Volume 50 issue 11

The Peterborough & Trent University

Independent Press

Volume 50 | Issue 11 | November 30 | 2015

Cover photo by Elijah Gwayumba

The Festival of Lights: A special Diwali feature!

Contents 7PMVNF ] *TTVF ] /PWFNCFS

0GGJDJBM NBTUIFBE CZ +BDLTPO $SFFL Press

Page 3- 5: Opinion

Page 10- 11: Feature

t 1H &EJUPSJBM 5IF DPOUFYU PG

t 4""5 QSFTFOUT %JXBMJ

5FSSPSJTN

(FPSHF 4USFFU / t 4VJUF 1FUFSCPSPVHI 0/ t , ) 5 UFM FEJUPST!USFOUBSUIVS DB t XXX USFOUBSUIVS DB

$P &EJUPST "SUIVSXSJUFST :VNOB -FHIBSJ ;BSB 4ZFE

#VTJOFTT .BOBHFS +FOOB 1JMHSJN

1SPPGSFBEFS (VSLJ #IVMMBS

1IPUPHSBQIFS 4BNBOUIB .PTT

#FUFMIFN 8POEJNV "ESJBOB 4JFSSB 5ZMFS .BKFS 6HZFO 8BOHNP 5SPZ #PSEVO % ,FJUI )PEEFS +PSEBO 1PSUFS ,FJMB .BD1IFSTPO .BUUIFX %PVHMBT

#PBSE PG %JSFDUPST

t t t t

1H -FUUFST UP UIF &EJUPS 1H " EJBMPHVF PO DPOTFOU 1H 8IPSFBQIPCJB 1H 1BSJT BUUBDL SFTQPOTF

Page 6: News t 1H -POH GPSN DFOTVT SFJOTUBUFNFOU

Pages 7- 11: Campus t 1H 5IF 4UVEFOU $FOUSF MFWZ t Pg 8: &MBJOF 4UBWSP %JTUJOHVJTIFE 7JTJUJOH 4DIPMBS

$IBJS ,FJMB .BD1IFSTPO 4FDSFUBSJFT ;BDIBSZ $PY t .FNCFS BU -BSHF /BUBMJF (VUUPSNTTPO t $BMFJHI #PZMF

$POUSJCVUPST t &MJKBI (XBZVNCB t % t +PSEBO 1PSUFS t 3ZBO /FXNBO t 5SPZ #PSEVO t ,FJUI )PEEFS t 4BNBOUIB .PTT t ,FJMB .BD1IFSTPO t #FUFMIFN 8POEJNV t:VNOB -FHIBSJ t 3FCB )BSSJTPO t 5ZMFS .BKFS t 6HZFO 8BOHNP t .BSJOB 8JMLF t 4UFWFO #SBL t ;PFZ 3PTT t %BO .PSSJTPO t -POZB #VSUPO t "MBJOF 4QJXBL t $BJUMJO $PF t +BNFT ,FSS t %BOF 4IVNBL t "ESJBOB 4JFSSB t 6HZFO 8BOHNP t 5SFOU 'JMN 4PDJFUZ t .BUUIFX %PVHMBT $POSJCVUPST BSF FODPVSBHFE UP BUUFOE PVS XFFLMZ TUPSZ NFFUJOHT EBUF 5#" BU UIF 5SFOE 1VC BU 5SBJMM $PMMFHF PS UP DPOUBDU UIF FEJUPST JG DPOTJEFSJOH TVCNJUUJOH UP BO VQDPNJOH JTTVF 0VS FNBJM BEESFTT JT FEJUPST!USFOUBSUIVS DB

Submission guidelines "SUJDMFT "SUJDMFT TIPVME CF TVCNJUUFE WJB FNBJM UP FEJUPST! USFOUBSUIVS DB JO UIF CPEZ PG UIF NFTTBHF PS BT BO SUG EPD PEU PS UYU BUUBDINFOU 5IF CPEZ TIPVME CF BQQSPYJNBUFMZ 800 words. -JTUJOHT BOOPVODF NFOUT PS CSJFGT TIPVME OPU FYDFFE 100 words. 'FBUVSF QJFDFT DBO CF VQ UP 2000 CVU NVTU CF BSSBOHFE JO BEWBODF XJUI UIF FEJUPST

*NBHFT *NBHFT TIPVME CF TVCNJUUFE WJB FNBJM (PPHMF %SJWF %SPQCPY PS TPNF PUIFS GJMFTIBSJOH TJUF 1MFBTF TBWF BT UJG XJUI B EQJ PG OP MFTT UIBO QJYFMT

-FUUFST -JNJU MFUUFST UP UIF FEJUPST UP XPSET -FUUFST MPOHFS UIBO XPSET NBZ CF QVCMJTIFE CVU "SUIVS SFTFSWFT UIF SJHIU UP FEJU GPS MFOHUI BOE DMBSJUZ CVU OPU DPOUFOU

0QJOJPOT FYQSFTTFE JO UIJT QVCMJDBUJPO EP OPU OFDFTTBSJMZ SFGMFDU UIPTF PG "SUIVS TUBGG WPMVOUFFST PS JUT #PBSE PG %JSFDUPST $POUSJCVUPST BSF FODPVSBHFE UP BUUFOE UIF TUPSZ NFFUJOHT PS DPOUBDU UIF &EJUPST UP EJTDVTT TUPSZ JEFBT "MM BSUJDMF TVCNJTTJPOT BSF EVF 5IVSTEBZ BU OPPO -FUUFST -JTUJOHT $MBTTJGJFET BOE &WFOUT BSF EVF 5IVSTEBZ BU OPPO BOE TIPVME CF TFOU UP MJTUJOHT!USFOUBSUIVS DB "EWFSUJTFST BSF FODPVSBHFE UP DPOUBDU BEWFSUJTJOH!USFOUBSUIVS DB GPS BE SBUFT BOE DPOUSBDUT

2

www.trentarthur.ca

t 1H 8SJUFST 3FBEJOH t 1H 5IF #JH 1JDUVSF t 1H &RVJUZ $PNNJTTJPOFS

Pages 12- 15: Community t t t t t t t

1H 5SFOU 3BEJP 1H 5SBOT %BZ PG 3FNFNCSBODF 1H 1FUFSCPSPVHI 'BTIJPO 8FFL 1H 34. DPNNVOJUZ DMPUIJOH ESJWF 1H 1VOL T OPU EFBE 1U

1H 8FTU )BNNPDL 1H "NFSJDBO *EJPU UIF .VTJDBM

Page 16- 17: Arts t 1H " % NPWJF TVSWFZ t 1H /FUGMJY SFWJFX t 1H 5SFOU 'JMN 4PDJFUZ 1SFTFOUT

Page 18: Hot Dish

)BWF BOZUIJOH UP TBZ BCPVU TPNFUIJOH ZPV SFBE JO Arthur?

4FOE ZPVS MFUUFST BOE TVCNJTTJPOT UP editors@trentarthur.ca

editorial

Terrorism: context, language, and western narratives

By Yumna Leghari

I was born in Pakistan, and moved to the United States when I was three months old. The formative years of my life were spent in a Brooklyn neighbourhood in the state of New York. My father worked in Manhattan and many of his friends worked office hours at the bustling World Trade Center. I remember looking up at the shiny towers and marvelling at their greatness.

When the tragic events of 9/11 occurred and the news spread, my father spent hours frantically trying to get in touch with his friends who were working their morning shifts. He lost one of his closest friends that day, another Muslim-Pakistani.

On September 30th, just weeks after the 9/11 attacks, George Bush stated in an address to the public, “...They hate our freedoms, our freedom of religion, our freedom of speech….” This over-simplified, black and white version of why these attacks took place completely disregarded the complex dynamic of terrorism. Furthermore, it painted terrorism as an “us v.s. them” issue.

