel. To learn more about 4TH SPACE and for more information about upcoming events, follow them on Instagram and Facebook.

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Commentary.

COMMENTARY EDITOR Aviva Majerczyk / @aviva_majerczyk commentary@theconcordian.com

PERSONAL ESSAY

“Not a hate crime”? Or anti-Asian racism denial?

Anti-Asian violence is more than just a few isolated cases

Elyette Levy Assistant Commentary Editor

It’s very rare for me to tear up when reading the news — as a journalism student, I have headlines for breakfast and newscasts for snacks.

But just last week, I came across a CTV News article that mentioned a man who killed two Asian individuals in September after plowing through them with his car.

This happened in broad daylight. The police asserted that these crimes weren’t racially motivated, that the victims had been hit “at random.” But what really affected me was that these murders occurred blocks away from my mom’s house; a street my sister and I biked on every summer growing up was the site of 50-year-old cyclist Gérard Chong Soon Yuen’s death.

The same day I read this story, I had my mom on the phone. I told her to be careful and not to leave the house unless she absolutely needed to. She told me the same, thinking I was worried about COVID. I wasn’t.I’ve spoken before about the model minority myth and how its toxicity breeds a culture of indifference towards anti-Asian violence. For decades now, the contrast between the treatment of white and East Asian people hasn’t been stark enough for our society to acknowledge the correlation between crimes against people of our race and the discrimination they face.

This leads to international media outlets shamelessly publishing articles headlined with variations of “Why is anti-Asian racism on the rise in the U.S.?”

But even worse, it causes the police to dismiss acts of violence as isolated incidents instead of facing what they truly are: manifestations of our society’s disbelief in racism, and particularly anti-Asian racism.

What really breaks my heart is this:

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Graphic by @the.beta.lab

what do you tell your community after the cops close an investigation into a series of assaults where the victims were all Asian and choose to deliberately ignore the fact that race was the one common tie between all these cases?

South Korean journalist SuChin Pak recently published a detailed account of the time a colleague of hers at MTV said, while watching her present the news in a room full of people, that Pak looked like a “‘me sucky sucky love you long time’ whore.”

For months, she fought to have this man removed, a scary and anxiety-inducing endeavour for a young journalist who wasn’t used to having to stand up to workplace discrimination. She stopped showing up to work and hired a lawyer, yet still faced pushback from the network’s administration, who tried to negotiate and get her to back down.

She didn’t. And after months, she was handed a letter from the man asking her one last time to reconsider.

“One last attempt was made,” she said, “to ask me to swallow my dignity, my identity, my rage to make a white man feel like he was still [okay], loved and respected ... I was reminded once again, by the white male executive, that someone’s livelihood was on the line, that I was somehow responsible for that.”

I’m still dumbfounded by the lengths organizations go to protect the egos of people who clearly perpetuate toxic racism in the workplace. And every time, the very individuals who have been made to feel small and alienated are the ones who have to prove they are worthy of basic decency.

What I found especially relatable about Pak’s story is her mention that this experience didn’t make her feel strong or empowered or courageous. The whole time, she was filled with self-doubt and fear; the only thing that kept her going was the feeling that she needed to.

It’s scary to speak up. It’s scary to defend

your honour. It’s scary to actively protest racist treatment in a society that gaslights Asian people into thinking they aren’t discriminated against and have no right to call out their oppression.

And it’s not an immediate process. It takes months, years for us to even see a glimmer of change. The Montgomery Bus Boycotts initiated by Rosa Parks’ refusal to give her seat up to a white person lasted 381 days. It took decades until the suffragette movement’s protests bore fruit and granted them the permission to vote, a struggle which dragged on even longer for women of colour.

These are issues that today are seen as blatant violations of human rights. So how long will we have to endure degrading treatment that is invisible to a majority of people? How long until anti-Asian hate crimes are finally considered legitimate enough for police to even consider as motives for violence? How many more Asian people are going to be assaulted and killed at the hands of the “model minority” label and the denial of Asian discrimination?

Changing a whole society’s mindset about race requires constant efforts by those who are negatively impacted by it. It’s tiring, time-consuming, and more importantly a huge privilege to have the education and resources to spend on being an activist — Pak even recognizes how lucky she was to have the leverage and the funds to hire a lawyer and see this battle through.

The white-passing appearance my mixed race heritage has “endowed” upon me hasn’t sheltered me from anti-Asian racism. But the reason I write, speak out, and protest against anti-Asian racism so fervently isn’t because of my personal encounters with it; it’s because I can’t stand knowing that my mom is unsafe in a country she came to with the hope of a better life.

OPINIONS

It’s time to reject unpaid internships once and for all Unpaid internships exacerbate the rampant inequalities in our labour market Aviva Majerczyk Commentary Editor

National Football League (NFL) reporter Jane Slater sparked the ire of young journalists all over the Twittersphere earlier this month when she promoted an unpaid internship position. After receiving an avalanche of responses on how unpaid internships are unethical, unsustainable, and exploitative, she responded that this was simply the norm and that, “There is a reason not everyone makes it in this business.” She continued, “I don’t have time for those of you who don’t understand grind.”

