Concordia 101: CSU’s winter 2025 annual general elections pg. 3
SPORTS
Concordia men’s hockey outlasts the Queens Gaels in OUA semifinals pg. 7
LES PAGES
FRANCOS
La montée du sentiment antiAméricain dans le sport Canadien pg. 9
ARTS & CULTURE
Sharing Black and Indigenous agriculture traditions pg. 10
MUSIC
THE STINGERS WOMEN’S HOCKEY TEAM FINISHES IN SECOND PLACE AT THE RSEQ CHAMPIONSHIP AS THE MEN’S TEAM LOOKS TO WIN OUA FINALS ON SATURDAY. BOTH TEAMS WILL BE HEADING TO THE USPORTS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP LATER THIS MONTH. READ ALL ABOUT IT ON PAGES 6–7.
Dulce centres culture and authenticity in Latin music pg. 12
ALL IN PRESENTS THEIR PLATFORM AT THE CSU PRE-ELECTION DEBATE
The slate and one council candidate attended to discuss their platform as elections approach.
BY ANGÉLIQUE BABINEAU // ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
Transparency from Concordia’s administration, communication between students and union representatives, and the role of a student union in political issues were at the heart of the Concordia Student Union’s (CSU) annual election debate on March 5.
The slate All In and Nathanael McCooeye, a council candidate for Gina Cody School of Engineering and Computer Science, attended the debate. A Unified Concordia, the other running executive slate, decided not to attend the debate due to “ongoing issues with the election
website,” according to an Instagram post. At the time of the debate, the CSU’s election website had not yet been updated with the current campaign’s information. Candidates sat in the CSU lounge from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. in front of two dozen students,
addressing their priorities and identifying areas they believed could be im proved within the CSU should they be elected.
OPINIONS
“But what will people say?” Literally ... who cares? pg. 15
PHOTO COLLAGE BY HANNAH BELL // PHOTO EDITOR
Your student union is allergic to accountability
The CSU has once again refused The Concordian’s and The Link’s fee levy referendum questions, a decision that falls in line with the union’s pattern of undemocratic and opaque structure.
BY THE CONCORDIAN AND THE LINK
Note: This article was initially published on March 4. At the time of printing and as elections loom, there have been few updates. The issue of fee-levy increase referendum questions is on the CSU’s agenda for their meeting on March 12, the day after the beginning of the election.
For the second time this academic year, The Concordian and The Link have been denied the chance to run for a fee levy increase.
For the second time, our applications have been rejected on account of baseless claims marked by clear political motives.
For the second time, both student papers have been stripped of the opportunity to have the student body vote on whether it would like to support its student press.
This isn't the second time the Concordia Student Union (CSU) has abused its power; it's just a small dowel in the grand structure of its corruption.
Our opt-outable fee levies currently sit at $0.19 per credit per student, accumulated from the undergraduate student body. Both fee levies have seen no adjustment since 2001. They reflect neither current labour nor printing costs, nor are they adjusted to inflation.
The Concordian and The Link write to you in joint solidarity to denounce the CSU and its councillors’ clear political biases, favouritism, and unprofessionalism.
On Feb. 21, the CSU chairperson sent an agenda for an impromptu, urgent special council meeting (SCM) to be held on Feb. 25 to ensure the upcoming CSU elections are held properly and to rule. The agenda included the approval of fee levy applications and referenda questions.
According to the CSU’s website, the nomination period for elections was set to end Feb. 21 at 6 p.m. The agenda to remedy election-related issues was sent out at 3:56 p.m. that day.
The fee levy committee failed to convene at least once during the semester to review applica-
tions. The committee had been inactive and negligent in attending to its mandated tasks to ensure a timely and democratic nomination process.
The councillors on the committee had once again neglected their responsibilities, failed to look through fee-levy applications on time and failed to keep student groups in the loop.
Before the Feb. 25 SCM, both The Concordian and The Link had not heard any updates on their fee levy packages since the committee received them.
The Link was invited to make the case for its fee levy application to ensure that it would not be wrongfully contested, as it was in the fall. Yet the invitation itself came after several appeals from The Link’s team.
The Concordian, despite facing similar objections from the committee in the fall, did not receive any invitation to attend the meeting — nor did any of the other fee levy groups.
Although fee levy committee members at the SCM discussed inviting applicants to present their cases to the committee, the discussion was shut down, with CSU members arguing this should have been raised during the nomination phase.
These proceedings are unfair.
At the SCM, 45 minutes were allocated to the fee levy committee to review, approve or deny five applications. The winter CSU general election nomination period, which is scheduled to last over two weeks, was expected to be boiled down to 45 minutes of deliberation — about nine min utes per fee levy.
When it came time for The Link to advocate for its appli cation to be voted on by the stu dent body — not make the case for why it deserves a fee levy, as these are independent argu ments — its application was re jected. The point raised during the SCM was that The Link’s annual report was outdated. This, as The Link refuted, was incorrect.
Point 1.3.1.3 of the CSU’s Pol icy on Fee Levy Applications states that non-CSU groups seeking to modify an existing fee-levy must attach in their application “an audit or re view engagement prepared by an external accountant for the previous fiscal year.” The Link submitted its audited 2023 an
nual report, as its 2024 annual report, per The Link’s by-laws, would not be ratified until its annual general meeting (AGM) in May 2025. The Link’s financial year runs from May of the previous year to May of the current year.
From what we believe is derived from political motives, a committee member rejected the application for the same reason it was denied in the fall — blaming the soon-to-be-ratified 2024 audit. The committee had ample time to raise these concerns and to iron out debatable grey areas but instead crammed a crucial decision with grave financial ramifications into an unfair timeframe.
The Link was allowed on the ballot in Fall 2023 and Winter 2024, approved with the same documents aligned with its financial year. Why was point 1.3.1.3 not raised then? Why was The Link approved twice before, after submitting the same documents per its previous fiscal year?
Minutes before The Link was removed from the meeting following its rejection, it asked the committee to provide a solution to the bureaucratic deadlock it faced. No concrete solutions were given. Instead, The Link was told to re-read the policy and reapply with the "correct documents." The committee's logic is paradoxical, considering The Link's by-laws restrict it from producing an audit at any other time than its May AGM.
The Link’s vital application was rushed, and its valid concerns were brushed aside.
The Concordian’s AGM is in December, which allowed its 2024 financial statement to be approved in time for the fee levy adjustment application. Despite this, The Concordian’s referendum question was also rejected.
Meeting minutes, which were missing crucial details from the meeting, show that the question was rejected because The Concordian’s financial statement
Had the fee levy committee bothered to open The Concordian’s financial statements, it would surely have seen the required information, in bold and all-caps, on the third page. Had The Concordian’s team been invited to discuss it with them, it would have happily pointed it out to the committee.
Despite its documents being in order and per the CSU’s policies, The Concordian’s referendum question was rejected.
The Concordian did not receive any communication from the CSU until Sunday, March 2, at 9:35 p.m. This followed multiple unanswered emails, calls and text messages to the CSU.
In that late-night call, a CSU executive confirmed that the rejection of The Concordian’s referendum question had been a committee error. This executive claimed that because the SCM was rushed, they had not had time to fully review the application package.
On Monday, March 3, the CSU called The Link and The Concordian to discuss the union’s course of action following the dysfunctional policy interpretations. The union confirmed that it would be unable to rectify its mistakes for the general elections but claims it is exploring alternatives.
The only fee levy approved from the five that applied was a new group named ElectroCon. The club was running to create a new fee levy group, which would ask undergraduate students to pay nearly $0.40 per credit.
The club, whose mission is to throw free parties for students, faced none of the same stringent adherence to the fee levy policy as The Concordian and The Link.
According to the minutes from the fee levy meeting, the chair of the committee approved all ElectroCon’s documents, claiming they were “in order.” This, according to the CSU’s Policy on Fee Levy Applications, was not the case.
application to Fee Levy Review Committee for review [typo in original].” ElectroCon was founded just this academic year.
Policy 1.2.4.3 outlines that the group running must have “a petition in support of the fee levy’s collection, containing the name, faculty, student ID number, and signature, of at least 3,000 undergraduate students.”
ElectroCon had only collected 881 signatures.
It is clear that the committee fallaciously applied its own policy on fee levy applications for all applicants, grossly abusing its power for political and personal gain.
Our question is this: If the fee levy committee was as thorough as it claims, would this massive blunder have slipped through the cracks? Why are councillors quoting their policies selectively and unevenly?
The CSU’s oversight continues to infringe on student interests and the basic democratic right to elections.
To add insult to injury, there is no avenue to officially send a complaint about the fee levy committee’s errors. The CSU’s highest governing body, the Judicial Board, is non-functioning, with its last decision made in 2022. Despite union attempts to reinstate the board, a handful of councillors ensured this effort failed by filibustering during council meetings.
The Concordian and The Link urge the union to reinstate the Judicial Board as soon as possible. The union cannot be left to act against students’ interests without any oversight or accountability.
Student media fights for transparency, democracy and accountability. By continuing to put roadblocks in our path, the CSU reveals its intent to make decisions however it sees fit, with impunity.
Ultimately, the people most affected by the CSU’s obstruction of the student press are the students — both the student
CSU pre-election debate
(Continued from cover)
For Rev Nahabedian, student life coordinator candidate with All In, one of CSU’s current biggest issues is a lack of communication between students and services.
“There are a lot of initiatives on campus, and so [few] students know about them. There is so much reach that CSU has and can utilize,” said Nahabedian, who promised to increase call-out posts for events and greater use of university facilities for students if elected.
McCooeye, a third-year mechanical engineering student, put representing students from his faculty at the forefront of his campaign as a potential Gina Cody council representative. McCooeye said he commits to prioritizing clubs — which he believes are “assets that complement degrees” — but also to upgrading lab equipment.
“Some of the labs have amazing equipment, and other
“Something I’m hearing a lot [from students] is: ‘We just want to get rid of the politics; we just want to focus on our education,’” said McCooeye. “I think that what that means is not to screw politics, but that if you have to choose between the two, [...] we are an educational institution, and our mandate is to students.”