To many, terrorism became the unfortunate thorn in America’s side only.

What the public does not realize is that Muslim majority nations suffer from the threat of terrorism everyday. In fact, terrorism is a much larger problem in dominantly Muslim countries.

This makes sense, since many of these terrorist groups are Islamist extremists whose cells lie in these nations. It is much easier for these organizations to carry out attacks, threaten the governments of these countries, destabilize the population, incite fear, and showcase their power in Muslim majority countries than it is to do so here.

These groups have political agendas, and one of them is to seize power over government and create Islamic dictatorships. We are seeing this now, with the terror group ISIL, who are determined to reform and establish a Caliphate.

The Global Terrorism Database (GTD) is an attempt to rank countries in the world based on the level of terrorist activity. The GTD is produced by the Institute of Economics and Peace (IEP) and is based on data from the Global Terrorism Database. The database is maintained by the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START). START maintains the GTD, and includes over 125,000 terrorist attacks.

It is described as the “most comprehensive unclassified data base on terrorist events in the world.” Anyone can access this public database, as the entire database is online and available for download. It is an incredibly comprehensive look at global terrorist activity since 1970.

According to this years GTD report, the top ten nations suffering from terrorism in the world as of 2014 are (from highest to lowest): Iraq, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Pakistan, Syria, India, Yemen, Somalia, Libya, and Thailand. Nigeria has the fastest growing rate of terrorism compared to all 160 countries studied by the GTD. Boko Haram is an Islamic extremist group based in northeastern Nigeria. They were responsible for the infamous Chibok schoolgirl kidnapping, in which 276 girls were kidnapped from the Government Secondary School in the town of Chibok, located in Borno State.

This was a horrible act of terror in which many innocent young girls were captured and enslaved. The story made international headlines, and a majority of the girls were never returned.

Last year, there was a massacre in the

northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar.

Seven men affiliated with the Taliban raided a public school and opened fire on staff and students. 141 people were killed, 132 of which were children. In 2014 alone, 18,668 people were killed due to terrorist attacks in Muslim majority countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria.

Nations like Pakistan and Afghanistan suffer from the draconian influence of the Taliban everyday. This terrorist group has weaseled its way into many parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Very recently, the Taliban had a stronghold over the Afghani people, and still do in many regions. The Pakistani army is in a state of war with Taliban militants in northern Pakistan everyday.

There is always a root to evil. We don’t spend enough time tracing this root cause to the creation of the monsters we see in our society.

Where did the Taliban come from? It’s lazy to simply explain away this group as an entity of evil, Muslim extremists who have a vendetta against the United States for no reason.

Have you ever wondered where they got their money? Their weapons? Their training? A platform had to be put in place at some point for such a domineering hate group to come into power.

During the Cold War, the U.S. allied themselves with the tribal warriors who lived in the mountainous region of Afghanistan. The U.S. did not want American blood spilled on foreign soil, and also didn’t know the terrain as well as these men. So, in a similar fashion of the many proxy wars that were taking place at the time, the United States supplied these men with money, combat training, and arms, all funneled through the northern Pakistani border.

These men were called the Mujahideen, and they aided the United States in pushing the Soviets out of Afghanistan.

The Soviets had successfully secured a Pro-Soviet leader in Afghanistan, who had in turn significantly secularized the Afghan government. This was a threat to the Americans, as Afghanistan was the crucible to a valued geographical area that allowed them access to Persian Gulf oil.

The Mujahideen were driven by the idea that once the pro-Soviet government was overthrown, they could install their own leader, who would re-instate an Islamic government. This religious fervor was encouraged by the United States, who promised to help the Mujahideen establish this Islamic leadership.

This project was known as Operation Cyclone. Operation Cyclone was one of the most costly CIA operations ever undertaken in the history of the United States. After successfully pushing out the Soviets, America was satisfied. They pulled out of Afghanistan without fulfilling any of the promises made to the Mujahideen.

This angered the Mujahideen, who felt betrayed by this perceived abandonment. The U.S. left Afghanistan in a state of civil disarray, and the Mujahideen were there to fill the political vacuum. They possessed hightech CIA training, large funds, and a wealth of arms.

These were the early days and circumstances that spawned what we now know as the Islamic fundamentalist movement of the Taliban. This is just one some example of how extremist groups can form. It is a summarized history that overlooks the intricate details, but attempts to portray how complicated the history of terrorism is.

Millions of people have suffered in the Middle East due to the formation of the Taliban.

The majority of global terrorism takes place in Muslim countries, therefore, innocent Muslims are the primary victims of terrorism. Analyzing the history of the Taliban reveals how none of this is black and white. The grey area is a vast field.

With this information, we can safely acknowledge that terrorism is not an issue that only the collective West is suffering from.

Therefore, divisive dialogue from prominent politicians such as former U.S. president George Bush are very problematic, as they insinuate a contrary, and quite frankly, false logic behind acts of terrorism.

American leaders are not the only ones guilty of spreading this misinformation.

Canada recently broke free from a ten year reign of a government that used the same divisive language, and fear-mongered in a manner eerily reminiscent of the Bush era post-9/11.

The Harper Government’s passing of The Anti-Terrorism Act (Bill C-51), the Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act (Bill C-24), and its stoney attitude towards Syrian refugees was quite similar to the ideals that led to the Bush administration creating the Patriot Act. This act was meant to protect the American people from terrorism, but ultimately resulted in greater government and CIA surveillance over the average American, and individuals outside of the United States, who were suspected of Terrorism. An entire population of Muslims unaffiliated with terrorism were placed under a magnifying glass of suspicion.

Guantanamo Bay was strategically created off of “technical” American soil.

Let’s not get into it, but take a moment to acknowledge that this place still exists and has seen too many innocent lives incarcerated. Does the name Omar Khadr ring a bell? He was a Canadian citizen, was imprisoned in an American high security prison, tortured, abused, and held prisoner for eight years without fair trial, all because the Patriot Act made it legal. He was only fifteen at the time of his arrest.

The use of language in the media when discussing terrorism in the West is loaded with racial, and intent-heavy rhetoric, whereas reporting on terrorism that takes place in other parts of the world resides in the peripherals of Western Civilization.

It’s crucial to refer to Bush’s earlier public addresses in response to the 9/11 attacks, as they took place during the conception of the modern day axis of evil; extremist Islamist terrorists bent on destroying the West.

This is nothing new, as the United States has always had an “us v.s. them” narrative. We saw this during the McCarthy Era, when Red Scare propaganda overwhelmed the American public and incited irrational paranoia within society.

The definition of the word terrorism is still being widely debated amongst scholars. There is yet to be a cohesive definition of this term. Meanwhile, Big Media has claimed the word and pocketed it, plugging it into discourse that either benefits their ratings, garners those clicks, or plays into whatever major sponsor is advocating the perpetual hate mongering that benefits their campaign.

The fluid use of the term terrorism, and the way that it has been utilized in the western “War on Terror” is troublesome. How can this word be used as an all encompassing explanation for the complex problems that the world is facing?

The personal is the political. The medium is the message, and yes, I recognize the irony of me quoting Mcluhan in an op-ed. We don’t need to get into the

jargon of media manipulation on the public consciousness, but it’s worth reiterating the daunting truth that Big Media has a colossal effect on public opinion. The discourse presented to the masses is enforcing the “us v.s. them” narrative.

Instead of encouraging critical thinking, people have been told to silo their positions on any matter.

Linguistic relativity tells us that the structure and use of language instructs how speakers conceptualize the world.

Early thinkers on the subject saw language as the expression of a nation.

When language and perception of the world around us is so closely tied, how can we ignore the frivolous use of words that have yet to reach conclusive definitions?