While Slater’s unwavering commitment to the practice of unpaid internships is baffling, she wasn’t exactly incorrect that they are omnipresent in media and journalism fields.

Although no career field could ever be a true meritocracy, unpaid internships are pushing us further and further from that ideal. This is because to even be able to work unpaid, you must start out with a base level of economic security and privilege.

A student who needs to pay their own way through university or support dependents would simply not be able to allocate their time and labour to a company not willing to pay them. This leads to a culture where the only people applying for these entry-level internships are those who already have a financial leg up.

Additionally, working for free can put interns in precarious situations. Despite the fact that, as of 2019, all interns in federally regulated industries, including unpaid student positions, received standard worker protections, there are still many interns across Canada left without proper protections. This ruling did not account for federal civil service jobs or positions under provincial jurisdiction. Thus, the burden of adequately caring for their unpaid interns is placed on the employer,

Graphic by Alex Hutchins

who often has little incentive to provide anything above the bare minimum needed to not get sued.

Not to mention, the mere concept of unpaid internships perpetuates the notion that one’s labour can be removed from their pay.

The more a young person gets used to not being paid for their work, the less they’ll value their labour as they move into positions later down the line, which may lead to them not properly advocating for themselves.

Full disclosure, I have worked an unpaid internship. I am privileged enough that working for pay part-time over a summer and interning the rest was enough to sustain me.

Looking back, I hate myself for offering my labour to such an unethical system, but at the same time, it’s what I was told was common, if not necessary, to have a career in media.

Yet, I now believe that no internship, no matter the prestige, would be worth selling out my labour for free. I can no longer in good conscience prop up any company not willing to pay their workers a living wage, because when privileged people feed into these systems, they’ll continue functioning regardless of backlash. There are so many resources such as Concordia’s Housing and Job Resource Centre (HOJO) or Career and Planning Services (CAPS), that make it easier to find paid opportunities and avoid falling victim to the unpaid internship scam.

If we all as students reject the concept of unpaid internships wholeheartedly, the industry will eventually be forced to follow suit.

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Commentary.

COMMENTARY EDITOR Aviva Majerczyk / @aviva_majerczyk commentary@theconcordian.com

FEATURE

Action over anxiety: Tippi Thole’s journey to a tiny trash lifestyle

Photo by Christine Beaudoin

How one Montrealer is rethinking her footprint

Lillian Roy Editor-in-Chief Like a lot of people, Tippi Thole starts her day with a cup of coffee.

She uses an espresso machine, since it doesn’t require paper filters or plastic pods that will end up in the trash later. The only waste generated by Thole’s daily java fix are coffee grounds, which she tosses into the compost bin.

After coffee, Thole prepares breakfast with her 11-year-old son. In order to cut out wasteful packaging, many of the ingredients she cooks with are packaged in compostable material, like cardboard, or purchased in bulk and transported home inside glass jars. If an item isn’t available in sustainable packaging — like tortillas, for example, which are usually sold in sealed plastic bags — she makes it from scratch instead.

Waste is something Thole spends a lot of time thinking about. On her website, tinytrashcan.com, she documents her efforts to lead a “low-waste” lifestyle; by scaling back her consumer habits, giving items a second life, and avoiding wasteful materials like plastic, Thole aims to minimize the amount of trash she creates as much as possible. Aptly titled, the website encourages visitors to “reconfigure” their waste sorting system so that the largest bins are dedicated to recycling and compost, and the smallest bin is dedicated to trash.

“What I really like about trash is we can see the impact of our habit changes. We can see that we’re making a difference,” she said. “It creates this positive feedback loop, where the more you do, the more you want to do.”

Thole was inspired to make the change to a low-waste lifestyle after attending a 2017 TEDx talk by activist and researcher Carole Devine called “Cleaning Up Our Plastic Mess.”

“I didn’t really understand the enormity of the problem, and how it wasn’t just a problem in the ocean, it was a problem in the land and air and soil, and all these oth“I feel like all of us can reduce [our] er places too,” said Thole. “I like to say that trash,” said Thole. “It’s something that all action feels better than anxiety, and when of us can do, it’s very attainable.”

I learned about plastic trash, I was like, ‘oh my gosh, I want to do something.’”

Currently based in Montreal, Thole grew up in Missouri in the United States. When she’s not working on tinytrashcan.com, she splits her time between her job as a graphic designer and her recently-acquired role as a teacher to her son, who is homeschooled as a result of the pandemic. Thole’s son is an enthusiastic participant in low-waste living, scribbling math equations on scrap pieces of paper and drawing with coloured pencils instead of plastic-encased markers.

The Concordian sat down for an interview with Thole back in February. Having been featured in publications like The Washington Post, Business Insider, and the CBC, she’s no stranger to media attention. Throughout the interview, she’s relaxed and upbeat, pausing only to take sips of her coffee, courtesy of her aforementioned espresso machine.

Although the subject of climate change can certainly be a harrowing one, she maintains a positive mindset when speaking about it. She says her experience with low-waste living has been empowering and uplifting.