The union’s political involvement looks different for All In.
“I think there is this false narrative that is being used to claim that the student union shouldn’t be a political entity and that we should keep neutrality above all, and I think that is entirely disingenuous and harmful to the reality that is student life,” said Danna Ballantyne, who is running to continue her role as external and mobilization coordinator next year.
Ballantyne said she believes universities are places to hold
The second debate, which focused on the Loyola Campus, was set to happen on Zoom at 6 p.m. on March 6. At around 5 p.m., the CSU rescheduled the debate to Friday, March 7 at 6 p.m. on their Instagram story due to being “unable to ensure timely access to all participants.”
Additional information about other slates and students running for council is available on the CSU’s elections website.
The polling phase will begin on March 10 at 9 a.m., and students will have until March 13 at 9 p.m. to cast their votes.
CSU’s winter 2025 annual general elections
The CSU’s annual general elections are here.
BY MEGHRI GHAZARIAN STAFF WRITER
@MEGHRIGHAZARIAN
The Concordia Student Union’s (CSU) winter 2025 annual general elections are here. Here is everything you need to know. The annual general election includes the election of the office of representatives, executive, student senate seats, and referendum questions. Three stages go into the election process.
First was the nomination period. Between Feb. 3 and Feb. 21, students who wished to be candidates for executive, senate, council, or the referendum committee had to fill out a form provided by the CSU.
Once all the nominees were determined, the campaigning phase began. Between March 3 and March 10, those nominated campaigned to get as many signatures as possible on their forms.
This year, two main slates are running in the elections: All In and A Unified Concordia. All In is composed of eight undergraduate students running together, and A Unified Concordia has six students on its team.
During the campaigning period, the Union held two public debates. The first was on March 5 at the CSU Lounge (H-711), and the second was on March 7 over Zoom.
Finally, this morning, the polling phase began. It will last until March 13.
The ballot will include referendum questions addressing worker and union solidarity and migrant justice issues.
The included referendum questions are:
• Do you support adopting this position of solidarity with workers and unions?
• Do you support adopting this position of solidarity with CREW-CSN?
• Do you support adopting this position of opposition to anti-union sentiment?
• Do you support adopting this position of solidarity with migrants and international students?
Students who wish to vote can do so online or at one of the four polling booth locations, with three on the downtown campus and one on the Loyola campus.
Those on the downtown campus can go to either the Hall lobby, the MB lobby, or the EV basement (EV1.116). Those who are on the Loyola campus can vote in the SP lobby.
Students can also vote online through SimplyVoting. Students will receive an email and will have the option to vote with a direct link that takes them to their personal ballot or with an elector ID and password with a link to the voting portal.
Graphic by Keven Vaillancourt // Graphics Editor // @kindaokev
All In and Nathanael McCooeye at the CSU’s first pre-election debate on March 5.
Photo by Angélique Babineau // Assistant News Editor
What is Students For Better? Anonymous campaign targets CSU elections
A self-styled “grassroots” campaign hits CSU elections with anonymous social media posts and ads, raising questions about its origin and funding.
BY MANOJ SUBRAMANIAM STAFF WRITER
An anonymous group called Students For Better has been targeting Concordia students through social media posts and digital advertisements ahead of the Concordia Student Union (CSU) elections this week.
The group describes itself as “a grassroots movement dedicated to meaningful change on university campuses across North America” on its website. It has been pushing for the replacement of current CSU leadership.
On Saturday, Students For Better endorsed 28 candidates who the group said would “drive real, positive change on campus” and later withdrew three endorsements. Many of the candidates endorsed by Students For Better are either current or former councillors.
At least seven of the endorsements were given to executives of Startup Nation, including co-presidents Anastasia Zorchinsky and Mi chael Eshayek. Startup Nation is a pro-Israeli student club at Concordia that is involved in a legal dispute with the CSU over its club status.
and Eshayek – along with Drew Syl ver and Diana Levitin, who were both elected
councillors last year – are also plaintiffs in another lawsuit against the university seeking an injunction to enforce its anti-hate rules.
Adam Mills, who is running to be a CSU councillor and was also endorsed by Students For Better, said that he was not contacted ahead of the group’s endorsement.
“They just put up our pictures that we submitted to the CSU election team and our bios, [...] and they certainly did it without my permission,” said Mills.
Mills said he rejected the endorsement, and Students For Better later removed the post endorsing him.
“I think it’s ironic to demand transparency while hiding behind an anonymous group that refuses to disclose its funding,” said Mills.
Kinsey El Tanani also had her endorsement withdrawn after her friends informed her of the posts on Instagram and she protested it. El Tanani said she didn’t want anything to do with Students for Bet
“I was extremely shocked to be [endorsed] with other people that I have nothing in common with, and I think I was just used as a tool to push [Students For Better] propaganda,” said El Tanani.
Another candidate, Nathanael McCooeye, also said he wasn’t consulted by the group before they endorsed him. While he agreed with some of their stances, he said that he is worried that the group’s lack of transparency could hurt his chances.
“I feel [Students for Better’s] negative reception could have an adverse effect on the candidates they are actually promoting, such as myself,” McCooeye said. “I also don’t approve of their methods, as my platform is being built on straightforward transparency and collaboration, not this sort of political shadow work. I may reject it on this account.”
In its criticism of the CSU, Students For Better accused the union of lack of transparency and financial discipline. However, Students For Better has not disclosed who is behind the campaign or where it gets its funding, leaving students and candidates skeptical of the group’s real motives.
“It is a little bit questionable that there is what is presented as a grassroots organization with no one you can put a face to or no one you can put a name to,” said Leo Litke, who is running for the CSU’s internal coordinator position.
“Having a student-focused group that lacks a demonstrable student voice is concerning.”
Students For Better’s digital campaign has been publicized across several social media plat-
forms: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Reddit, with the earliest posts on Instagram appearing on Feb. 19, well before the CSU’s official campaign phase, which runs from March 3 to March 10. There was even a display ad in the Guy-Concordia metro station.
Ekamjot Kaur, the CSU’s chief electoral officer, said that campaigning activity outside the permitted time frame is against the election by-laws and that she has received complaints from candidates. If any of the candidates were involved with the group, this could present a breach of the by-laws.
“Anything that’s posted before March 3 is violating the bylaws,” Kaur said, “If we knew who the person behind all of this was, if any particular slate was doing this, they wouldn’t have been technically allowed to run in the election.”
Students For Better’s ad campaign on Reddit not only appeared outside the campaign window, according to user reports, but it also appeared to be broadly targeting users in Montreal with interests in “News & Education” or “Travel & Geography.”
Concordia alumnus and former CSU councillor Ethan Cox saw the Reddit ads repeatedly, even though he rarely visited the Concordia subreddit. Cox recalled a similar anonymous campaign on Facebook while he was a student between 2007 and 2011.
“I remember Facebook ads showing up telling people how to vote and not knowing where they came from,” said Cox. “But [the Students For Better campaign], I would say, is the most expansive campaign [of the kind].”
The extent of the campaign has led to speculation on social media as to whether outside groups may be funding the effort to influence the election outcome. The Concordian has not been able to verify specific claims and Students For Better did not respond to a request for comment.
“I don’t think external groups should be involved and I think that if students are behind this, then [the students] should be putting their names on it.[...] Not putting the name on it bothers me,” Cox said.
Students for Better’s social media posts and their website cite numerous articles from the independent student publications The Concordian and The Link, including the joint editorial published on March 4 criticizing a recent CSU decision to deny them a referendum seeking an increase in the fee-levy that funds the publications.
They also questioned the CSU’s expenses and some of its initiatives, often using campaign-style sloganeering like “It’s time for REAL leadership” or “This election isn’t just about leadership…It’s about your future.”
Many students, including candidates, felt that the assertions by Students For Better were vague and tapped into possible discontent with CSU’s current leadership.
“It was clearly something that was anti-current CSU, but wasn’t very specific beyond that,” Litke said. “It just appeals to anyone who’s frustrated with the CSU for whatever reason.”
Graphic by Keven Vaillancourt // Graphics Editor // @kindaokev
Students for Better ad in the Guy-Concordia metro station.
Photo by Marieke Glorieux-Stryckman // Editor-in-Chief // @writing_marieke
A Unified Concordia is aiming to bring change to the Concordia Student Union
The slate looks to bring accountability and transparency to the CSU.
BY FÉLIX LALIBERTÉ STAFF WRITER
A Unified Concordia is marketing itself as the candidate for change in the CSU leadership race. Their campaign focuses on providing fiscal breakdowns to the student body and making work opportunities more readily available.
Their campaign promises include subsidies for lower-income students, improved meal plans for students living in residences, increased shuttle service, lower STM costs, and a lively student democracy.
Malak Mooman, an international business student running for Sustainability Coordinator, said she wants to bring greater sustainability and more accessible transportation to the student body.
“I want the CSU to invest in a sustainable future for Concordia,” said Mooman.
The slate’s team shares a focus on greater access to healthier lifestyle options, including a reduced cost for Le Gym access and more accessible food options for students.
They also view professional development and financial well-being as key issues in the CSU’s role. Ryan Michon, a political science major running for external coordinator, is campaigning on direct investment of CSU funds towards professional opportunities for students, such as internships in
well-known businesses.
“My goal is to make the students able to graduate with more money and greater opportunities,” said Michon.
Derek Rodriguez, a business student running for the role of finance coordinator, is aiming to provide greater investment to student businesses and emergency funds available for tuition assistance and food security.
“What I want is for students not to have to pay for mandatory residency food, by working with local businesses to create a diverse meal plan,” Rodriguez explained.
Oliver Hill, a political science student running for internal coordinator, aims to bring greater efficiency to the CSU through automatic club approvals, more frequent club fairs, and increased communication
between different union actors.
“I think I’m the man to bring efficient communication between the students and CSU,” said Hill.
Rodriguez explained that financial stability is paramount to student well-being and argued that the CSU should have a role in subsidizing students facing financial difficulties.