Too many times have I been approached and asked why terrorists do what they do, simply because I was born in a Muslim country. The assumption that an average person such as myself has all the answers to this gargantuan can of worms is ludicrous. I have a hard enough time getting up at a decent time in the morning. Thus, I felt propelled to write this piece, though it is not the only reason. I am fuelled by a personal rage. My family has suffered first hand from the violent acts of terrorists.

On September 22 in 2005, 27 people were injured in two bomb blasts in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore, and at least six people, including one woman, were killed.

That woman was my first cousin, Heena.

She was a mother of three, and was only 27 years old. The suicide blast took place in a marketplace called the Achara Shopping Area. A motorcyclist drove into the market with a bomb hidden beneath his seat.

He self detonated at 10:50 am. The second blast went off at 12:20 pm; the bomb was hidden under a wooden platform of a jewelry shop. The second blast is what killed my cousin, who was shopping for accessories to wear to her sister’s wedding.

It was my brother’s third birthday when my family received the phone call from Pakistan. We tuned into CNN and saw the breaking news broadcast, “6 people dead, many others injured.” I recall the strangeness of seeing my cousin appear as an abstract number on the screen.

The abject images of the destroyed marketplace that glared at me from the T.V. that day have never left my mind.

This incident is documented as one of many major terrorist attacks within Pakistan post-9/11.

This is the first time I have shared this story publicly. I want everyone to understand that the people who suffer from terrorism the most are very often the people being falsely accused of it.

On April 15, 2013, the Boston Marathon Bombings occurred. I was in Boston that day attending the marathon. I was half a block away from where the attack took place when we heard the blasts, and chaos ensued. I mention this incident to convey that I have witnessed firsthand the violence of terrorism in Western society. It is real, it is happening, and I acknowledge that.

Yet, this should not be the only conversation we are having. The world is suffering from this malignant movement, most especially the Muslim world.

So, I stand with Paris. I stand with the victims of the Charlie Hebdo shooting. I stand with the victims of the Madrid train bombings, and all of the other attacks that have taken place in Europe and North America.

I stand in solidarity, because no one could understand better the tragedy and unsettling rage of losing a loved one better than myself, and the thousands of Muslims who have also lost their loved ones for the very same reason.

Volume 50 | Issue 11 |November 30| 2015

3

Opinion I’m writing in response to the article published on November 23, 2015, entitled “Paris Attacks: How Do We Respond?” by Jordan Porter. Rather than contrasting the reactions to the recent terrorist attacks in the Middle East and those in Paris, the author would have contributed more to overall awareness of the circumstances by relating the bomb attacks near the train station in Ankara, Turkey, which left 102 people dead and 400 wounded on October 10; and the double suicide bombings in a Shiite neighbourhood in Beirut, Lebanon, which left 43 dead and over 200 wounded on November 12. I do think the author was correct in his interpretation of mass public reaction to the triple attacks, in that focus had been primarily given to the Paris attacks. I think he should be commended for his empathy for the many thousands of people who become victims of terrorist attacks, regardless of where they are from. If there were more people like Mr. Porter in the world, we would be living in a kinder, stronger global community.

I do think that, here in Canada, the Paris attacks resonate more profoundly in our population due to historical relativity. Our country has deep historic ties with France, we are predominately bilingual in Canada, and we feel culturally intertwined with the French. Partly, this is why the media has an affinity for the Paris attacks over any other, and only briefly touched on the attacks in Turkey and Lebanon. What is paramount here is this is not a mass representation of a common consensus among everyone in Europe, North, and South America. The reactions we read and hear about are the personal views of individual journalists and their editors from radio, television, and print media outlets, which, in essence, are corporate identities, each one having a competitive interest in maximizing viewer ratings and profit. Journalism is a busi-

Letters to the editor

ness. It feeds off of our base emotions and caters to our whims and has a long, erroneous history of capitalizing on dramatic, horrendous events. Take for example the sensationalism exhibited by a recent CBC Radio broadcast by morning host Anna Maria Tremonte on her morning program “The Current”, which was broadcasted live from Paris shortly after the Paris attacks.

The news media does not speak for my family, my friends or me. They have absolutely no business conceptualizing what I think or feel and I shouldn’t feel relegated to a specific mindset of “people in the West (who) don’t care about the warring Middle East” simply because I live in Canada.

Though at times I do feel a bit desensitized to the entire scenario due to the sheer volume of horrific events, I know in my core they affect and concern me. I personally care a great deal about what happens in the Middle East when war creates victims of oppression, poverty, and destitution, child soldiers, victims of rape, ruined economies, and civilian deaths.

The West certainly does care about the Middle East. Ordinary people and communities do care about casualties in the Middle East and do what they can to reasonably help. Take for example what the Peterborough community will be doing to sponsor refugees from Syria in the next few months. Western nations are keenly focused on Middle East foreign affairs because of the simple fact that the region is oil-rich and our nations have become so dependent on the resource, they can’t function without it. We should all be concerned about the people living in the Middle East and communicate our ideas directly with our governments as they try to broker treaties, placate allies, and subvert warfare – especially considering that our nations will, most assuredly, go to war over a region they have a personal, vested interest in.

- Steven Brak

MP Schmale, you disgust me.

Conservative Minister Schmale for Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock, if you wanted to land at your new job with a bang, you have succeeded.

Instead of helping to create a meaningful space for Syrian refugees that will be landing near and possibly within your riding, you have decided in a last-ditch effort to rally against them.

To the world, you might say it’s because of safety we can’t let these people in, but that’s just untrue.

Schmale has chosen to prove himself to his Conservative base in the historically blue Kawartha riding by creating a petition in favour of adjusting the timeline that will allow 25,000 refugees to enter this country.

This is fear mongering, thinly veiled racism, and Islamaphobia at its worst.

When is a good time to accept refugees to this country? After how much screening? Would you also suggest a temporary internment before they can mix with Canadian society?

How many children, women, and men will die before the Conservative party says it’s okay for them to enter? If you could, would you bog this whole issue into com-

mittee until it hopefully goes away?

You represent a party that has deeply failed the Canadian people and mired our reputation abroad.

Instead of reaching across the aisle to stand in solidarity with MP Maryam Monsef to denounce hate in our communities, you have chosen to give power through this petition to people who would rather embrace [this hatred].

I hope this first core action, this path that you are on, fails utterly. I hope that you see the welcoming nature of the City of Kawartha Lakes at its finest. People here didn’t vote you in. They voted blue, against their interests, under the premise of tradition.

I appeal to you, please impress this riding with strength, not prejudiced sensationalism. Help bring jobs to our riding.

Help keep hard drugs off the streets of Lindsay and area.

Advocate for the young people of this region who feel like they must settle for mediocrity or leave for the city. Keep the lakes of Kawartha clean and safe.

But do not isolate, demean, or reject those who need your help the most.

- Zoey Ross, Lindsay Ontario.

Write for Arthur! We welcome contributions from the community. If you are interested in submitting, email us at editors@trentarthur.ca Submissions are due by noon on Thursday.

We look forward to your work!

The Liberals’ promise of electoral reform

By Lonya Burton

4

Canadians today sit nearly one month removed from a monumental election in our country’s history.

We witnessed a dramatic shift in parliamentary power, as the Liberals were elected into a majority government, receiving an almost 60% increase in support from the 2011 election in which they did not even achieve official opposition status.

We elected the most diverse Parliament in Canadian history to date, with the most First Nations, Muslim, Sikh, and female MPs ever being sent to the House.

We had the highest voter turnout in 22 years. The 11-week campaign has caused left wing political strategists around the globe to turn their heads. Abandoned were tactics of fear and controversy; instead, Trudeau ran on a message of hope and (some would argue overly-) ambitious promises of change. One of these promises was a commitment to reform Canada’s electoral system, an issue that has been gaining traction in the country for the past decade.