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In Canada, an alarming 91 per cent of plastics produced each year aren’t recycled, and the numbers are about the same in the United States. This means that the plastic takeout containers, shampoo bottles, and yogurt cups crowding your recycling bin will most likely end up in a landfill, or even the ocean, where they can take hundreds of years to biodegrade. To many of us, images of marine life swimming through layers of tangled plastic have become increasingly familiar, and the consequences of this reality can be extremely dangerous, threatening ecosystems and poisoning the food chain.

Although the problem is overwhelming, Thole decided to do her part by reevaluating the items she brings into her home and where they end up. She set a goal to fill her recycling bin as slowly as possible, so that she only needed to roll it to the curb once a season. Last year, she doubled up on this goal, filling her recycling bin a grand total of two times. That same year, she only took her trash can out once.

“I think it’s fun to have goals … because then you start to see those tangible benefits, and it feels so good,” said Thole.

One criticism that the low-waste movement has faced is that it shifts responsibility from large, environmentally-damaging corporations and governmental bodies to individual consumers.

While Thole recognizes the importance of legislation and corporate action when it comes to tackling the climate crisis, she believes that the power of individual citizens should not be underestimated. For one, the more that individuals adopt sustainable habits, such as the use of reusable water bottles, the more those habits spread — and they can spread quickly.

“Governments and businesses, they move at such a slow rate. Whereas, as individuals, we can make this change today,” said Thole. “We don’t have to wait. And I think right now the crisis is at that point where we don’t have time to wait.”

Thole says her son plays a big role behind her quest to make sustainable choices. She says his love for animals and nature has been a great source of inspiration. As the weather warms up, the pair will soon embark upon what they call “litter walks,” when they venture outdoors to pick up trash that was formerly trapped beneath the snow. It’s an activity Thole and her son look forward to doing together. “[He’s] a huge motivating factor for me, him and really all future generations,” said Thole.

Thole says she feels a moral responsibility to leave the earth “better than [she] found it,” for the sake of our planet’s future.

OPINIONS

Are we out of original ideas?

Discussing the issues with reboots or remakes in the entertainment industry

Rhea Giuliana Staff Writer

Whenever I’m watching an entertainment news show such as Entertainment Tonight, or listening to podcasts like The Ralph Report, I am constantly hearing about the latest remake or reboot of a show or movie. Most of the time, I end up rolling my eyes because I am kind of sick of it. From the reboot of “Saved by The Bell” to the who-knows-what iteration and reimagining of Batman, there is always something. While yes, I understand and agree that nearly every story has been told and what matters is how the story is told, I find myself thinking about why there is this huge craze to bring back old shows and movies, or to just remake them entirely.

My first thought about this is that film executives are just lazy and don’t want to put as much work into telling stories. It seems like there is no real attempt anymore to try to make something original.

After some thought, I asked myself if it’s easier to reboot or remake a piece of media or if it’s more challenging because there is a directly comparable source. I think that it depends on if it’s being marketed as a reboot or a remake. If a franchise is being rebooted, then there is the potential for things to be a little more challenging because the story has to continue, or because it may only feature some of the original cast.

Whereas with a remake, it seems like there is less need to take artistic liberties because the base is there and only certain things are being changed.

Take the 2013 remake of the 1976 horror film Carrie with Chloë Grace Moretz. Not

Graphic by Taylor Reddam

much differed from the original except for the lack of nudity, as Moretz was only 16 at the time, and the use of cell phones. Did the movie need to be remade? In my opinion, no. The Sissy Spacek version of the movie was really impactful, and remaking it without many changes just felt like it was a waste of time.

There have been times where I have been interested in the reboot or the remake of a show that I grew up watching and was left quite disappointed. For example, the Disney Channel show “Raven’s Home,” which airs on the network as well as on Disney+, was taking “That’s So Raven” and making it new. I loved “That’s So Raven” growing up, and when I watched “Raven’s Home,” I was left feeling bored. The jokes weren’t as funny, and there wasn’t the same energy present that “That’s So Raven” had. I was hoping to feel a sense of nostalgia, but instead I was left feeling let down because it didn’t have the same elements that made the original series fun and entertaining. “That’s So Raven” was so original, funny and quite wacky with the plot, and “Raven’s Home” just toned it down way too much to be enjoyable.

There have been instances where I have been incredibly annoyed with the thought of something being remade. For example, recently it was announced that the movie Face/Off was getting remade, and I was angry to hear this. I thought that the original film was this perfect mess because of how unrealistic the premise was and just how much overacting both Nicholas Cage and John Travolta did. So, trying to remake it seems like a waste of time. I don’t see any purpose other than money as a valid reason to remake this movie.

Nostalgia could be a motivation for this re-

boot and remake craze. In current times, I can understand the want to escape from our reality and try and bring back things that brought joy in the past. However, at the same time, I think that trying to shove forced nostalgia in everyone’s face removes the natural feeling of being nostalgic. Also, if the movie or show is made new, does it still hold the same importance or feeling as the original? I would argue that no, it loses what made it special in the first place.

I can also see how this trend of reboots is a cash grab, honestly. A lot of the time, certain shows and movies that did well in the past or had a decent following are seen as easy money. If a story is familiar, then it might draw a larger crowd than a story that is entirely new.