The team denounced the lack of both professional and personal connections within the
Quebec Amazon workers continue demanding action
Workers who lost their jobs due to the closure of the province’s warehouses are asking for the government and the company to respond to their demands.
BY MEGHRI GHAZARIAN STAFF WRITER @MEGHRIGHAZARIAN
Unions following the Amazon boycott movement organized a protest on March 1, in which around 100 people gathered at Phillips Square at 1 p.m.
“I’m glad to see that mobilization continues,” said Félix Trudeau, the president of Syndicat des travailleuses et travailleurs d’Amazon Laval, during his opening speech. “Sales in Quebec are going down a lot on Amazon.”
The demonstration was a response to the company shutting down all seven of its warehouses in Quebec. Amazon announced the closures after workers at Laval’s DXT4 warehouse unionized under the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN).
Uguelin Jean-Baptiste, a for-
mer employee from Laval’s DXT4 warehouse, said that around 4,500 workers were let go in Quebec.
“We were in the middle of negotiations for a first collective agreement,” said Jean-Baptiste. “That’s why we’re here, to protest, to ask the government, in particular, to take a clear position on the situation.”
The crowd marched on Sherbrooke St. and Sainte-Catherine St. They chanted as they condemned Amazon, Jeff Bezos, and the Government of Quebec.
Their demands include the suspension of all Amazon activities in Quebec, one year’s salary and insurance for all former warehouse workers, and full training support free of charge for all laid-off workers.
Their goal is to pressure the company to take a firm position on the situation. They are demanding that all of the laidoff workers receive proper support and that Amazon stops promoting anti-union practices — something the company denies doing.
Benoît Dumais, the spokesperson of Alliance Ouvrière, indicated that the closure of the warehouses has caused a lot of instability for workers.
“We have a lot of people that are recent immigrants that just arrived to Canada that don’t necessarily have unemploy-
student body. The slate said that they aim to counter it by bringing productive dialogue across different departments through moderated public debate to create a lively student democratic forum.
Mooman said she was unaware when she decided to run that she was a member of the CSU as a student. According to her, this symbolizes how despondent the organization is.
ment rights, and they’re not always the first ones to be hired when there [are] options for employers,” said Dumais. “It’s really an anti-worker decision.”
Although Dumais lost his job before the warehouses closed, many of his colleagues were negatively impacted by this decision.
These impacts were also felt by students who used to work at Amazon. Dylan Pasqualotto, a former John Abbott College student, said that it has been difficult to find a job with a level of pay similar to what he was getting at Amazon.
“I was a full-time delivery
associate with insurance and dental,” said Pasqualotto, who used to work at Laval’s DXT5 warehouse. “It was my primary source of income [...] so making ends meet has been more challenging,”
Jean-Baptiste said that employees have carried out different actions like protests, sittings, and picketings in order to get a response from the provincial government. The workers are asking for the government to intervene to guarantee fairness for all former Amazon employees, but they said they have not received any response.
Trudeau said it is difficult to get a statement from the government. He said the union has had to pressure Premier François Legault to say that what is happening to them is wrong.
“The government says that they are with us, but what are they actually doing,” asked Trudeau.
Demonstrators returned to Phillips Square, where Dumais and Jean-Baptiste made two closing speeches. Later, a paper mache figure of Jeff Bezos was brought out and burned.
The crowd dispersed around 3 p.m.
A Unified Concordia’s team: Malak Mooman, Palmer Krilyk, Guillermo Sebastian Chavin Anderson-Diaz, Ryan Michon, Oliver Hill, Derek Rodriguez.
Photo by Félix Laliberté // Staff writer
Demonstrators protest Amazon.
Photo by Megan Mills Devoe // News Editor// @meganmillsdevoe
SPORTS Stingers women’s hockey falls short of fourth-straight provincial championship
The Bishop’s Gaiters claimed the championship on Concordia’s home ice, winning game three by a score of 6–3.
BY MATT PISCINA SPORTS EDITOR
The Stingers women’s hockey team lost their best-of-three series two games to one in the Réseau du Sport Étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) finals. Concordia faced the Bishop’s University Gaiters in the series.
Concordia advanced to the provincial finals after beating the McGill University Martlets in the RSEQ semi-finals last week. Both the Stingers and the Gaiters secured their spots in the USports National Championship with their semi-final wins, but much was at stake for the provincial title.
The Stingers looked for their fourth straight RSEQ championship while Bishop’s looked for their first in school history.
GAME ONE
Concordia hosted game one at Ed Meagher Arena on March 6. With a large crowd on hand, Stingers head coach Julie Chu said the crowd’s support meant a lot to the team.
“This crowd was unreal,” Chu said post-game. “The men’s hockey team, even though they had a game yesterday and are on the road tomorrow, they came in a great fashion, and we heard them. Same thing with the football and rugby [teams]. [...] I thought that that really helped us in the game.”
The Stingers used the homeice advantage right off the bat.
Forward Zoé Thibault struck first when she scored off a giveaway in front of the Gaiter net. This gave the Stingers a 1–0 lead six minutes into the period.
The Gaiters responded by
scoring one of their own, but shortly after, the Stingers got it back. Forward Émilie Lussier buried her second goal of the playoffs to give the Stingers a 2–1 lead at the end of the first period.
Both teams continued their dominance on offence in the second period, as they added five more goals on the board. Bishop’s had the advantage in terms of opportunities, outshooting Concordia 13–8 in the frame. They were able to capitalize with two goals, while the Stingers added three.
Concordia looked to bolster their 5–3 lead in the third period.
While not attacking heavily on offence, the Stingers played a shutdown defensive game for the entire final period. Concordia held the Gaiters to just two shots on goal throughout the full 20 minutes.
As the Gaiters attacked for two goals to tie the game, they pulled their goalie with two minutes left. With 17 seconds
on the clock, the Gaiters found the back of the net to make it a one-goal game. But as the Stingers won the ensuing faceoff, they held on to win by a score of 5–4.
“We came to play today, it was a battle,” Stingers forward Alexis Bedier said after the win. “These playoff games are never going to be easy, so now we’re in [Bishop’s] barn,
and it’s time to do it again.”
GAME TWO
The Gaiters hosted game two on Saturday, looking to keep their season alive. Concordia got off to a slow start in the game. They surrendered three goals in the first 30 minutes before scoring their first. The Stingers trailed by a score of 3–1 going into the third period.
Bishop’s took a page out of Concordia’s book and shut them down during the third period. An empty-net goal secured a 4–1 win for Bishop’s, forcing a third game back at Ed Meagher Arena on March 9.
GAME THREE
The Stingers came out of the gate flying in the winner-takeall game three. The team added up six shots in the first three minutes — one of them reach-
ing the back of the net.
Defender Béatrice Caron scored her first goal of the playoffs when a shot from the corner found a way into the net. This gave the Stingers a 1–0 lead, but Bishop’s tied it going into the second period.
The Gaiters took over the game from this point on.
Despite being outshot 13–5 by the Stingers in the frame, Bishop’s was able to take a 3–2 lead into the third period. The Gaiters’ strong forecheck forced the Stingers to defend for much of the period.
In need of a goal to tie the game, the Stingers began to look desperate in the third period. With this came more gaps on defence, and the Gaiters took advantage. A goal four minutes in, followed by another five minutes later, cemented the Gaiters’ victory.
The game ended 6–3, and Bishop’s completed the upset on Concordia’s home ice.
“They [Bishop’s] battled hard and they played well,” Chu said. “For us, we learned a hard lesson, and sometimes that’s part of the process [...] we have that opportunity to still come back and to learn and to grow from what we experienced to be better later, and I think that that’s something that we’re going to take to heart and I think our players are going to do that.”
For the Stingers, the chance at their ultimate goal stays alive. Concordia will play at the USports national championship in Waterloo, Ontario, starting on March 20.
Their opponent and game time for the national championship quarter-finals are still to be determined, but a rematch with Bishop’s could be in the cards come the second round.
The Stingers fell just short of their fourth-straight provincial title on March 9. Photo by Matt Piscina // Sports Editor
Concordia men’s hockey outlasts the Queens Gaels in OUA semifinals
The Stingers took a 1-0 lead in the bestof-three series.
BY ANTHONY MARUCA STAFF WRITER
In an absolute nail-biter, the Concordia Stingers took game one of the best-of-three Ontario University Athletics (OUA) East Finals on March 6 by a score of 2–1 against the Queen’s University Gaels. On March 8, they defeated the Gaels again, clearing the way to the OUA championship.
The atmosphere at Ed Meagher Arena before the puck drop on game one was electric. The playoff atmosphere could be felt as student and alumni pride soared, with members of the Stingers football and women’s hockey teams in attendance.
“It brings a lot of energy, and we’re happy to have them with us,” said Stingers defender Sean Larochelle.
It was an even playing surface as both teams exchanged scoring chances. Queens was the first team to capitalize, beating Stingers goaltender Nikolas Hurtubise on the powerplay with 12 minutes remaining in the first period.
Play remained even for the remainder of the period, and the Stingers led 12–8 in shots on goal after the first 20 minutes.
The second period opened with Stingers supporters, mainly members of the football team, chanting “hit the weight
room” to the opposing bench as the Stingers started the period by playing physical on the forecheck. Concordia pushed hard on offence to tie the game up but failed to capitalize on their opportunities.
They dominated the second half of the period. The Stingers had their most dominant shift of the period, pinning the opposing Gaels in their zone for two minutes straight. Concordia led in the shot column 22–13 after two periods but could not buy a goal.
A common theme in this game repeated itself in the third period as both teams exchanged quality scoring chances, but the score remained 1–0 for the visiting Gaels. The Stingers failed to capitalize on a powerplay opportunity earlier in the period before finally breaking through to tie the game up with 2:36 remaining. The arena was
The Scoreboard: Next stop, nationals!
Both Stingers hockey teams and men’s basketball qualified for this year’s USports national championship.