This has particular relevance to the Peterborough community, as recently elected MP Maryam Monsef was appointed to Trudeau’s cabinet as the Minister of Democratic Institutions, the Ministry that will be responsible for electoral reform.

Trudeau plans to create a parliamentary committee of MPs from all parties to evaluate the current system and to propose alternatives, and he has promised to propose legislation based on the committee’s findings. Canada’s current electoral system

www.trentarthur.ca

has its share of fans and critics. First-pastthe-post is based on an ideology of localized representation.

With 338 small ridings across the country, voters can vote for an MP they feel will truly represent their local needs, rather than simply fall in line with the national party.

However, after a decade of the Harper government exerting increased control directly from the PMO, fewer MPs are voting outside of party lines. Canadians increasingly feel they are voting for a party rather than a local representative.

Currently with first-past-the-post, votes cast for losing candidates are effectively discarded. Prior to the 2015 election, all votes were at least tokenly represented as parties received a per-vote subsidy of $2. As of April 2015, this policy has been abolished.

The October election reveals the extent of the problem. The Liberals won 184 of

338 ridings; however, their 55% control of the House was won with less than 40% of the popular vote.

The NDP with 44 seats and 13% of the House received just under 20% of the popular vote, and the Greens hold only one seat or 0.3% of the House despite having received 3.5% of Canadian votes. There is increasing frustration in Canadian politics with the distorted results the current system produces.

While electoral reform is complex and there are dozens of possible systems, two alternatives recur in the Canadian context.

The first alternative would be to adopt a party-list proportional representation system, a drastic shift from the status quo.

Under this system, the House of Commons would be divided between the parties based upon percentages of the popular vote. Citizens vote purely for parties instead of candidates, and parties submit an ordered list of candidates.

Candidates are elected for every portion of the popular vote their party receives. In addition to truly representing the popular vote, some argue this system would have the potential to increase voter turnout, as every vote could mean the difference in the number of seats a party wins. Its most obvious and serious drawback is that it eliminates the idea of local representation.

The second alternative is a ranked ballot. This requires voters to rank candidates rather than cast a single vote. Candidates require more than 50% of the vote to be elected.

In cases where no candidate receives 50% of first choice votes, candidates are eliminated from the bottom of the ballot, passing their votes to remaining candidates until one achieves more than 50%.

The ranked-ballot system deals with the important issue of vote splitting, which played such a significant role in this election.

In a country with multiple parties representing a center-left position and only main one representing the right, there is concern that the unified right gets a stronger voice than the split left. Ranked ballots would eliminate some of this problem as second and third choices would be significant in deciding close ridings.

Interestingly, we could see ranked ballot system begin to pop up around the country outside of federal politics.

Most recently, electoral reform has grabbed the attention of municipal politics in Toronto with the possibility of the next election being held under a ranked ballot system.

Opinion

How not to be “that guy”: consent and dialogue

By Graham Watson

By now, you’ve probably had some pretty serious blinders on to be unaware of the issue of sexual violence on campus. Talk of “rape culture” and other buzzwords saturate the media and university landscapes.

When faced with such a distressing topic, it is not unnatural for us to shut down or otherwise avoid the issue.

This can take the form of defensiveness (“That’s not me, why make all guys out to be rapists?”) and/or denial (“It can’t be that bad” or “Is it always really rape?”). Others might try to use humour to deflect the issue. Many young men may find themselves feeling guilty or ashamed about their own sexual behaviours or experiences, which leads to further disengagement from the issue.

These responses, although not always intentional, often have this effect of minimizing the experiences of people impacted by sexual violence. It is perfectly normal human behaviour to want to avoid distressing topics, but we need to be braver and stronger than this.

By Anya

Whoraphobia – noun. It is the hatred and demeaning attitude towards sexually active people and sex workers especially.

This includes jokes at the expense of sex workers and the belief that sex work is a demeaning occupation.

For two years, I have been a sex worker in Peterborough. You don’t see me on Bethune Street, a street where women who engage in sex work are the butt of many jokes made by Trent University students. I am not of these women but I stand with them in spirit.

I am in your classrooms, on your city buses, in your group projects, and behind you in line at the coffee shops on campus.

All that being said, it is encouraging to know that there is actually a lot you can do about sexual violence. First and foremost, you can endeavour to have healthy, respectful sexual relationships. This means learning more about consent – what it looks like and how to know you have it.

It also means knowing what the absence of consent is, especially given the fact that people can have all kinds of weird reactions when it comes to sex. You might not be able to tell from a person’s behaviour or look whether or not they are uncomfortable.

Talking about what is happening for them is the best way to get a clearer picture. And it is worth mentioning that conversations about consent do not have to feel awkward or ruin the mood – you can ask about consent in a sexy way (“What do you want me to do to you?”; “Does that feel good?”; “What do you want to do to me?”, etc.). If the answer is silence, “I don’t know” or anything but enthusiasm, it’s time to back off.

Alcohol consumption is one of the highest contributing factors to sexual as-

sault on campus, so keep the drinks/drugs to a minimum if you are hoping to hook up. Remember, if your potential partner is visibly intoxicated, they are not able to give consent (and, if you’re drunk, neither are you, so you are putting them in a pretty unfair position, too).

Save sex for a time when you are both better able to enjoy it. Try to keep in mind that someone saying “no” to an offer of intimacy, although it can feel rejecting, does not mean there’s something wrong with you or that your “game” isn’t good enough – it really is about the other person and the place that they are at in the moment. If, for whatever reason, you find that you are having a hard time following these “rules of engagement,” it is time to seek out some help.

Find someone who has expertise and experience in the field of sexual health and consent, such as a therapist, counsellor or sexual health resource. In my practice as a social worker, I have worked with many young men who have been sexually violent. I know they are not like the villains we see on TV, but regular guys making really

bad decisions. I also know that specialized therapy is effective in helping these guys have healthy, respectful sexual futures.

Apart from your own approach to sex, you can also do a lot to impact other guys’ behaviours. Speak up when you hear people demeaning women or joking about sexual violence. If you are part of a sports team, fraternity or other association, make fighting sexual violence a cause you champion together.

If you notice someone making advances on a person who is too drunk to consent, check in with them, say something. Advocate with your administration to establish evidence-based sexual violence prevention programs on campus.

Sexual violence is a disturbing topic and one that can be hard to think about.

But it feels a lot more approachable if we commit to having pleasurable, healthy and respectful sexual experiences where everyone involved is an enthusiastic participant.

How can you argue with that?

Graham Watson, MSW, RSW is a social worker in private practice in Peterborough, Ontario. Learn more at grahamwatson.ca

I hear your jokes. I hear you use the terms ‘whore’ and ‘hooker’ as nothing. I hear you say ‘I should just drop out and become a stripper,’ as if it were not a physically difficult and talent-necessitating job which requires its own impressive skill set.

I hear you talk about your ideas of escorts and how oblivious you are to the entire industry. I hear you. And you are wrong.

I see your beliefs. I see that you know nothing about the reality of sex work. I see you watching your propaganda Netflix ‘documentaries’. I see you trying to engage in discussion that has nothing to do with you. I see you trying to be liberal or helpful in placing sex work into the same category as sex trafficking. I see you. And you are wrong.

I am not ashamed; I am an expert in my profession. I am not dirty; I have never had an STI and probably use condoms more often than you. I am not brainwashed, confused or stuck. Like any job, there are bad days and good days. Like any job, it is to make money. Like any skilful job, not everyone is good enough to be successful.

But I did enter the industry primarily out of desperation for money. With two public jobs and OSAP, I still could not afford to live anywhere else but my car while a student at Trent University.