I think that if there wasn’t such a push for all this rehashing then it might be less annoying. A lot of major studios, with the right amount of funds and new technology, can take many more creative liberties than before, yet they keep reaching into the past to make things again. It frustrates me because there are many stories that could be told, and many ideas that are not being pursued because something that was popular twenty years ago needs another shot in 2021. Nearly every time I hear about a new movie announcement, it’s always some movie or show that was made before. I just want to hear about something that is original, that hasn’t been done before.

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Arts.

ARTS EDITORS Lorenza Mezzapelle / @lorenzamezzapelle arts@theconcordian.com

Ecologies pays homage to the planet EXHIBITION

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts’ latest exhibition captures the complexities of global warming Lorenza Mezzapelle Arts Editor I have rarely left a museum feeling emotional and so deeply invested in the curator’s cause. Walking out onto Sherbrooke Street after leaving Ecologies: A Song for Our Planet, I found myself breathtaken and with a heavy heart; both hopeful and troubled for the future that awaits us.

Curated by Iris Amizlev, curator of intercultural arts, Ecologies features over 90 works from the museum’s collection, all of which interpret the current environmental crisis in a different way. Featured artists include Shuvinai Ashoona, Olafur Eliasson, and Lorraine Gilbert.

Upon walking into the space, viewers can observe Giuseppe Penone’s Path (1983), an almost whimsical sculpture that appears to be at once a human and a flowering tree. Penone’s bronze cast figure serves as a demonstration and connection between humans and nature — a theme which Amizlev has made apparent at various instances throughout the exhibition.

Another example of the relationship between humans and the environment can be observed in Lorraine Gilbert’s Boreal Forest

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Floor, La Macaza, Quebec (2010). The print, which is only half of a diptych from the series “Once Upon a Forest,” features manipulated photographs of plants that are native to Quebec.

Gilbert manipulated the photographs, creating what is essentially a collage, in an attempt to give viewers a “man-made” view of an already beautiful landscape. By resizing, reorganizing, and essentially recreating the scenery, the work demonstrates society’s inclination towards controlling a natural process.

Further in the space, viewers can admire Osuitok Ipeelee’s Untitled (Walruses) (1977) and Peter Qumaluk Itukalla’s Untitled (Bear and Cub) (2003). Though the works are not directly about the climate crisis, the stone sculptures capture the beauty of the threatened Canadian wilderness.

By referencing Indigenous artists and the impacts of colonization, Amizlev makes the important connection between a longstanding history of environmental injustice and the mistreatment of Indigenous peoples, two issues which fall hand-in-hand.

Olafur Eliasson’s Untitled no. 44 (1997), from his series “Iceland,” is a print featuring a stunning depiction of an Icelandic landscape. The contrast between the grassy plain and snowy field in the distance allows viewers to appreciate the grandiosity and serenity of the vast Nordic region.

Eliasson’s works frequently incorporate science, and specifically more “elemental” materials such as water and air. The Danish-Icelandic artist primarily creates installations, and explores themes such as weather, the environment, and space.

In contrast to Eliasson’s tranquil photograph, Adrian Stimson’s Beyond Redemption (2010) is forthright and provocative. Consisting of a taxidermied bison surrounded by ten bison skins draped across black crosses, Stimson’s installation pays homage to the history and importance of the bison in Indigenous communities.

Stimson, a member of the Siksika nation, sacrificed a bison as a means of honouring the near-eradication of the species,

as well as the Indigenous tribes who rely on them for sustenance.

He offers a glance at the importance of the bison in Indigenous spirituality, as well as the ramifications of human actions on a group of animals that once dominated the wilderness.

Presented alongside Ecologies, viewers can view Paul Walde’s mesmerizing video installation, Requiem for a Glacier (2013).

Performed by over 50 artists on the Farnham Glacier in British Columbia, Walde’s piece serves as an homage to the land.

In addition to being threatened by global warming, the government of British Columbia had announced developing a ski resort on the unceded Indigenous land of the Ktunaxa Nation, causing a series of land disputes which lasted over a decade. Walde’s performance features a choir

singing the Latin translation of the press release published by the government authorities.

At once aesthetically gratifying and informational, Ecologies provides the public with a compelling narrative and ode to planet Earth. Amizlev’s selection of works so profoundly captures the intricacies and complexity of the climate crisis, offering viewers an experience that is both alarming and stunning.

Ecologies: A Song for Our Planet is on display at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, at 1380 Sherbrooke St. W., until Feb.ruary 27, 2022. The museum is open from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Tuesday to Sunday, and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesdays. Reservations must be made in advance online.

EXHIBITION

Connecting the real with the virtual Vincent Larouche exhibits familiar characters through dynamic paintings Ana Lucia Londono Flores Assistant Arts Editor From video games and sci-fi films to cyberpunk, Vincent Larouche found a unique way to reunite contemporary themes in a dynamic exhibition that depicts a generation that grew up surrounded by pop and media culture.

Presented at Fonderie Darling, a visual-arts venue in Montreal’s Old Port, Ocelle is an exhibition that showcases nine paintings in a space where the real and the virtual coexist.

Larouche is a Montreal-based artist who graduated with a BFA from Concordia in 2019. Since then, the artist has built a reputable name for himself, doing several exhibitions both locally and internationally, includ-

ing his first solo exhibition in Montreal Black-Talk (2017) and another called Bouches de Cendres Actives (2019).