BY MATT PISCINA SPORTS EDITOR
After their playoff semifinal wins last week, the Stingers men’s and women’s hockey teams played two new series with hopes of a championship. The men’s team played in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) East finals, while the women’s team played in the Réseau du Sport Étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) championship.
Here is what happened this week:
HOCKEY
The Stingers men’s hockey team defeated the McGill Redbirds on March 1. With the series win, they advanced to the best-of-three East finals round of the OUA playoffs against the Queens Gaels. As the higher seed from the regular season, Concordia hosted game one on March 5.
Like they did in the McGill series, the Stingers came back from trailing in the third period to earn a win. Queens led by a score of 1–0 with two minutes and 40 seconds remaining in the game when Stingers defender Sean Larochelle tied the game on a wrap-around goal. About two minutes later, Sting-
ers forward Nicholas Girouard found a loose puck and buried the game-winner for his team.
The Stingers took a 1–0 series lead into Queens’ arena trying to wrap up the series. They did just that.
A lockdown performance on defence gave the Stingers a 1–0 win and a clean series sweep of Queens. This is the second year in a row that the Stingers eliminated Queens in just two games.
With the victory, Concordia qualifies for the USports national championship in Ottawa starting on March 20. They also advance to the OUA championship winner-take-all game, where they will face the Toronto Metropolitan University Bold. Though the Stingers hold the higher seed, they will play in Toronto’s arena due to OUA rules. Puck drop on March 15 is set for 6:15 p.m.
Back at Ed Meagher Arena, the Stingers women’s hockey team played their biggest games of the season. In the best-ofthree RSEQ championship series for the fourth year in a row, the Stingers faced an opponent they hadn’t faced in this round before: the Bishop’s Gaiters.
In game one on March 6, the Stingers fought hard in a roller coaster game filled with ups and downs. They emerged with a 5–4 victory. Forward Jessymaude Drapeau led the game with three points. Concordia travelled to Bishop’s on March 8, looking to close out the series.
The Gaiters had other ideas. Concordia could not generate any offence and Bishop’s capi-
shaking as Larochelle finally beat the Queens goaltender to tie the game.
Despite the game seemingly heading to overtime, the Stingers did not let up on offence. Their efforts were rewarded as Stingers forward Nicolas Girouard scored with 49 seconds remaining, giving Concordia the game-winning goal in a hard-fought contest, bringing the final score to 2–1 for the Stingers.
“I just told them [the team] to stay composed and maintain that playoff mindset,” Stingers head coach Marc-André Elément said post-game, expressing his concerns for the lack of offence in the first two periods. “We had our chances, but we gotta find a way to generate more offence earlier in that game.”
Stingers players had a different message, hinting at their
satisfaction with the outcome.
“We’re really confident in our game right now,” Girouard added. “To have a game like that, we knew it would be hard, but we know what we’re capable of.”
Girouard’s confidence was justified, as they were able to defeat the Gaels on Friday evening with a final score of 1–0. The game was set on Queens’ home ice and with the win, Concordia moved on to the OUA conference championship round and qualified for the USports national championship.
The Stingers will face the Toronto Metropolitan University Bold on March 15 at 6:15 p.m. for the winner-take-all championship game. After that, the Stingers will head to Ottawa for the USports national championship. Their opponent and game time are still to be determined.
talized on their scoring opportunities. The Gaiters took game two by a score of 4–1, forcing a winner-take-all game three at Ed Meagher the next day.
With a large and rowdy crowd on hand, the Stingers came out of the gate flying. Six shots in the first three minutes of play resulted in a Stingers goal. Defender Béatrice Caron scored her first goal of the playoffs, giving the Stingers a 1–0 lead. However, the Gaiters battled hard and found scoring chances of their own. They scored three unanswered goals, giving them a 3–2 lead heading into the third period.
In need of a goal to tie the game, the Stingers began to look desperate in the third period. Unfortunately for the Stingers, they could not create quality scoring chances, while the Gaiters did. A Bishop’s goal four minutes in, followed by another five minutes later, sealed the win for the Gaiters.
For the Stingers, the chance at their ultimate goal stays alive. Concordia will play at the USports national championship in Waterloo, Ontario starting on March 20. Their matchup is still to be determined, but a rematch with Bishop’s could be in the cards come the second round.
BASKETBALL
Both RSEQ seasons have come to a close for the Stingers men’s and women’s basketball teams. While both teams fell short in the playoffs, the success of the men’s team earned them a spot in the USports national championship in Vancouver.
Eight teams qualify for the basketball national championship in USports. Seven of the teams earn a spot by winning their provincial championship or coming in second place depending on the division’s size. For the eighth seed, a wild card team is selected by a panel of USports staff. This year, the Concordia Stingers earned the wild card spot, finishing the
season with a 14–2 record and earning second place in the RSEQ finals.
The Stingers will face the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees in the USports quarter-finals on March 13. Tip-off from the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre in Vancouver is set for 5 p.m.
Infographic by Keven Vaillancourt // Graphics Editor // @kindaokev
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Qui est Thomas Postigo?
Les Qui est Thomas Postigo?
Le chemin qui l’a mené à l’artiste qu’il est, et celui qu’il deviendra.
PAR NICOLE KRAUSE SOTELO COLLABORATRICE
@NICKY.KRS
« Papa, peux-tu appeler ma prof de chant ? Je veux reprendre mes cours de chant.
» Ce sont ces mots qui ont illuminé à nouveau la vie artistique de Thomas Postigo il y a environ sept ans.
Postigo est un chanteur auteur-compositeur-interprète de 22 ans qui bâtit sa carrière musicale depuis l’âge de 15 ans. L’automne prochain, il va publier son premier microalbum.
Les années précédant la journée où il a décidé de recommencer la musique ont été très difficiles pour lui.
« Une maison, on bâtit ça sur une fondation. Je fais la même [chose] pour mes chansons. Je commence par la mélodie et ensuite je fais tout le reste », explique-t-il.
La musique a toujours fait partie de sa vie.
« LMFAO, Frank Sinatra, Freddie Mercury et Michael Jackson sont des artistes qui jouaient tout le temps chez moi quand j’étais petit », explique Postigo.
« À l’école, les gens m’intimidaient et étaient méchants avec moi juste parce que mes parents étaient des artistes connues », explique-t-il. Postigo est le fils des acteurs Marina Orsini et Serge Postigo.
À l’âge de 15 ans, sa vie a pris un tournant.
« Je m’en allais jouer aux jeux vidéos comme tous les jours et j’ai demandé à mon père où sont ma soeur et mon frère, se rappelle Postigo. Il m’a répondu, “Ils sont partis faire de la natation, du tennis et après ils vont faire du patin.”
Et là, j’ai réfléchi. Mon frère de six ans et ma sœur de cinq ans sont plus actifs que moi qui en a 15. What am I doing with my life? »
Depuis ce jour, il n’a jamais cessé de travailler pour réaliser son rêve. La musique est devenue son refuge, sa passion et l’endroit où il se sent apprécié. Il a commencé à lire des biographies d’artistes, à étudier leur éthique de travail et à écrire ses propres chansons.
C’est à ce moment qu’il a commencé à bâtir son identité artistique.
« En tant qu’artiste, j’aime montrer les différents univers que je peux créer, dit Postigo. Michael Jackson, Elton John et Elvis Presley sont des exemples parfait d’artistes qui sont capables de faire cela. »
Postigo écrit à propos de ses expériences personnelles, mais il peut aussi se mettre dans la peau des autres et écrire à propos de leurs expériences. Il com pare le processus d’écriture de ses chan sons à la construction d’une maison.
Sa première expérience sur scène a été sur la scène d’En direct de l’univers, lorsqu’il a chanté pour son père. L’étincelle qu’il a ressentie lorsqu’il était sur scène et les applaudissements du public étaient pour lui des sentiments nouveaux.
« Pour la première fois de ma vie, quelqu’un à l’extérieur de ma famille m’a félicité sur ma voix, dit Postigo. Cette journée-là, une graine a été plantée. »
Depuis quelques années, il interprète des chansons pop, jazz et soul sur différentes scènes, comme le MTELUS et l’Italfest, pour gagner de l’expéri ence. Avant de monter sur scène, il aime visualiser la scène, les émotions qu’il va y vivre et le public.
Mais l’étape ultime de son « rituel d’avant-spectacle » est sa tisane au miel, une recette qui ne l’a jamais laissé tomber.
Une fois sur scène, sa présence prend tout l’espace. Son amour pour la musique et la connexion qu’il ressent avec elle peuvent être observés sur scène et hors-scène, à travers ses mouvements de danse et la façon dont il regarde le public. Après une prestation, il prend le temps de parler avec le public et de les remercier d’avoir été présents. Pour lui, le public est important et un artiste se doit d’en prendre soin.
« Sans le public, un artiste, c’est rien. Le public me nourrit, dit Postigo. J’ai un grand désir de voir les gens danser et s’aimer. »
Chanteur auteur-compositeur-interprète Thomas Postigo ouvre le concert d’André-Philippe Gagnon le 22 février à la Salle Désilets. Photo par Nicole Krause Sotelo // Collaboratrice
La montée du sentiment anti-
Américain dans le sport Canadien
La montée du sentiment antiAméricain dans le sport Canadien
Avec la menace des tarifs, le pays s’est retrouvé plus uni que jamais lors de la Confrontation des 4 nations.
MATHILDE COLLS
SPORTS EDITOR
ASSISTANT
Les tensions politiques débordent souvent sur le sport, comme en témoigne le geste du joueur de football américain Colin Kaepernick en 2016, lorsqu’il s’est agenouillé pendant l’hymne national pour protester contre les violences policières et les inégalités raciales. Que ce soit à travers des tournois servant à démontrer le soft power d’un pays ou des athlètes utilisant leur notoriété pour faire passer un message, le sport et la politique se croisent régulièrement.
Ces dernières semaines, les annonces du président Donald Trump et d’autres politiciens américains à l’égard du Canada
ont ravivé de fortes émotions des deux côtés de la frontière. Des mesures comme l’imposition de tarifs sur les importations, les menaces d’annexion du Canada et d’autres déclarations de Trump ont contribué à créer un climat hostile. Ce que les hommes politiques canadiens prenaient pour une plaisanterie en décembre est devenu une véritable source d’inquiétude au fil des mois.