In the beginning, I made a lot of mistakes and risked my safety for the opportunity of education. I reached out to Financial Aid and the Trent Central Student Association (TCSA) and was met with whoraphobia

and a pathetic excuse for a student food bank. The food bank that could help me was soon closed down by the University’s Ontario Public Interest Research Group (OPIRG).

Still, I manage to excel as a student because of the financial support of the sex work industry. Still, I have to be subject to hearing your uneducated public conversations of whoraphobia and the University’s lack of compassion for its students’ well-being.

I am confident that I am not the only sex worker on campus. I am confident that we are all sick of the attitude of students and staff in a university setting that are supposed to be well-educated. But you are not.

themselves.

Friday’s loss of life, and the fear that is being sowed, is devastating. Any loss of civilian life to unjust violence is a tragedy.

There is no justification for it. I hope the victims’ families and friends can return to some semblance of normality soon, and that they are allowed to grieve in peace and in private.

Far from being the fault of an intangible belief-system that sets very clear rules against the killing of innocents in war, or the result of Western governments’ actions in another part of the world, blame rests completely with the killers. The supremely malevolent idiots killed innocents in the name of a warped, vicious and boring lifestyle, demonstrating that they are no great loss to the world.

They sat down and planned to kill innocent people. At every point, they had the opportunity to say ‘no,’ and they did not. To blame anybody or anything other than them is stupid. Going forward from here, in the newest phase of the war on terror that France is taking forward, policy makers, status posters and tweeters can all learn the same lessons.

Reacting in the moment does not work.

Reflect more, think deeper, and read widely. Ignorance has been the real winner of the past fifteen years, arguably.

September 11th 2001 until now is a story of kneejerk reactions and decisions that bulldoze rather than nudge their intended targets. The ill thought-out invasions of

Afghanistan and Iraq smashed their adversaries, but coalition forces then fell foul to vicious insurgencies, because post invasion plans were being worked out on the spot.

In those places, Daesh (ISIS) is now strong and sectarianism now rife. AlQaeda’s presence has also grown in another of the war on terror’s back alleys: war torn Yemen.

In a similarly ignorant vain as Daesh, hate crimes are on the rise in Scotland, and Peterborough’s own mosque has been burned. It was in this same fashion that British youths beat Pakistani Kamal Butt to death, with taunts of ‘Taliban,’ in July 2005 following the London bombings.

The common theme is the rush to act against adversaries, often with ignorance and thoughtlessness.

France may well be right to round up all its ‘terrorist suspects’ in France- a massacre has occurred with intelligence suggesting more threats, which naturally has dramatic safety and security implications. But more bombing of Daesh positions? As tragic an event as this was, little has changed on the ground in Syria or Iraq. In fact, in bombing a few empty buildings in their de-facto capital Raqqa, has definitely done what Daesh wished.

The desire for revenge can be satisfied now: justice takes longer.

Constant need to impact upon the world, either with opinions or bombs, is no way to be compassionate for the Paris victims, nor solve the Daesh problem.

For a start, there seems no real effort to contain and understand the problem, so attacking it can at best not help. This probably rests in the tendency to focus on Islam itself, and not on the history of Islam. As Jason Burke has noted, what is happening now can be more easily answered in Islam’s history, rather than trying to grasp the essential nature of a religion.

A simple reading of Islamic history would show the failing in the current approach. Previous Islamic caliphates have strengthened and spread their influence through their successful engagements on the battlefield. Then, as now, early Arab armies fought with mobile supply lines, flexible tactics, and zealous faith. The empires that tried to beat them lost.

The constant need to attack not only plays into its military strengths, but into its historical narrative. It turns out that the constructive and compassionate approach are probably one and the same, then.

Rather than fall to the mass hysteria of politicians and press, take the next few weeks to reflect, to reflect on the lives needlessly lost. Read books, try to learn some history, and consider empathy through literature, not the snapshots of memes and clickbait articles. Talk with people, but don’t debate- conversation is not a competition. Have a few beers, appreciate the essence of human nature.

This is how best to stand in solidarity with Parisians, and against the dull and malicious killers.

What is Whoreaphobia?

The Paris attack: how do we respond?

By Dan Morrison

There seems to have been great difficulty in writing articles after and about the massacres in France. ‘Trying to write about this is difficult’, so the standard introduction goes. On a base level, I do not think it should be.

The problem is that, particularly in a time when social media allows our poorly thought through opinions to be instantly aired and gratified, we feel we must have an opinion on what happened. As if to prove to the world, or at least to ourselves, that we are cleverer, or more humane, or indeed more ruthless than some other thing or person. So, we must opine.

Of course, I recognise the irony in an opinion piece criticizing the offering of opinions on something, but there is an important difference between an instinctively aired musing and a thoughtful article.

This constant opining has led to a mélange of blame on Muslims, refugees and Western foreign policy, and general theorising as to what the solution might be.

In the immediacy of the event, the right response was missed, completely.

Collectively, conventional media and portions of unsocial media failed to stand in the supposed solidarity that changing your profile picture expresses. If it had, its response would have expressed greater compassion for the victims and their close ones, and been more damning of the actual cause of those deaths: the killers

Volume 50 | Issue 11 |november 30| 2015

5

News

Long- form census reinstatement

Pictured: Navdeep Bain

By Matt Douglas

It only took the Liberals two days in office to announce the reinstatement of the long-form census.

Navdeep Bain, new Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development came out on November 5th to announce the move stating that they want Canada to have “reliable good quality data” about their population.

In 2010 Harper’s Conservative government axed the mandatory long-form census for a voluntary ‘National Household Survey’ that was used in place of Canada’s 2011 census. The Conservative government cited privacy concerns and costs, when explaining the cut.

The results weren’t great either. The decision was met with a lot of criticism from researchers and planners who rely on census data to inform them of demographics throughout the country.

Anne Kingston’s piece “Vanishing Canada” in Maclean’s magazine in September took a critical look the conservative government’s aversion to data openness, their silencing of scientists and in larger sense their anti-intellectual thinking.

In that article, Kingston writes the story of Melville, Sask. a town of 4,500 residents, of which only around 500 residents responded to the voluntary survey sent out in 2011.

Leaving very little to be known about Melville’s population, other than how many of them there are. Melville, Kingston, goes on to say is far from an anomaly among

Canadian towns and response rate to the survey.

Experts say smaller communities – areas on the countryside, small towns and neighbourhoods in cities were hardest hit as researchers could lose all specific knowledge about the people living in a locale by just a couple hundred people not responding to the survey in 2011.

Navdeep Bain claimed when releasing the Liberal plan for reinstatement that the long-form census that the Conservative voluntary version actually cost more than the long-form census.

The claim makes sense too, the ‘National Household Survey’ was 8 questions long and sent out to 1 in 3 Canadian households, while the long-form census has been 61 questions long, but only sent out 1 in 5 households.

The wording of mandatory on the longform census versus the voluntary survey made a significant difference in compliance even though the census was longer and asked more personal questions.

According to the Toronto Star there was a 68.6 per cent a response rate for the 2011 National Household Survey compared in 2006 when 93.5 per cent censuses were returned.

For those averse to revealing too much personal information, in the past, the law has been lenient on those refusing to respond to the survey.

Justin Trudeau promised a reinstatement of the long-form census for 2016 as campaign promise and it seems he intends keep it.

Image sourced from the Liberal party’s campaign to petition census reinstatement

6

www.trentarthur.ca

Campus

The Student Centre Project: how does the levy work? be a student-led and -operated Student Centre. We will have exclusive access to our space for as long as students want it, with the ability to have active participation in how the building is run.

By Alaine Spiwak

In the 2013 TCSA election the creation of a new levy was proposed with the question above.

The annual student levy amount of $95.01 was decided by averaging out the dollar amounts of the ‘yes votes’, and its collection began this year, in 2015/2016.