The paintings are placed around the room as if each canvas will present the next sequence of the previous painting. It feels like admiring images that came out of a comic book.

Larouche’s work portrays caricatures. In Ocelle , he included various familiar characters that one may recognize from pop culture.

A Study in Motion (20192020), depicts Sonic the Hedgehog, the well-known protagonist of a series of video games published by Sega. In this painting, viewers can observe a female character looking directly at them, as if the character was posing for a picture, surrounded

by different poses of Sonic.

Being a Sonic fan myself, seeing this painting brought me back to my childhood, when I would watch the animated series or get dizzy playing a Sonic-themed race game on the GameCube. Good times.

Then, famous Hollywood stars Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock are portrayed side by side in Ontological Fan Fiction (2019).

This painting illustrates Reeves in his character from The Matrix (1999) and Bullock as her character from the 2009 movie The Blind Side. Compared to the previous painting, this canvas seems less joyful. Both characters have serious looks on their faces and exude mystery.

Another particular artwork that is fascinating to admire is History Painting (2020). The canvas shows a hacker destroying a computer system, while looking towards those viewing. This paint-

ing is an example, among others, that illustrates the concept of evil.

Dante Looking at Phlegyas, (2020) is a piece illustrating a heroic figure being observed by what seems to be devils, illustrated on opposite corners of the painting. While the artwork may seem childish due to its simplicity, it may depict how there’s a desire to possess power in a virtual world.

The painted characters easily capture the audience’s gaze, with the figures looking back in return.

It’s strange, yet bizarre, being observed by fictional beings.

Plus, they are placed around a small room, which gives the audience the impression that they are being watched from every corner of the space.

Ocelle presents dynamic and engaging artwork. Many of Larouche’s characters give off several expressions; some may seem more malicious than others, while others may seem more sympathetic or even suspicious.

Walking through the space, it is as if the roles are alternated. Instead of spectators observing the fictional figures, the figures are watching them.

Sounds like a sci-fi movie plot.

The feeling of being observed by fictional caricatures is creepy. Though, the exhibition shows the deep relationship between the natural and the supernatural worlds as they cohabit together in reality.

Technology has advanced rapidly, allowing the creation of several virtual worlds that can be explored through video games, television series, books and more.

Ocelle represents a new fantasy world, where pop and media culture icons come together and observe another reality; never taking their eyes off the public.

Ocelle is on display at Fonderie Darling, at 745 Ottawa St., until April 4. The art complex is open Thursday to Sunday from 12:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. For more information about Fonderie Darling’s current programming, visit their website or follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

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Music.

MUSIC EDITOR Louis Pavlakos / @louispavlakos music@theconcordian.com

THINK-PIECE

Why genres suck

The idea of putting different types of music in specific genres is a disservice to the art musicians make Rhea Giuliana Staff Writer

Back in high school, when my friends and I would talk about the kind of music we liked, I always felt ashamed to admit I listened to pop music. Because of that, I always focused on other genres like indie and alternative music.

I didn’t fully understand what those labels meant, but they felt better than saying I liked pop. Looking back on it, these judgements that we make surrounding genre are odd and limit our enjoyment of the music we consume.

When you tell someone you listen to a specific genre, it may elicit many different reactions. I noticed that when I mention to older family members that I like pop music, they tend to react more adversely than if I were to mention enjoying rock music. One of my aunts said that only rock music should be considered real music. I asked her why and her response was simply, “Well because rock music is better than the stupid stuff on the radio now.” However, when it comes down to the nuts and bolts of it, how do we define the differences between rock and the subgenres it spawned, like alternative rock?

There seems to be, in my experience, a lot of disdain for “mainstream” music. In a lot of ways, I feel ashamed that I like a lot

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who are not Christians, their discussion here was based on music genres. Christian music cannot contain swear words per Distrokid regulations, a site that is used to upload music to platforms like iTunes and Spotify, and Semler has swear words in their songs, yet still classified their music as Christian.

This got me thinking about the way music genres work, and if their rules could and should be bent. As much as I wanted to be in support of artistic freedom and rule breaking with the music, I find myself being on the side of the genre in this instance. I found myself wondering if there is a rule on what rules can be broken. It brought attention to just how debatable music and the classification method can be. For example, Justin Bieber was not pleased with the Grammy award category that his album Changes was nominated for. He was expecting his album to be nominated in the R&B category, as he felt that he put out an album in that genre. Yet, Changes was nominated for Pop Vocal Album of the Year.

Music genres and classifications are still necessary to a degree. It makes sense to have a system of categorization because it can create a good stepping stone for understanding music and the tropes that come with a respective category. In order to break the rules, you also need to know them, and genres provide just that.

However, there is too much focus on genres.

When Taylor Swift released 1989, some fans were disappointed that she had mostly converted from country music to pop music.

There was also a lot of talk about how Mumford & Sons sold out because some of their songs didn’t have the same folk feel as they once did.