Cette tension était visible lors de la récente Confrontation des 4 nations, atteignant son paroxysme lors de la finale opposant les deux pays. Plus tôt dans le tournoi, plusieurs bagarres ont éclaté, aussi bien dans les gradins que sur la glace.
« C'est la situation politico-sportive la plus tendue entre les États-Unis et le Canada de toute l’histoire », affirme Dónal Gill, professeur de sciences politiques à l’Université Concordia.
Le Canada et les États-Unis ont toujours été de grands rivaux sportifs. En tant que voisins directs, ils partagent des
ligues majeures dans plusieurs disciplines, comme le basketball, le soccer et le hockey. Le Canada est reconnu comme le berceau du hockey, et bien que les États-Unis comptent aujourd’hui plus de franchises en Ligue nationale de hockey (LNH), ce sport appartient au Nord pour beaucoup de Canadiens.
« Le hockey, c'est canadien; c'est le sport national », affirme Victor Dugelay, un fan français de hockey. « En France, c'est un cliché d’évoquer ce sport sans mentionner le Canada. »
Pour Gill, cette rivalité a toujours été amicale.
« L’équipe nationale canadienne est une immense source de fierté. On peut penser aux Jeux olympiques de 2002, où les femmes ont gagné, ou aux Jeux de Vancouver en 2010, avec le but de Sidney Crosby. Ce sont des moments marquants », explique-t-il. « Mais cela relevait davantage d'une rivalité amicale entre voisins. Ça comptait beaucoup, mais
sans véritable portée politique. »
Lors de récents matchs de la LNH et de la Confrontation des 4 nations, des supporters canadiens ont hué l’hymne national américain. Pour beaucoup, ce geste illustre une rivalité qui dépasse désormais le cadre du sport.
« Après les menaces d’annexion, huer l’hymne national est justifié », estime Dugelay. « Ce n'est même pas choquant, c’est plutôt doux comparé à ce que peuvent faire d'autres supporters. »
Pour Gill, cependant, l’enjeu dépasse le simple fait de huer un hymne, affirmant qu’il s’agit de la forme la plus extrême qu’a prise cette rivalité.
« Quand on dit “Gardez la politique hors du sport”, c’est impossible, et ça ne l’a jamais été. Mais en ce moment, les Canadiens ordinaires sont pratiquement impuissants » , analyse-t-il. « Comment
exprimer le fait que nous nous sentons en grande partie trahis et en colère contre les ÉtatsUnis ? Une façon simple et directe de le faire est de huer leur hymne national. »
Selon lui, le fait que des Québécois participent à ces huées tout en chantant l’hymne canadien aux côtés des autres citoyens est également un indicateur important de l’état du pays.
« Je pense que même les Québécois qui, dans leur for intérieur, sont nationalistes et souverainistes, se tournent vers la feuille d’érable en ce moment », affirme Gill. « Ce qui est vraiment important, c'est que le Canada est un grand pays, avec une population diversifiée et des régions très différentes les unes des autres. Nous sommes souvent en désaccord, nous nous disputons beaucoup, mais nous sommes tous d’accord sur le hockey. »
Lutter contre la solitude étudiante
avec le soutien par les pairs
Lutter contre la solitude étudiante avec le soutien par les pairs
Th3rdPlace offre aux étudiants des outils pour ne pas se sentir seuls.
BY ASHLEY GAUTHIER COLLABORATRICE
Chaque semaine, des étudiants se réunissent dans l’espace de Th3rdPlace afin de partager leurs histoires personnelles dans le but d’obtenir des conseils et du soutien.
Le projet Th3rdPlace, développé par Concordia, est une idée datant de 2019 et qui s’est concrétisée en 2022. Cette initiative a pour but de combattre la solitude chez les étudiants. Depuis septembre 2024, des sessions de soutien par les pairs ont lieu chaque vendredi au local 600 du pavillon de l’édifice Faubourg.
« L’objectif n’est pas de résoudre les problèmes des gens, mais de leur fournir des outils, à travers la psychologie, la philosophie et les neurosciences, afin qu’ils sachent les utiliser en fonction de leurs propres besoins », dit Yuqi Yang, la cofondatrice du projet.
Les participants aux sessions de soutien par les pairs
sont toujours invités à prendre part aux discussions afin de rendre l’expérience humaine et agréable.
À travers Th3rdPlace, les étudiants des universités Concordia et McGill ont accès à un répertoire d’activités, d’articles et d’expériences personnelles racontées par leurs pairs. Ils ont également la possibilité de planifier des événements et de les partager.
Selon Alex Fevralev, chef de projet et étudiant de premier cycle en biologie à Concordia, le projet Th3rd Place est important parce qu’il permet d’aider plusieurs personnes qui ne savent pas nécessairement comment se venir en aide.
« D’après mon expérience personnelle, je me suis rendu compte que ça touche beaucoup de gens, même ceux qui ont des amis, qui sont extravertis… Même eux peuvent être confrontés à ce problème de solitude », dit-il.
La rencontre du 7 mars portait sur le sentiment de colère.
Les participants étaient invités à expliquer comment réagir face à une personne fâchée, comment reconnaître une personne mécontente et quelles autres émotions peuvent découler
de la colère. On leur a présenté vla méthode « RULER » (recognize, understand, label, express, regulate), un outil qui encourage le développement de l’intelligence émotionnelle.
« Je voyais les choses de façon très noire ou blanche. Être heureux, c’était bien, et être en colère, c’était mal, partage Dominique Ivan, une future étudiante en biologie à Concordia, qui participait à une session pour la toute première fois.
Je me voyais comme quelqu’un de bien, alors je pensais que je ne pouvais pas me frustrer. » Ivan révèle qu’elle n’était
pas consciente qu’elle éprouvait parfois de la frustration. Elle avait du mal à exprimer ses émotions et explique être une personne qui a tendance à éviter les gens inconsciemment.
« Tu as l’impression que tout va bien et puis, d’un coup, tu as besoin d’aide. Tu regardes autour de toi, mais personne ne t’aide. C’est comme ça que je me sens », exprime-t-elle. Ivan dit vouloir participer à plus de sessions puisque son expérience a été captivante. Elle s’est sentie incluse, mais surtout acceptée par les autres
qui ont témoigné d’émotions semblables aux siennes. Des sessions pour les pairs réservées exclusivement aux étudiants autochtones sont prévues pour l’avenir.
« Ils sont marqués par des traumatismes intergénérationnels et ce genre de traumatisme est généralement difficile à comprendre pour les personnes extérieures, explique Yang. Je ne veux pas les voir comme des personnes ayant plus de traumatismes que nous, parce que cette vision ne les aide pas vraiment. »
Graphic by Finn Grosu // Creative Director // @tesdoncbenfinn
Espace de Th3rd Place dans le local 600 du pavillon de l’édifice Faubourg.
Photo par Ashley Gauthier // Collaboratrice
Arts & Culture
Sharing Black and Indigenous agriculture traditions
Brooke Rice and Hamidou Maïga discussed food sovereignty in an event at Concordia.
BY GINANE DESLAURIERS ASSISTANT ARTS AND CULTURE EDITOR
@GINANE.DLRS
“I know my rights and responsibility to my ancestors,” said Brooke Rice, member of the Snipe Clan of the Kanien’kehá:ka nation and founder of Tkà:nios (it Grows), where she promotes connection with food through workshops and events.
For its event on March 4, Sovereignty & Solidarity: Learning from Black & Indigenous Agricultural Traditions, the SHIFT centre invited Concordia students and faculty to join them for lunch to discuss food sovereignty with Hamidou Maïga and Rice.
Similarly, Rice wanted to create an opportunity for herself and other Indigenous people to feel closer to their culture. She found that agriculture is a great way to unite people in her community and bring them closer to
so, Rice uses seed songs, ceremonial turtle box rattles, and cultural traditions.
“[At Tkà:nios, we prioritize] a lot of landbased learning and safe space for people to come back to culture,” she said.
Rice follows the annual 13-moon cycle, which she uses as a guide for gardening. She also works with all-natural elements, remaining as close to her cultural roots as possible.
“We take what we need, we always keep it clean, and we make sure there’s [some] left for the next generation,” she said.
“Always know the seeds that you have are the food for you, but [also] the food for next year, [the] food for your children,” said Maïga.
Producer and owner of Hamidou Horticulture, an ethnic vegetables production and sale project, Maïga moved from Niger to Canada, where he found the lack of ethnic plants and vegetables to be disheartening. His incentive to start his business was to cook food from his culture so that his daughters and neighbours could share his roots.
“[For me, sovereignty is] the right to choose what you want to give, what you want to grow, how you can show it to the people in the same society or country you are in,”
he said.
He realized that many people were in the same situation as him, unable to find certain ethnic vegetables in Canada.
“This is what inspired me to create [Hamidou] horticulture because there were many people searching for the same thing,” he explained. “I did find a way to grow them, share them with people, and allow [others] to grow their own vegetables.”
Maïga said that gardening is also deeply rooted in his culture.
“The seeds are passed on from village to village, from father to father,” he said.
Seeds are not only a means for sustainability but also a way to connect with people in the community.
The event’s host, Elisabeth Cramer, stirred up discussion among the audience to stimulate understanding of the event and encouraged people to ask questions.
When asked what their favourite seed was, Hamidou answered that it was the okra, a plant also known as lady’s fingers, favoured for their edible green seed pods. On the other hand, Rice said she favours corn.
Rice also expressed feelings of sadness and nostalgia for big gardens and medicinal and herbal knowledge. She said the goal of Tkà: nios is not only to regain ancestral knowledge but also to gain control of where and how our food is created.
“It’s a beautiful gift to carry on ancestral seeds,” she said.
A lot goes into gardening to connect with the land, food, each other, and culture. To do
Hamidou Horticulture greenhouse in Verdun. Courtesy pictures by Clover Wilknins.