From this vote, it was determined that the Student Centre Project would have a capital budget of $15 million, where the TCSA (students) contribute $10.5 million of the total $15 million budget through the collection of a Student Centre levy, and the University would contribute $4.5 million.

Trent’s contribution went up to $5.5 million (raising the total budget to $16 million) in October 2015.

This financing ratio will be reflected in the space allocation within the building, as well as within the opportunities for students to participate in the development process for the project.

Only full-time undergraduate students pay this levy as graduate students would have to have a separate referendum question run by the TGSA, and part-time undergraduate students opted not to pay the levy as part of the TCSA/TPSA (Trent Parttime Student Association) merger deal.

How can students be sure their space is protected in the Student Centre?

The $10.5 million that the TCSA has agreed to contribute to the cost of the Student Centre would be treated as prepaid rent, permitting the TCSA to occupy its portion of the Student Centre for an initial term of 30 years, with the right to renew every 10 years for as long as the TCSA wishes to continue to use the building for the purposes of a Student Centre.

Since the lease would be for a lengthy term and the TCSA would have the freedom to use the Student Centre in the same manner as if it owned the building, for all practical purposes, this alternate structure would have no impact on the TCSA’s use and management of the building.

Questions or Concerns?

All of the above information has previously been made available to the TCSA Board of Directors and College Cabinets through various meetings, and was also presented at the TCSA AGM on September 25, 2015.

What’s in the Student Centre and why does Trent need one?

As Trent is going through many exciting growths, we are finding more and more that we are becoming confined for space on this campus. It is apparent now more than ever that Trent is feeling the pressure of accommodating 7,000 students on a campus designed for 3,000.

The new Student Centre will provide students with even more space for formal and informal study, and will hopefully relieve some space issues in Bata Library, especially around exam time.

The second floor will include a large clubs and groups space including meeting spaces, a kitchenette, work spaces, and, most importantly, storage. This space is being designed to help clubs and groups grow and flourish on campus, as previously they did not have a designated space to work, meet, and store materials.

Along with a possible Starbucks, event space, multiple new classrooms, lecture theatre, and more, this new Student Centre will have plenty to offer students and Trent University as a whole.

An exciting thing to highlight is that Trent is looking to pursue a contract with Starbucks, pending approval from the Trent Board of Governors.

Through student consultation and the general disappointment around the Gzowski Starbucks being a “we proudly brew” branch instead of a fully licensed store, Starbucks has been a frequent request from students. With this in mind, we have asked the University to pursue having a fully licensed Starbucks in the new Student Centre.

It is important to note that a request for proposals was advertised to downtown food vendors to try and find a local food provider to be in the Student Centre, but no proposals were received. The TCSA will be formally requesting that the university remove the “we proudly brew” Starbucks in Gzowski college once the Student Centre is opened and replaced with a local coffee vendor.

When will the building be open?

Construction of the Student Centre is

Email: studentcentre@trentcentral.ca Phone: 705-748-1011 ext.

6173 TCSA office drop-in hours: Thursdays weekly 10am-12pm scheduled for May 1, 2015, with an estimated time of completion and opening of September 2017.

How will the Student Centre impact parking?

The construction of the Student Centre will begin after April exams, approximately around May 1, 2015.

The Student Centre is being built between Bata Library and the Athletics Complex, taking up the entirety of red parking lot H. Those who have purchased a “Red Academic Year September 1/15 to April 30/16” parking pass for the price of $327.43 will not be impacted by the Student Centre construction. Those who have purchased a “Red Yearly – September 1/15 to August 31/16” will no longer have access to red lot H starting April 30, 2016, and will have to begin parking in the other available red lots.

To my knowledge, at this time the University is not looking to replace red lot H, as data shows that the University has much more parking available than is actually used.

It should be noted that the new Student Centre will have many accessible parking spaces (as of now, around seven), along with a handful of temporary fifteen minute parking spaces for anyone wanting to quickly stop by the Student Centre to access the Starbucks, or drop off an assignment to a professor, etc.

Who is going to own the Student Centre?

Initially it was our hope to have the TCSA (students) own the Student Centre, but realizations around taxes made it clear that this would not be feasible. The note below from our legal council explains: “It is our understanding that the TCSA’s auditors have confirmed that the TCSA is

not eligible for HST rebates unlike certain entities such as charitable corporations. As a result, this unrecoverable HST would be a net cost to the TCSA. If 30% of the building is used for commercial activities that qualify for input tax credits, the net unrecoverable HST would be $1,207,964. Clearly this would have a dramatic impact on the funds available for the actual construction of the Student Centre, and would lead to a significant reduction in the size of the proposed building.

“In order to avoid reducing the size of the Student Centre, we have reviewed an alternate arrangement that would minimize the impact of the HST payable in respect of the project.

Unlike the TCSA, Trent is eligible, pursuant to the Excise Tax Act, to recover approximately 74% of any HST payable in connection with the construction of the Student Centre, through the public service body refund mechanism.

As a result, if Trent were to build the Student Centre on its own behalf and lease it to the TCSA, the net amount of HST that would be unrecoverable is reduced from approximately $1,207,964 to $448,672.

Clearly, this is a significant savings and, since the initial projections for the cost of construction were based on the assumption that there would be net unrecoverable HST of this magnitude, there would be no resulting reduction in the size of the Student Centre.”

In summary, the project as a whole is saving a lot of money under this new ownership structure. Furthermore, students and the TCSA have the increased benefit of leasing the building because there are drastically lower annual utility and operation costs (roughly $82,000 in the first year when the TCSA owns the building vs. $141,000 in the first year if Trent owns the building).

We want to stress that the spirit of the project remains the same, and it will still

Tabling at Otonabee College outside of the cafeteria: t Tuesday, December 1 – 9am-12pm t Thursday, December 10 – 12pm5pm

Volume 50 | Issue 11 |November 30| 2015

7

Campus Dr. Kimberly Hutchings visits Trent University

By Troy Bordun

On November 24, Bagnani Hall was packed with students, faculty, and community members for Dr. Kimberly Hutchings’s talk.

Dr. Hutchings, from the School of Politics and International Development at Queen Mary University of London, is the fifth Elaine Stavro Distinguished Visiting Scholar in Theory, Culture, and Gender.

Dr. Stavro is a professor of Politics as well as Theory, Culture, and Politics at Trent University, and the aim of her visiting scholar series is to explore the intersections of the social sciences and humanities.

On the evening of November 24, Hutchings discussed two of the 20th century’s most important activist-thinkers. Gandhi (1869-1948) and Frantz Fanon (19251961), from India and France respectively, oppose each other’s views in the domain of violence. Gandhi famously practiced and advocated non-violence while Fanon was a firm believer in the usefulness of revolutionary violence. However progressive their political aims may appear, according to Hutchings, in their theoretical writings, both thinkers work with traditional gendered rhetorics.

Hutchings convincingly argued that the two thinkers operate within what Thomas Laqueur identified as the two-sex theory developed at the end of the 18th century.

The transition from the old one-sex model (females as lesser males, or female genitalia as inverted male genitalia) to the two-sex model (sexual difference) had implications for cultural responses to femininity and masculinity, and as we know, resulted in highly contestable definitions of these performances and their relationship with biological sex.

Gandhi and Fanon use this model to legitimize their theories. According to Hutchings, first, the adoption of gendered

Photo by Samantha Moss

language (and gender roles) acts as a rhetorical device to help us understand the world. Working within binaries simplifies otherwise complex issues. Second, by relying on gendered discourses, the two thinkers reproduce traditional discourses (and possible modes of gender oppression), and thereby undermine their political projects, i.e., to create an entirely new political system.