When genres become the source of the issue, the rigidity they cause ends up being the focus and the actual music is cast to the side.

of it. It seems as though people take issue with how successful many artists who get radio play are, as opposed to lesser-known artists. However, it comes off as a valuebased judgement rather than an appreciation for the music. In my experience, people viewed themselves as better, or more cultured than the average listener, if they had knowledge of lesser-known artists because they needed to work harder to find the music. I have also heard people say they are “real” fans because they knew the artist before they became popular either on the radio or on streaming services — I’ve even been guilty of this myself. I realized that putting down popular artists wasn’t a fair way to assess whether or not I liked a specific song.

When I think about the artists that I like, compared to the genres I don’t like, I find myself wondering if I believe the labels as much as I thought I did. For example, I always talk about how much I dislike rap and hip hop, yet I enjoy many songs by Dax and a few

by Cardi B. For a while, I was adamant that I didn’t like the music because I shouldn’t like it. I was focused on my decision that I didn’t like this music genre, so I wrote off the music without giving it a fair chance.

While I enjoy both Dax and Cardi B’s music their music doesn’t sound remotely the same despite them both being rap/hip-hop artists.

My interest in this topic was sparked while I was watching a YouTube video about two people discussing Semler, a Christian artist and the creation of their album Preacher’s Kid. While the YouTubers share many views that I disagree with and find harmful to members of the LGBTQ+ community, or those Graphic by Julie-Rose Gauthier

Artist to watch in 2021: redveil

he has dropped a project every year since he started in 2019.

At 16, redveil is young and has a lot of time to refine his sound and to experiment with it, but his talent is undeniable and he is certainly headdreams, ambitions and money and sings on the chorus, aggra- ing in the right direction. Be for another large portion of the vating a deep feeling of desper- on the lookout for this rapper record. He does it while produc- ately searching for hope. because he has the potential to ing the majority of the album, Fans should expect a proj- be the next big thing in hip hop. combining two sounds he is ect from the rapper in 2021 as most comfortable with: looped samples like on “Badnews’’ and “Grass,” the latter sampling “You Don’t Know My Name” by Alicia Keys, and the chill and lowkey trap-flavoured instrumentals as seen on “5500” and “Drown.”

One of his recent follow-up singles, “how 2 find hope,” released in December 2020, sees redveil in a rare form, unquestionably showcasing why he has so much hype around his name. He jumps on a beautiful sample combining looped horns, drums and vocals. He flows on the verses

Redveil, a Twitter sensation in 2020, showed us exactly why he’s a star in the making Guillaume Laberge Staff Writer At only 16 years old, Maryland rapper redveil is already showing glimpses of greatness by borrowing a lo-fi aesthetic, and improving with every single and projects he puts out.

He stands out from all his peers with mature and introspective lyricism, a somber and depressing delivery while flowing over a lot of chopped up sample based beats with tons of layers.

He has drawn plenty of comparisons with former Odd Future member Earl Sweatshirt. Despite not being as dark, depressing and deep as Earl lyrically, they both rap with this monotonous and cold voice that makes you shiver to the depths of your being. Redveil also surfs over more laid back and moody instrumentals than Earl does.

His last project Niagara, released in 2020, received a lot of praise in the underground rap scene and helped put his name on the map. The first two songs on the album, “Campbell’’ and “Weight,” are close to having two million streams each. On Niagara, redveil is in a rather celebratory mood throughout much of the album affirming that he has made it. He also raps about his

Quickspins

JUSTICE JUSTIN BIEBER RATING: 6/10 TRIAL TRACK: PEACHES

The Canadian pop icon’s latest is a solid outing held back by questionable decisions Wesley McLean Assistant Music Editor An album is only as good as the sum of its parts, and sometimes all it takes is one bad decision to derail an otherwise good project. Unfortunately, this is the case with Justin Bieber’s latest outing, Justice.

Justice is the Canadian artist’s sixth album and his second in a little over a year. While it is musically quite good, the album’s thematic framing is a massive misstep. The record presents itself to fit the theme of justice, yet Bieber never even mentions or sings about the concept.

This is a jarring decision that sours the listening experience from the very beginning. When you press play on this LP, the first voice you hear is not Justin Bieber’s, but a sample of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivering his famous quote, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

It’s an attempt to set the tone for this

album, enforcing its supposed “theme,” yet it goes absolutely nowhere with it.

It’s hard to understand the reason why Bieber or anyone else who heard this album in advance thought it was acceptable for the 27-year-old pop star to use the speeches of an important historical figure to introduce love songs about

ing, if he really wanted to say something of substance, he could’ve done it for himself instead of relying on these quotes.

It’s a shame because this album had a lot of potential. While some of the songs miss the mark, the production is solid throughout and Bieber is at his most mature, both personally and vocally, singing of marital love and spirituality. While he isn’t some out-of-this-world vocalist, he knows what he can do within his range and it makes for quite a few captivating moments.

One of the bigger standouts is “Lonely,” which sees Bieber reflecting on his life growing up in the spotlight and all of the repercussions and downsides that came with it. It’s an incredibly human moment, and one that, despite his unique situation, is actually very relatable.