The Weekly Take
This week: NOMINEES AND NEW RELEASES!
The films reviewed this week highlight the interests of those who have written them. The choice was completely up in the air, allowing inspiration to be plucked from any facet of their mind and resulting in an unplanned consensus to focus on Academy Award nominees and new releases.
The Apprentice (2024)
BY KAILEE KRENTZ
COPY EDITOR
@KAILEELIZ
As the cousins visit all these emotionally charged sites, their underlying issues come to the surface, revealing a complex and strained relationship. Their dynamic blurs the lines between hatred and love, making this film beautifully compelling.
Bright lights in the big city: The Ap prentice is set in the midst of the hustle and bustle of New York City. A young Donald J. Trump is introduced with a genuine drive to the well-established American lawyer and prosecutor, Roy Cohn. This meeting sets off the rest of the plot as Trump draws horrifying inspiration, taking position under Cohn, triggering a domino effect of power trips and manipulations.
While taking in the luxuries of their lives, we simul taneously watch them fall apart. Shot as if it were on a camcorder with constant movement and shifting focuses, the film allows the audience to peer in on painful conversations, accurately portraying the effects our environment has on who we become.
This film’s cinematography is also worth noting; filled with breathtaking shots of Poland, intimate close-ups, and a devastating but necessary sequence in Auschwitz.
Eisenberg’s take on generational trauma feels unique and universally relatable, making this Oscar-nominated film a thought-provoking watch.
RATING: 4.5/5
Mickey 17 (2025)
BY FERDAOUS AMRATI
CONTRIBUTOR LETTERBOXD: @FERDAOUS
The Apprentice tells the story of a man who once lounged around his bachelor pad in his underwear, eventually transforming into a man exclusively prioritizing money and power. Now that he is at the height of his political power, what legacy does he have left?
RATING: 4/5
A Real Pain (2024)
BY TESS BECHET
CONTRIBUTOR
YOUTUBE:
@TESSBECHET
“I love him, and I hate him, I wanna kill him... and I wanna be him, you know?”
After a six-year hiatus, Oscar-winning director Bong Joon-ho returns with Mickey 17, a sci-fi dark comedy infused with existential dread and mordant satire. Adapted from Edward Ashton’s novel, the film follows Mickey Barnes, a worker on a deep-space mission, designed to be endlessly cloned after each death. But when an unexpected event leaves two versions of him alive at once, the lines between selfhood and replication blur, forcing Mickey to confront his own disposability and life purpose.
Jesse Eisenberg has given us a hilarious yet devastating story about two estranged cousins trying to navigate their complicated relationship while dealing with generational trauma. A Real Pain follows Benji and David Kaplan, who travel to Poland to honour their late grandmother and join a Jewish heritage tour, accompanied by a group of interesting characters with vastly different backstories.
Roots & Recipes brings the world to the table
This cookbook aims to address students’ food insecurity while promoting sustainability and cultural diversity.
BY JULIA SILVA CONTRIBUTOR
On March 3, Concordia’s Student Sustainability Ambassadors launched their Roots & Recipes cookbook at the SHIFT Centre. The book celebrates the intersections of food, cultural diversity, and sustainability.
Roots & Recipes authors and Concordia students Zariah Williams, Isminoz Jamshedova, and Raqaiyah Jarviton collected recipes from the Concordia community to produce a collective and centralized resource for food options that caters to students’ needs.
According to Williams, the cookbook aims to address food insecurity among students while also introducing sustainable food practices and promoting diversity.
“I’m fortunate enough to be able not to worry about my meals,” Williams said. “But I do know what it’s like to be a student and not be able to have food.”
The Roots & Recipes cookbook provides a means for students to find affordable and easy-to-make food options while celebrating their culture and heritage. It encourages them to make healthier and more sustainable meals and to expand their culinary knowledge.
“One of the things I really like about Montreal, but also at Concordia, is how diverse it is,” Williams said. “So I was thinking, why not get recipes from all over the world?”
Bong masterfully weaves the movie with heavy ethical questions, walking the line between comedy and tragedy and using absurdism to expose the horrors of unchecked elitism. Beneath its sleek futurism and sharp humour lies a barbed critique of class inequality, colonial expansion, and the American dream’s exploitative core.
Robert Pattinson’s performance anchors the film, embodying the resignation and rebellion of a man caught in an endless loop of sacrifice. With haunting imagery and a genre-bending narrative, Mickey 17 doesn’t just entertain — it challenges us to consider the cost of survival.
RATING: 4.5/5
The cookbook features 19 culturally diverse recipes, spanning breakfast, main dishes, drinks, and desserts from over 15 countries. Most recipes are vegetarian, vegan, or can be made vegan with a simple switch.
Several cookbook contributors attended the launch event to present their recipes — one of them being Zoë Erika-Okoye, who shared the recipe for Kunu Zaki, a drink that originated from Nigeria.
“It dates back [to] pre-colonial times, and it was used for fertility for men and women,” explained Erika-Okoye, adding that women used to drink Kunu Zaki in the hopes of conceiving male children. To her, stories like these are significant and interesting to learn.
“It’s very nice to give everybody a chance to display their culture,” Erika-Okoye said.
Some of the other recipes in the cookbook are Jollof rice with chicken and stirfried vegetables (Nigeria), tamarind apple chutney (India), baklava (Turkey), and ratatouille (France).
“The cookbook is an amazing way to understand the cul-
ture of other people and taste a little bit of their culture, in a way,” said Aashka Patel, a master’s student in journalism who attended the event.
According to Patel, what makes the project interesting is that it includes simpler recipes for traditional food that usually take hours to cook, which is time that students often do not have.
The cookbook also provides a directory of shops and markets where students can find fresh and affordable ingredients, as well as tips and tricks for adopting sustainable practices — all recommended and shared by the Concordia community.
Aside from the physical copies of Roots & Recipes, the Student Sustainability Ambassadors also developed a website that showcases a total of 50 recipes that were collected from the community and is designed to be updated with more recipes over time.
“[Roots & Recipes] was originally kind of a one-time project, but we structured it in a way that if people want to continue, they definitely can,” Williams said.
Graphic by Errita Yolanda Paul // Contributor // @yolanda_yogurt
Student Sustainability Ambassadors launch the Roots & Recipes cookbook at the SHIFT Centre on Mar. 3.
Photo by Julia Silva // Contributor
Roots & Recipes contributors present their diverse recipes from the cookbook.
Photo by Julia Silva // Contributor
Music Dulce centres culture and authenticity in Latin music
The new Latin brand is promoting community through its events and multimedia content.
BY STEFANO REBULI MUSIC EDITOR @DSIIIGN
A new monthly event was introduced at Apartment 200 in September 2024, bringing the club a series of reggaeton and Latin music nights with a proper identity, branding, and marketing. Known as Dulce, the event drew hundreds of people to the club on a recent winter Thursday night.
The project is spearheaded by Aldo Stephano Ramírez, cofounder of the creative agency Núcleo Studios. He undertook the project’s creative vision and marketing, turning it into a brand with a thriving social media strategy.
Dulce translates to “sweet” in Spanish. Ramírez described Dulce as an opportunity to try new things he and his team have always wanted to try, to create content, and to have fun while doing so. To him, the project’s vision is to communicate what’s current in the Latin world, elevate Latin culture, and educate people about what that culture is truly about.
“As a creative, I have the responsibility to always be communicating my culture, not just playing reggaeton to get people to twerk,”
he said. ‘What can I bring to my people, to my community?’”
There is a great attention to detail that goes into curating each event, from the DJ lineups to the monthly dress code and theme.
“We want to have a reason behind everything we can do. Let’s go 100 per cent,” said Ramírez.
The January edition was an homage to local artist Ed Winter and videographer Miguel “Frames” Jimenez in honour of their birthdays. The Chicano/cholo-inspired dress code was an ode to Jimenez’s Mexican heritage and his father’s style. DJ Cosmo was en-
listed specifically for his knack for mixing dembow, a Dominican genre, since Winter is of Dominican descent.
The lineups are also curated to maintain energy until the very end rather than toning things down with slower music, a strategy that leaves people wanting more.
“You could spend your whole night there and not be tired. The lights will turn on, and you’ll still want to keep going. It’s really the place you want to be at,” said Tanzia Ahmed, a first-year computer science major at Concordia.
Dulce has built a strong community through its social media presence. Its follower base on Instagram has played a big part in providing input and ideas for the project as it continues to evolve.
“Phase 1: try things out. Phase 2: see if people like it,” explained Ramírez. “Phase 3 was connecting with the community. I started throwing questions out on social media and seeing how people respond. I started getting 30 answers every time, and I was like ‘Oh, damn, people are really connected to the project.’”
Since starting with questions and feedback prompts on Instagram, the engagement between the Dulce account and its audience has only grown stron-
ger. Followers contributed to a community playlist commemorating Valentine’s Day, as well as sending in their “do’s and don’ts” of a first date, which later inspired a series of short films posted on Instagram.
“People are enjoying this; they want to be part of it. Most of the things we’ve been doing, we’ve been asking the community for ideas. We have something in our hands that has potential because people are going to be there, people want to show love, they want to be a part of it,” said Ramírez.
Fostering a tightly-knit following has allowed Dulce to stand out for having a positive community and a cozy, feelgood energy at its events.
“I have a lot of friends who are not Latinx that come and it’s not just about the music; it’s also the energy. We’ll create a group and everyone will start jumping and dancing. It’s a good energy and a good vibe. We’re Latinos, and Latinos are like that,” said Ariana Musacchio, a second-year political science major at Concordia and one of the event’s hosts.
“When a certain song comes on — and not just reggaeton,
but
also salsa, bachata,
merengue — everyone will have that reaction of,
‘Oh my god, this is my song.’ It’s like a big hug, and everyone will feel it,” she added.
Ramírez’s ultimate goal with Dulce is to leave people with something that inspires them and fuels their creativity.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re not Latin American — this mission is more about people who aren’t Latin American and educating them about Latin people and how to build a brand. I want people from other cultures to see the aspects we took and how we connected it to Latin culture so they can do it with their culture too,” he said.