Gandhi identified with traditionally feminine virtues, at times speaking of becoming woman and being a mother to his family. He expressed equality for women and perhaps even their superiority. For Gandhi, women were the guardians of hearth and home, specifically of religion and education. Women inherently possessed virtues of purity (of desire) and self-sacrifice. Men faced the more difficult challenge of taming their sexual desire and Gandhi makes the connection between men’s excessive desire and excessive greed and violence.

Alongside his use of gendered terms for colonialization – e.g., India has become effeminate and emasculated by the colonizers and needs manliness to attain

independence – Gandhi’s justification for non-violence adopts traditionally feminine virtues.

Women, by nature, are essentially nonviolent. Gandhi provides the disturbing example of non-violence through a retelling of parables and true stories about women sacrificing themselves for the sake of their (sexual) purity and their faith.

In these stories, women defend themselves against their abusers and rapists by allowing themselves to be killed or killing themselves.

It seems that Gandhi’s tirade against sex finds its legitimacy in the then-present situation of women; women had not explicitly discovered their sexuality (and weren’t encouraged to do so), thus Gandhi mistakes gendered oppression for inherent, feminine virtues. He thereby de-radicalizes his politics by imposing the same old gender binaries and roles.

Fanon, conversely, wrote that one can find self-consciousness and agency through acts of violence against his colonizer. Fanon, however, was referring solely to men here. Similar to Gandhi, Fanon

Writers Reading: Sachiko Murakami

By Caitlin Coe

On Tuesday, November 24, poet Sachiko Murakami came to a fully packed Writer’s Reading at Traill College.

A finalist for the Governor General’s Literary award and the Gerald Lampert Memorial Award, Murakami is the author of several poetry collections - The Invisibility Exhibit, Rebuild, and Get Me Out of Here - as well as the creator and co-creator of several online poetry projects.

As someone who had never been to a Writer’s Reading event before, it was a great experience, and listening to Sachiko Murakami’s fabulous poems was an honour.

Get Me out of Here is a collection of poems about airports. Murakami wanted to write poems in airports while she was travelling, and after suffering writer’s block (something everyone can relate to), asked people for their observations while at airports.

Murakami wrote poems based on observations she received from around the world and around Canada (who knew there was an airport in Hamilton?). Sachiko dazzled with her honest, often sarcastic humour (the word “cluster-fuck” came up in one of my favourite poems of the night), and the audience also got to participate at times.

There were also some serious topics, such as one poem, “No Safe Place to Breastfeed in Here”, a topic that has been more discussed recently. “The Invisibility Exhibit” also took a more serious turn about missing women of Vancouver’s downtown eastside, a problem occurring since the 1970s but has only really been brought to light

8

www.trentarthur.ca

adopts gendered language when discussing colonialization. He also finds the justification for violence, and particularly women’s violent revolutionary action, of which he is a proponent, in traditional gender constructions and roles.

Women were expert participants in the Algerian revolution because of their expertise in the home. For Fanon, much like Gandhi, women become revolutionaries “effortlessly”: they get involved quickly and instinctively. Women are the “heart of combat” and with their endurance of the tortures and rapes perpetrated by the colonizers (what Gandhi might call self-sacrifice), women testify “to the violence of the occupier and to his inhumanity.”

Fanon also writes that women can be well-used in revolutionary efforts (these efforts usually spearheaded by men). Algerian women can easily change their costumes to pose as French women or can wear a veil to conceal weapons (see Gillo Pontecorvo’s film The Battle of Algiers [1966]).

The women in Fanon’s account do not necessarily have the same ability to reach self-consciousness and agency through violence, yet nevertheless have an inherent ability to be part of the fight.

For Fanon, engaging women in the political sphere would still require they assume the virtues of men.

Hutchings clearly demonstrated that two different political thinkers have the same failings in their supposedly revolutionary theories.

This talk was part of Hutchings’s larger work on gender, violence, and the writings of key figures in the latter domain. Gendered rhetorics, according to Hutchings, appear in similar ways for a number of revolutionary thinkers.

Hutchings’s research thus gives us a more well-rounded account of otherwise politically progressive theories.

Photo by Samantha Moss

in 2001. Murakami also read a beautiful poem she’d written for Rebuild in honour of her father’s near anniversary of death.

At this, she began to sound more emotional, sharing a personal part of her life with the audience, which was beautiful. The audience listened intently, as her soothing voice and compelling poetry mesmerized attendees.

When asked if she had any advice for students, Sachiko said students should read, and read what is being written now, so as to be informed. Students should be

involved and “be a part of it”; this is probably the most important thing an aspiring writer can do instead of just sitting in a room writing.

It is also important to expand on reading, to read different sorts of novels and different authors, something that Murakami says she is trying to do herself. When asked about her writing process, Sachiko explained how her poems most often come to her in lines, which she would write down on her phone. However, her last book was largely written by hand. Murakami says she

will often start a writing project from a specific idea or theme, and go from there.

Talking to Murakami afterwards, she was telling me about the short novel she has been working on recently, about orphans and a journey of self-discovery.

Word has it that the Trent University bookstore attends each Writer’s Reading and sells the works of the guest author. I am very much looking forward to hearing more work from the lovely Sachiko and attending more Writer’s Reading events in the future.

Campus

The Big Picture: an inspiring event featuring Trent Alumni

By Betelhem Wondimu

The Trent University Alumni Association organized an inspiring event that took place in Toronto on Tuesday, November 24, 2015.

“The Big Picture (and other leadership concepts for the advancement of women)” featured four accomplished Trent University alumni sharing their career experiences, obstacles, and successes, and offered advice for empowering and advancing women’s leadership.

This event was held in support of the World University Service of Canada (WUSC) Student Refugee Program at Trent, whereby a donation upon registering was contributed directly towards the Program.

Moderating the panel was Bonnie Patterson, who is a former President of Trent, current President of Council of Ontario Universities, and Professor in Trent’s Business Administration Program.

The speakers’ panel included Dalaal Al-wahedi (Executive Director of We Day Global), Anne Larcade (President and COO of Sequel Hotels and Resorts), Nancy Austin (former Executive Director of the Ontario Human Rights Commission and currently the Executive Lead on Ontario’s Gender Wage Gap Review Committee), and Rann Sharma (Global Head – People’s Operation and Culture of Free the Children).

The Gender Wage Gap and the barriers associated with it took precedent among all of the speakers. The topic of networking’s role in advancing careers and how women

can better take part in networking events was also highly discussed. The floor was left open for the audience to ask questions.

As students entering the job market, we were able to ask questions and get answers on issues we might face and how to better prepare for different circumstances.

TCSA President Alaine Spiwak shared her experience as follows: “The Big Picture event in Toronto was an absolutely amazing experience. I wish all women at Trent could have the opportunity to listen to these powerful women leaders. I feel very fortunate to share my TCSA executive experience with two other incredible women, Pippa and Hilary, and hopefully, we can be an example to young women at Trent to also get involved with school politics and social issues.”

She added, “The messaging behind this

event was powerful: women are strong, women are resilient, and women are selfdefining. No longer do we have to live within the constraints of a historically patriarchal world. I personally hope to be a part of this new era of women leadership, and cannot wait to see the positive change future women leaders will have on our world.”

The end of the event was marked by the announcement of a new community project that would allow mentorship of young women at Trent through connections created with alumni in various career fields.

Such initiatives play a vital role in shaping our Trent experience as students, and strengthening our abilities to better prepare for our future paths. Thus, more effort should be put into making such initiatives accessible to all students.

Equity Commissioners: Indigenous Students Commissioner

By Adriana Sierra

This week, as part of the Equity Commissioners series, Arthur spoke with Brendan Campbell, the Indigenous Students Commissioner at the TCSA. Campbell argues that Equity Commissioner positions are somewhat unique to Trent, as a number of universities across Canada do not have this kind of position within their student unions.