It’s moments like this, “Deserve You” or the excellent summer jam “Peaches” that make Justice’s missteps so frustrating. This isn’t a bad album, but it is bogged down by some outright terrible decisions. his wife. It’s a bizarre and confounding Instead of framing this record as being choice that comes off very disingenuous. something it’s not, Bieber should’ve In such a tumultuous time, one when embraced what it’s actually about. He’s many social justice movements are fight- so impassioned when singing about his ing against inequality, Bieber tacking faith or his wife, shifting the focus to a Dr. King’s words onto a collection of love theme that isn’t present is an injustice to songs just comes off as lazy and border- the great moments Bieber produced here. line insensitive. With so much happen-

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Sports.

SPORTS EDITOR Alec Brideau / @alecbrideau sports@theconcordian.com

THINK-PIECE

I love a sport that doesn’t love me back Formula One is starting its season with a driver who inappropriately touched a woman in its line-up

Joëlle Jalbert Contributor Content warning: Sexual harassment I need to get it off my chest: my favourite sport is going in a direction that I cannot ignore anymore.

As Formula One’s (F1) 2021 season began this past weekend, I am now, more than ever, realizing how it is basically the white, straight man’s sport of honour.

As a woman, being an F1 fan is hard.

Back in 2013, my 16-year-old self was ecstatic when I saw a woman would be in charge of an F1 team for the first time; Claire Williams.

Williams’ Formula One team, however, has not been performing as it once was for the past few years.

Now, many would be quick to associate this downfall with Claire Williams’ promotion; however, the team was doomed to fail since the 1998 Concorde Agreement; a contract which dictates how F1’s television revenues and prize money are distributed, changing the money distribution drastically.

Williams was not even given a fair chance as she was the victim of the glass cliff.

This phenomenon occurs when women in leadership roles, such as company executives or even political candidates, are more likely than men to achieve these positions when the organization is facing crisis or the chance of failure is high.

Williams addressed her struggles linked to sexism and even mentioned how it got worse once she became a mother.

“I have actually had someone say to me that a lot of people in the Formula One paddock think that the team started doing badly when I fell pregnant and had a baby,” she said. “How dare they? There are nine other team principals in F1 and I am sure the majority of them have children. Would you ever level that criticism at them?”

As Hazel Southwell, a motorsport journalist, wrote: “Women who work in motor sport warn each other about the predators because they don’t face consequences.

I know more women who’ve left the sport after harassment, by far, than men who’ve got even a stern email about doing it.”

This toxic climate was always something I knew of from hearsay, but never actually something I wanted to believe, until Dec. 9, 2020.

Only eight days after Nikita Mazepin was announced as a Haas 2021 driver, he posted a video on his Instagram story where he can be seen groping a woman’s breast.

Mazepin’s list of controversies already included punching another driver in the Formula 3 paddock in 2016, demanding nude pictures from a woman in exchange for paddock tickets, endorsing racist comments, and record-breaking violent driving on the track.

The incident was met with outrage amongst fans, as the hashtag #WeSayNoToMazepin was circulating on social media, and a Change.org petition was created demanding the driver face proper correctional measures.

What is frustrating as a woman who enjoys the sport, who has given money to the sport and who would eventually like to work in it, is that the only thing I got was a statement from the Haas Team condemning his actions, but keeping him on board for the ride and saying that “No further comments shall be made.”

The son of a billionaire who will most likely help the sole American team to get out of its financial struggles, Mazepin’s

controversy was quite frankly not the groping, but the broadcast of it.

He made an embarrassment of the sport and the Haas team, upset the sponsors and, most intriguingly, opened up the curtain behind the sexism still present in the paddock.

Although I believe that punishing Mazepin for his actions should not be too much to ask for in 2021, I do believe the F1 group and the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) should address Mazepin’s case as what it truly is: not an isolated incident.

I am writing this article as McLaren driver and Twitch streamer Lando Norris’ sexist comments during a recent stream have just come out.

Norris can be heard objectifying women as he refers to them as “yours,” “mine,” “that one” and “the nationality one.”

In times dominated by seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton, where every driver wants to be as fast as him on track and every fan admires him for his performance, maybe the men of F1 should start taking notes on his off-track activism as well.

After years of watching the sport demonize my gender, at the start of the 2021 season, I am left feeling as though I am going back into a toxic relationship. Because the part of me that loves the sport believes it can change for the better.

But will the sport I love ever love me back?

As I grew up trying to find my place as a woman in the sport, I had to endure seeing my only representation in the sport being critiqued all these years for supposedly leading the team to failure.

As a young girl, the only image I had of women in the sport was of its “Grid Girls,” and how conventionally beautiful and useless, for a lack of better word, they were.

Despite their absence today, the image of the paddock remains a playground of sexual advantage that catters to a heterosexual male audience.

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Graphic by Taylor Reddam

MIXED MARTIAL ARTS

What’s next for the UFC’s lightweight division?

The future of the UFC’s lightweight division following Khabib Nurmagomedov’s retirement Liam Sharp Assistant Sports Editor When the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov successfully defended his title against a hungry and re- Graphic by formed Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 in Oc- @the.beta.lab tober, the Russian superstar established Chandler is currently ranked number himself as the promotion’s pound-for- four in the lightweight division, boasting a pound king whilst cementing his place in record of 22-5. He signed with the UFC in the UFC record books.