Dulce has notably expanded into multimedia content, creating and posting short films, vlogs, and vox pops. The goal is to encourage people by highlighting the process of creation and the will to try something and put out a product.
“If we vlog these things and people see how messy it can get, or funny things happen, but we end up making these parties, videos, trips happen — that can help people get in their path and make their dreams come true,” said Ramírez.
Musacchio echoed this statement, as she has gotten spontaneously involved in most of the multimedia content. She had never vlogged or done a vox pop before but had a longtime interest in interviewing people. She jumped on the opportunity by suggesting and helping out with those types of content.
Ramírez plans to further expand Dulce with projects like clothing, design, installations, new venues, short films, documentaries, furniture, and trips with the crew.
“The next step is to create more for the community, grow the community, and see how far we can go and to how many places, since the community likes what we’re doing,” he said.
Dulce is a product of community, culture, and authenticity, values that have allowed it to thrive and resonate with its constantly growing audience.
“Everybody on that team is so passionate about these events. They pay such close attention to detail. It’s amazing and you can feel it,” said Ahmed.
Photos courtesy of Aldo Stephano Ramírez and Lu B. Collage by Stefano Rebuli // Music Editor
Lamp House, a living room venue
Bryan Li hosts Concordia students and alumni at his home venue.
BY RYAN PYKE ASSISTANT MUSIC EDITOR @PYKENOTPIKE
In the cozy house venue Lamp House, audiences gather to see students and locals perform. True to its name, the space is filled with various lamps, creating a soft light atmosphere.
Local artists Em Zev, Grace Clark, and Crossing Swords performed at Lamp House on Feb. 28.
The venue is managed by Concordia alumni Bryan Li, who graduated with a degree in jazz studies. He plays the piano and runs his living room as a music venue. A yellow lava lamp sits on the piano where Li usually accompanies each artist.
He got the idea from his friend Loren Armstrong, who runs the Humble Abode, another house venue.
“There weren’t many quiet venues in the city for quiet bands. So I thought, well, we’ll just play it at home,” said Li.
He hosted a trial night in De-
cember 2023, and the shows began officially in May 2024.
The first Lamp House show featured Li’s own band, Sycamore Street. Li has a few people he calls to play in his band for live shows, which includes the artists who played on Feb. 28. Lamp House has held about 20 shows so far.
Singer-songwriters, folk bands, and jazz bands frequent the events as performers. According to Li, he usually gets artists who are looking for a quiet, intimate space.
“It comes from the joy I get from throwing dinner parties,” Li said of his desire to host.
A wide variety of genres were displayed at Lamp House on Feb. 28. Each artist’s music was personal in its own way.
Em Zev, whose real name is Emmanuel Szeptycki, captivated the audience in the opening act of folk-rock guitar and fiddle music with long, eerie silences and intense singing. Their music is characterized by an ambient style.
Szeptycki is a third-year music major at Concordia. They know Li through mutual friends, and he invited them to open. They have only been writing songs for two or three years. They have a lot of experience playing classical pieces, but this was their first solo concert with
material they’ve written.
“I’ve been trying to bridge the gap that I felt between a lot of the classical violin training and then the kinds of contemporary music that I listen to a lot,” Szeptycki said.
Lately, they’ve been experimenting with effects pedals, which was a key part of their performance.
Following Szeptycki was Grace Clark, a third-year jazz studies major at Concordia. Her main instrument is vocals, and her style is very soft, singer-songwriter pop. She shared her appreciation for
the intimacy of house shows like Lamp House.
“I’ve played with Bryan [Li] before, and I think tonight was one of the best times that we’ve played together,” she said. “I couldn’t tell you if that’s because it’s so intimate or I think we just connected in a good way.”
She had played at Lamp House before as a part of Li’s band. This night was her first time playing her original music at the venue.
Clark said that music is unique from other forms of performance.
Recession pop is back! And the crowd is … confused?
As the economy declines, the high-energy party anthems of 2008 are making a resurgence.
BY CHRYSTEL ABI SAMRA CONTRIBUTOR
The high-energy dance club music that defined the late 2000s and early 2010s is making a major comeback. Known as recession pop, this genre flourished during a time when millennials were struggling financially, and it offered an escape through music that demanded nothing more than a night on the dance floor.
Fast forward to today: Gen-Z is stepping into the workforce after losing two years of their lives to the pandemic, only to be met with inflation, economic uncertainty, and an unstable future. Sound familiar? Today, the answer seems to be the same — turn up the music, escape the world, and live for the moment.
Montreal-based artist, songwriter, and Concordia alumnus Isobel Cameron, known as MINOE, defines the genre as “loud, chaotic, noisy, brash pop
that happens during a recession,” a sonic rebellion against economic downturns and the desire to have fun despite difficult times.
This cultural phenomenon is evident in her own work, particularly with her song “Liquor Lips,” which currently sits at the top of her Spotify rankings.
“That one is very ‘brat,’ if you will,” she said. “But the interesting thing is, I released that before [Charli XCX’s] BRAT album came out, and when it did, the timing was perfect.”
MINOE notes how working in the songwriting industry means constantly observing and aligning with society.
“These ideas come from this collective hive-mind that we all low-key have. Artists are very sensitive to what’s happening in culture,” said MINOE.
Beyond its rebellious nature, 2008 recession pop also carries a sense of nostalgia for younger music lovers, particularly Gen-Z. Ironically, it evokes memories of what many consider “simpler times.”
“Today, listening to old recession pop music is the best part of anyone’s night out or road trip,” said Hovsep Touloujian, a pop music enthusiast.
While 2010s pop may have originally served as an escape from economic downturns, for
Gen-Z, revisiting this music offers a different kind of escape, one rooted in reminiscence.
This nostalgia extends beyond music.
“We’re seeing a major revival of vintage trends in general: film cameras, eccentric clothing, and bright colours,” said Elena Meyer, a journalism graduate student at Concordia.
Touloujian also noted the resurgence of artists and sounds that defined the late 2000s.
dominated the charts, are making a resurgence. At the same time, new artists such as Charli XCX and Chappell Roan are carrying forward that same party-anthem energy,” he said.
This revival reflects a broader trend in media consumption: it’s a wave of uplifting, high-energy content that counterbalances the negativity people experience in their daily lives.
“Music is kind of its own language, so it’s cool to be connecting with others in that way,” she said.
The other performers were Crossing Swords, a band made up of Alex Ginella on the mandolin and guitar and Chris Vassiliadis on the guitar, who play in the style of folk duos such as Simon and Garfunkel.
The duo encouraged crowd participation. At the end of the show, the audience joined in for an impromptu rendition of “Yellow” by Coldplay.
“As the post-pandemic generation, after years of anxiety and uncertainty, some carefree pop culture is exactly what we need,” Meyer said.
Music has a habit of responding to the environment we live in, and every time society starts facing serious issues, people tend to consume entertainment that takes them out of those troubles. What better way to escape your worries than dancing the night away, with the words
Graphic by Monica Muresan // Contributor // @mowonica
Em Zev performing at Lamp House on Feb. 28, 2025. Photo by Ryan Pyke // Music Assistant
Opinions
A letter to my mother
An ode to all the women who have shaped us from the beginning of our lives.
BY JAYDE LAZIER SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER Mothers.
They are the first person we meet coming into this world and the last one we think of when we exit it. But beyond being mothers, they are women experiencing life for the first time, just like we are.
So, Mom, I know I wasn’t always an easy daughter to deal with, but it is because of how you raised me and taught me to look at the world that I am who I am now — a strong-willed, opinionated, independent, and relentlessly kind woman.
Seeing you raise me as a single mom for others might have been viewed as a disadvantage, but it taught me that I could do anything. It taught me that I
don’t need a man to help me because the most important thing in a woman’s life is her view of herself and finding community in all of the other amazing women in this world.
ing up, I viewed you only as my mom and held you to this unrealistic standard of perfection. What I forgot to keep in mind was that you were experiencing life and womanhood for the first time too. It wasn’t until I became an adult and started to experience my own trials and tribulations that I recognized how hard it must’ve been for you. You were the stone pillar that held me up for 22 years; you never put yourself first and did it all with grace and the biggest smile on your face.
my mother — I see you as my best friend, the woman who always supported me and never allowed me to believe that I couldn’t achieve anything I wanted to or be whoever I wanted to be in life. You brought me to museums, got me books, and exposed me to all that life had to offer in an effort to give me the role models that you never had growing up. And to quote Rory Gilmore:
You taught me to be strong, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t allowed to cry or ask for help, something that I call you for to this day.
But I hate to admit that grow-
You, and many other mothers, are the first representation of a woman that we as daughters will ever see in life — and that makes you the most important one. Words will never be able to describe how grateful I am to you for showing me what it truly means to be a woman and for choosing to stick by me in the lowest points of my life; it’s through your actions as a mother that I know what real love feels like.
Now, at almost 23 years of age, I don’t just consider you
“As she guided me through these [23 years of life,] I don’t know if she ever realized that the person I most wanted to be was her.”
Thank you, Mom. You are my guidepost for everything, and I can only hope to be half of the woman you are someday.
The empowerment of female friendship
The joy of having a healing, healthy female group of friends.
RITA KAMEL STAFF WRITER
As a kid, I looked forward to being in my 20s. I had high expectations and dreams for myself — but boy, did things turn out differently. I’m
say that adulthood sucks.
And while I didn’t anticipate how hard it would be to simply live life, I also didn’t expect how much easier life would become when I surrounded myself with a healthy, drama-free, and supportive group of women.
Female friendships make me think of the moment in the TV show Friends when Rachel Green is asked if she is okay after a big disappointment, and her response is: “I got
ular quote resonates with me quite a lot, because my own girlfriends add colour to my life. Whenever I have a rough week, if my girlfriends are part of it, they always find a way to make it better.
My female friendships are my favourite thing about adulthood. My friends are a gift from heaven, and I can’t imagine myself living this life without their love and support.
I wish I understood the psy
mean so much to me because, on paper, my friends and I may not have much in common.
We’re in different stages of our lives and have different tastes in almost everything.
What truly unites us is the unsaid but nonnegotiable choice
boost that encourages us to go out in the world and face our responsibilities. When we’re together, we don’t have to act as if we’re okay; we can be a mess, and by the end of the gathering, we’ll have our hope renewed.
Our gatherings are marvellous because we create a place for honesty and accountability while still being gentle on each others’ hearts. My girlfriends and I are each others’ therapists. We always answer unexpected calls with updates about our day, and I love our tradition of getting sushi after our last final exam before Christmas break. My heart feels safe around them.
There’s no jealousy, just pure support and encouragement. My friends get more excited about my achievements than I do. They see my potential and force me to leave my comfort zone.
However, I know that my experience may not be universal. It took me time to find my girls, but the minute I did, it felt like being home. I count myself very lucky to be surrounded by amazing women who inspire me.
Friendship can be hard, but it’s worth the effort. It pays off in the long run, because female friendship is so rewarding.
Jayde and her mother. Photos by Jayde Lazier // Social Media Manager. Collage by Hannah Bell // Photo Editor Graphic
“But what will people say?”
Literally ... who cares?
Can our generation break out of this toxic mindset?
SASKIA WODARCZAK OPINIONS EDITOR
@SASKIA.WODARCZAK
We face an incredible amount of scrutiny and judgement from our society.
The whole concept of social validation or being nervous about how we’re perceived is omnipresent — especially today, with social media playing a big part in the ways in which we interact with our communities.
I don’t know about anyone else, but posting on social media seems more like a chore rather than something I want to do. Selecting a carefully curated group of photos that could potentially get you more likes, or more recognition, has become key. We want our lives to be seen as ideal or put together. Life is shown as a highlight reel, and if we let that falter, we’re worried about what people will think or say.
In many cultures, the phrase “What will people say?” has impacted personal decisions, relationships, and careers. It’s such an old-school nagging mentality that the opinions of others will ultimately have an impact on how we live our lives.
For me, this mindset is deeply rooted in cultural values, enforcing silence, and, unfortunately, shame — and the sheer weight of this sense of scrutiny can so easily stifle our individuality, personal freedom, and our own health. The fear of judgement, though significantly decreased in recent years, loomed large when my mother and even more so her older sisters were growing up in the ‘60s through to the ‘80s in Vancouver.
It was such a tight-knit community of first-generation immigrants from India, or in my family’s case, Fiji, that judgement and conformity to old-world traditions and values was standard. Personal success, relationships, and behaviour were measured frequently by external standards of other members of the cultural community within Vancouver.
My Nani is a social butterfly and is very well-known within her generation — everyone in the Vancouver Indian community knew her, and by extension, her four daughters and her first six grandchildren. The pairing of being well-known and of that mentality is not a healthy combination.
The thing is, people talk
From an early age, we’re taught the value of “saving face” and keeping a good reputation, and the inherent fear of shame from the loss of social standing drives us to make choices that are not authentic to who we are.
We want to make sure the family name is not disrespected, and going against those standards, spelled out or just implied, can easily make the respect for a family crash and burn.
One of the biggest examples
of this mindset that I saw a lot of growing up, and that my mom had told me she saw a lot of when she was young, was invitations to weddings.
Already, within our community, weddings are a big deal, lasting up to a week, with easily hundreds of guests in attendance. Anyone who knew anyone would be invited. Because of this, I always figured that there was pressure to attend these weddings, even if you didn’t know the person, because if you don’t go, then “what will people say?”
It was automatically assumed that if you didn’t attend a wedding, or weren’t even invited in the first place, there must be some underlying reason.
So, even if we didn’t directly associate with the person getting married, or if they were very far removed, we’d still attend the wedding and various functions, especially since my Nani most likely knew the person, or the parents of the person, who was getting married.
Don’t get me wrong: I loved attending weddings and all the events. But when it wasn’t the wedding of someone I actually knew, like one of my first cousins, it more so felt like an obligation to go so that people wouldn’t talk, rather than peo ple genuinely wanting us there.
However, as time went on, some peo ple, mainly women, within my mom’s generation began to stray away from that mindset. For me, my mom is a pretty key example of this. She didn’t care what people thought or said, something
that was imparted to me while I was growing up.
She had decided quite early on that the various weddings and functions were simply not of interest to her and that she would much rather stay at home with her father. She also went abroad and travelled in her early twenties, which was unheard of within the community during the ‘80s and ‘90s. In 1999, she married my German-Canadian dad — marrying outside of the community was still pretty unusual at that time, a mere 26 years ago.
Because she didn’t involve herself very much in the community, there are very few people who know her, while they know her three older sisters very well.
The “What will people say?” mindset is intrinsically rooted in the need for external social approval and acceptance, something that is so cardinal in smaller communities.
The importance of family and societal opinion played a big role in various personal decisions, and often pushed individuals to conform and follow more “traditional” paths even if the choice didn’t align with their personal values,
aspirations, or dreams.
The mindset is there to preserve social harmony, by pressing the idea of “shame” or “guilt” that might come with personal choices as opposed to what a particular group of people sees to be ideal. Maybe this mindset initially rose from a place of respect for family and community, but from my own observations, the mindset has done a lot more harm than good.
Although our generation is not so deeply ingrained with thinking “What will people say?” before making our own choices, we’ve seen our parents’ and grandparents’ generations putting society’s expectations before their own needs — and it’s hard to watch, especially hearing about the repercussions or the choices our loved ones made because of it.
This is not a mindset that should dictate our personal freedom. But, if we switch it around a bit, there can be room for this mindset to become less toxic.
Letter to the Editor: FedUp Campaign — Let’s go ALL IN on abolishing Aramark
FedUp is a student campaign that took off last semester with the ambition to transform Concordia’s food system. We’re in the middle of the Concordia Student Union (CSU) elections — a pivotal time to shape the landscape of possibilities for student movements — and we’re taking this time to make clear who we think are the candidates on the ballot who share our ambitions for a better food system at Concordia.
Concordia is a massive university home to approximately 36,000 undergraduates, 10,000 graduates, and 7,000 faculty and staff. The economic impact of the university is com-
parable to that of a small town. Its food contract — a package deal whereby a single company caters several restaurant locations and both Concordia’s residence halls — are estimated to be in the range of $5 million to $7 million. For the past 10 years, Concordia’s food contract has been held by Aramark. Aramark is a name that has become synonymous on campus with prison food, because over the past 10 years, the student body has amassed considerable grievances against both the horrific record of the company and the dubious quality of its food through social media pages,
op-eds, and campaigns.
Last November, that sentiment was transformed into a mandate, with 83 per cent of students voting to abolish Aramark altogether. The CSU, which represents all of the 1000 residence students, now has a firm mandate to not only push out Aramark but also to co-develop a community-based alternative — Equi-table — a working project of the Concordia food system spearheaded by the fee-levy groups the Concordia Food Coalition and SEIZE. This mandate, however, is toothless without the student representatives to back it up, and it is clear to us at FedUp
that there is only one team on the ballot who is prepared to carry that out — All In.
Two of the executive team of All In — Mia Kennedy and Isabella Providenti — were previously involved with FedUp (although neither of them were a part of writing this letter). It was their advocacy for food justice, amongst other causes, that led them to the CSU. We believe that grassroots struggles are exactly the kind of environment in which student representatives should be forged.
We therefore wholeheartedly endorse All In and encourage our fellow undergraduates to elect them as our next student
representatives. Together, we can build a next-generation food system at Concordia that prioritizes the needs of students over and above the bottom lines of exploitative multibillion-dollar corporations. Voting will take place online on March 11, 12, and 13.
In solidarity, FedUp Concordia
Note: Letters to the Editor are written by independent groups and shared for publication. Their content is not produced or edited by The Concordian’s team.
Graphic by Noah Rubel // Contributor // @granoah_art
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4. What you might do after 29 Down
5. America’s 14th most populat denom. as of 2011
6. Life saving maneuver (abbr.)
7. “Barbie” actress ____ Rae
informally
29. Chip in, at a casino
8. Hungry hungry animals
9. Potato state
10. Get revenge
11. “My Name is ____” (2005 sitcom).
12. Slight cut
13. Snug as ____ in a rug
17. Rabid
21. Curry who was the NBA’s first unanimous MVP
23. Jacuzzis
27. Like Gregory House or Meredith Grey,
ACROSS
1. Scottish headwear
4. Its somewhere between Kilo and Centi
8. Brings on, in a company
13. “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!” Group
14. Actor Omar of “House, MD”
15 .Best
16. Bibliophile’s and schoolchildren’s
18. Fatherly prefix
19. Pulls from a spool
20. Pothole filler
22. Wins the lottery, say
30. Chocolate and toffee bar
31. Faux-pas
32. Love in spanish, or variety of tomato spelled backward
33. Like some guns and pugs
34. Body
35. “Cheers!” or a hint in 3, 10, 23, and 33 down when read backwards
37. A chapeau, maybe
41. Where ferns come from
24. Screwdriver, eg
25. Operated
26. Praiseful poems
28. ____ in “India”
31. Kind of spray
34. Halt
35. Vault locale
36. Luxury hotel chain
37. Bungle
38. “The Simpsons” bus driver
39. Person, place or thing
40. Big birds
41. He makes beef?
42. Sphere
43. Omani or Yemeni
44. Cmdr.’s superior
Business
43. Gives warning
44. Author Kate or composer Frederic
46. Hole _____ (golf aspiration)
48. Rub the wrong way?
49. It’s a killer knot?
50. With 51 across, traffic lovetap
51. Posterior
52. Most G.I.s
53. Rihanna, to a stan
54. Stare at lustfully
58. Fishing pole or curtain hanger
45. A river in Egypt
47. Large sailing vessel
52. Liable for
55. Testosterone or melatonin
56. Golfer’s brim
57. Purple fizzy
59. Gary _____ Jr., who’s father also played for the Bucks and Raptors