September 2020 after spending most of the decade in Bellator MMA as the promotion’s The euphoria of the moment was short lived, lightweight champion. Chandler made his however, as Nurmagomedov announced his re- anticipated promotional debut against Dan tirement following a bittersweet victory in the oc- Hooker at UFC 257, where he would win detagon, having lost his father and life-long coach cisively by technical knockout in the openwho died of COVID-19 complications at the age ing round, firmly establishing his name in the of 57 last July. At 32 years old and seemingly in 155-pound title conversation. his athletic prime, Nurmagomedov’s retirement Meanwhile, Oliveira signed with the would be questioned among fans and media for UFC in 2010 at 20-years-old and was widemonths. ly regarded as a developing and promising Nurmagomedov and the UFC’s president star. Over a decade later, the Brazilian mixed Dana White finally took to social media nearly martial artist has seemingly put everything five months later on March 18, where they official- together and ridden the success of a monuly declared the lightweight king retired for good. mental eight-fight winning streak into his first In the blink of an eye, the UFC’s destined UFC title shot.

155-pound champion for years to come was abruptly out of the picture, transforming the en- Notable future UFC lightweight tire UFC lightweight landscape as a result. matchups: The lightweight show must go on Shortly after the news broke, the UFC made headlines by booking a title bout for the newly-vacated lightweight belt between Michael Chandler and Charles Oliveira. The matchup will serve as UFC 262’s main event, scheduled for May 15.

Dustin Poirier (1) vs. Conor McGregor (6) trilogy: Following their rematch on Jan. 24 that saw Poirier shock the world by brutally stopping McGregor in the second-round by technical knockout, Poirier was the clear-cut number one contender in the division. He eventually opted towards

the trilogy bout with McGregor that will surely captivate the masses and garner all parties a hefty pay cheque.

It’s worth noting that while the fight is not yet officially booked, with the drama and hype built up around the two rivals, it’s only a matter of time until the final negotiations are set in stone.

Tony Ferguson (5) vs. Beneil Dariush (9): At 37-years-old, Ferguson has been among the top of the UFC’s lightweight division for over half a decade. Due to inconvenient circumstances, he never got the chance to fight for the undisputed lightweight title and has recently been on the receiving end of ruthless, drawn-out losses to Gaethje and Oliveira.

He will need to slow down a surging Dariush who has finished four of his last five opponents in the opening two rounds. Another loss to Ferguson’s resume would irrefutably spell the end of an era in the division.

Nurmagomedov’s retirement is disappointing to see for MMA fans, but one of the UFC’s most competitive divisions will endure and continue to produce outstanding fights with marketable stars headlining its bright future.

COLOUR COMMENTARY

The Habs and the trade deadline This is the year where the Montreal Canadiens should be buyers

make it past the first two rounds is there for the Habs.

The Canadiens have started the season strong, but have had some trouble in the It’s been a while since the Monpast month, even firing their head coach. treal Canadiens have had such an op- Yet, they’re still in a playoff spot and seem portunity to go deep in the playoffs. confident on the ice against pretty much all With the realigned divisions for the their opponents. It would be fair to think 2020‒21 National Hockey League that this season, for the first time in years, (NHL) season, the Habs are only General Manager Marc Bergevin would try playing fellow Canadian opponents in to improve his team by the NHL trade deadthe regular season. line, with hopes to shock the hockey world and win the Stanley Cup. The best four of their seven-team diAfter adding key players Tyler Tofvision will qualify for the playoffs, and with foli and Josh Anderson last offseason, it those teams only playing each other until wouldn’t be surprising to see Bergevin add the Stanley Cup semi-finals, the chance to depth for his third and fourth lines. BerAlec Brideau Sports Editor

gevin doesn’t often make trades, but when he does, he rarely fails to improve his roster, either in the short-term or long-term.

An important player who could be traded is Phillip Danault. Despite being a great centreman and good defensively, Danault is in the last year of his contract, and hasn’t offered much offensively this season.

Any team looking for depth at this position would give a lot for him, especially at the trade deadline, when teams often overpay.

Graphic by Rose-Marie Dion

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Editorial: The fight against anti-Asian racism

Photo by Christine Beaudoin

In Feb. 2020, The Concordian published an editorial denouncing the rise in anti-Asian racism that had resulted from the spread of COVID-19. It’s been over a year since then, but the issue has only gotten worse; in these past few weeks alone, Asians across the globe have been the targets of senseless violence, many losing their lives. And so, today we will repeat what we wrote last year: To be wary of a fatal virus is one thing, to blame an entire community just because it originated in their home country is another — especially when it’s used to justify racist actions.

Earlier this month, eight people were killed in a string of shootings at three Atlanta spas, the majority of whom were female and of asian descent.

This crisis is not one to be taken lightly, especially given that Quebec’s very own minister refuses to acknowledge the presence of systemic racism in the province. Asian voices must be amplified, their calls to action must be listened to, and their fight against injustice must be supported. The Concordian stands in solidarity with our university’s Asian community, and offers itself as a platform to make their voices heard.

Let’s take up space and stand together.

This is The Concordian.

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LILLIAN ROY

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VOLUME 38 ISSUE 12 DATE MARCH 16 2021

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OUR COVER THIS WEEK “TAKE UP SPACE AND STAND TOGETHER”

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