Additionally, Campbell notes that his particular position as an Indigenous Students Commissioner is important because of the very real and continuing challenge of colonialism.

He mentions that indigenous peoples have to empower themselves in two ways: the first is the empowering and strengthening of their own communities and systems of governance; the second lies in challenging the colonial institutions.

Trent University, for example, is a settler institution on indigenous land, and although Campbell recognizes that there may be people who identify with what

Trent stands for, his goal is to ultimately challenge oppressive forms of colonialism and to include the indigenous voice within the TCSA and the wider university community.

Campbell has served as a bridge between the First Peoples House of Learning (FPHL), the Indigenous Studies Department, and the Trent University Native Association (TUNA) with the TCSA in the initiative to include a mandatory 0.5 credit of an Indigenous Studies Course for all Trent graduates.

This new policy is part of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Recommendations.

His involvement stemmed from his participation in the National Aboriginal Caucus in the Canadian Federation of Students, where he spoke to students from Winnipeg University, where the mandatory 0.5 credits have already been implemented.

Campbell feels that for such an initiative to take place, the initial discussion should occur within the safe space of the indigenous community.

The next step is to bring the motion to Senate and to engage in a community discussion. Campbell is also pushing for the mandatory course to be specific to the field of study, meaning that it would be cross-listed with other departments in order to enable academic freedom while decolonizing the institution.

An indigenous course would provide students from all disciplines with an understanding of Canada’s colonial history and its implications within their chosen field of study. Additionally, credit requirement for Indigenous Studies classes is a way to address privilege.

As part of his Equity Commissioner activities, Campbell has been working closely with the Trent International Program (TIP).

At the beginning of the semester, he was a Cultural Assistant at TIP Camp, the international students’ orientation event, noting that it is important for newcomers to recognize whose traditional territory they are sharing.

He also hosted a collaborative event with TIP in the tipi to bridge cultures and to provide a space for international students, as he notes that international students often have a different understanding than Canadian students do in terms of approaching indigenous students and spaces.

In his capacity as Indigenous Students Commissioner and Fire Keeper, Campbell was also involved in the FPHL’s Indigenous Space Campaign with the intent of addressing the continuous disrespect of indigenous space.

Campbell has also hosted an event about allyship, in which elders and academics spoke in order to lay out the tools for students to enter indigenous spaces.

He hopes to also promote indigenous identity on campus in its various forms and manifestations, as many students do not fit the stereotypical image of indigenous peoples or the commonly understood forms of racialized and marginalized communities.

Being an ally in the indigenous context means recognizing the importance of indigenous spaces to indigenous peoples, and the different lived experiences and forms of oppression related to indigenous peoples.

An ally is meant to strengthen the voices of those who are marginalized.

Additionally, he wants to host a workshop that challenges what it means to be Canadian, and transform the conventional national identities in a positive manner by highlighting recent positive changes.

He hopes to include other Equity Commissioners to bring other perspectives.

Campbell also hopes to provide a safe space for students who have been marginalized

or oppressed to share their stories unapologetically.

In addition, Campbell has chosen to sit on committees where an indigenous voice may be particularly needed. He sits on the Grocery Assistance Committee because he recognizes that there are many indigenous students in the community that, despite the availability of scholarships and support from the FPHL, have limited financial means to ensure food security on a day-today basis.

The Undergraduate Senate is a subcommittee of the University Senate. Campbell chose to sit in this committee in particular because of the changes occurring in the Indigenous Environmental Science Studies program, and wants to represent an indigenous voice, as the voices within the committee are largely of a western and secular mindset.

Lastly, Campbell also sits on the Clubs Funding Committee, not because of any decolonization process that may occur within the committee, but because he hopes to gain a better understanding of the way that application and funding processes work in regards to clubs and groups at Trent.

Although he cannot vote on decisions related to the clubs and groups that he has helped start at Trent, the Clubs Funding Committee provides insight as to the requirements that clubs at Trent must meet.

During his time at Trent, Campbell helped initiate the Trent Indigenous Environmental Student Society and the German Language Group Trent.

From his role as an Equity Commissioner, Campbell has learned to feel comfortable to voice his concerns and opinions in many settings, and has acquired a sense of responsibility in driving positive change.

As Brendan Campbell notes, “This year will be maybe a big year of change for Indigenous Students.”

Volume 50 | Issue 11 |November 30| 2015

9

Diwali “Shadows dancing through the candle light; strands of rangoli reflecting the henna artwork; fireworks exploding into Bollywood fever. Welcome to the beauty of South Asia.

Welcome to Diwali.

”

-Ryan Newman. Vice-President of SAAT

All photos by Elijah Gwayumba On November 13, the South Asian Association at Trent (SAAT) hosted their annual Diwali event. This celebration stood out as bigger and better than many events that preceded it. The sold-out

Diwali Afterwards, the executive team arose to introduce themselves. SAAT President Aaditiya Thakar received an ovation for appreciation of his family, who were in attendance for the event. The charming Samarjit Khaira, Mr. Money, enlightened us regarding his goals as director of finance. Beautiful Manpreet Kenth, director of events, is one of the two returning executives, and received appreciation for her continual dedication to the committee. Alester ‘Ale-Boy’ Fernandes was all smiles as usual, clearly mind-boggled by the amazing turn out. Finally, our first year representative Hassan Nisar humbly greeted us with his glowing charisma.

Jennifer Fernando performed a traditional dance, with Vishal Dharamdass banging on the tabla in the background. Shortly thereafter, Varsha Patel aroused the guests with her Bollywood dance which was a mash-up of different tunes. Finally, SAAT ladies’ man Hassan Nisar moved the crowd in the signing of the romantic jingle ‘Dekha Na Tha’. In conclusion, Vishal engaged the audience with an experimental performance whereas the audience can ‘hear the tabla speak.’

Following performances, the guests were led outdoors to the Champlain riverside.

Over the cracking of fireworks, the crowd dissolved into the abyss of Diwali jubilation. Sparklers were lit from one another as dozens of Diwali fanatics carried the torch of happiness, which is central to the celebration. Light.

crowd, numbered upwards of one hundred people, caught a glimpse of the Festival of Lights. The crowd bathed in the serenity of cheerful conversation, melted into the savoury South Asian appetite, and marinated into the groove of Bollywood rhythm.

“By the explosion of crackers, and the glow in peoples faces, the night was brighter than ever.”

SAAT’s 2015 Diwali event exceeded all expectations. It was one of the greatest events in our history and we would like to thank all of our guests. Also, it was our first in collaboration with TCSA and we would like to thank TSCA for their support. Namely, we offer appreciation to our four performers, our executive committee, photographer Elijah Gwayumba, TCSA president Alaina Danielle, Shots Night Club, Champlain College, and volunteers Ateesh Mishra, Champagne Thomson, Muhammad Arif, and Sidak Meet.

Lit up with diyas and candle-light, our guests relaxed comfortably into the pleasant atmosphere. The Great Hall transformed into a maze of clothed tables with a beautiful rangoli design laid by the forefront. Kicking off the campaign was MC Ryan Newman, the lead-host of the evening. He was joined by SAAT secretary Namrata Mangtani in presenting a brief summary regarding the origins of Diwali. Newman raised in Brampton, and Mangtani in India, the two executives contrasted their perception of Diwali with respects to each other’s upbringing.

10

www.trentarthur.ca

Volume 50 | Issue 11 |November 30, 2015

11

Community

Turn your clock radio to Trent Radio

By James Kerr

I have an old clock radio. It has fake wood panelling and a digital display, but barely.

Any older and it would have flip cards for numbers and run on a difference engine.

Goodness knows where this clock radio came from (I’m assuming my parents) but it’s been at my bedside for as long as I remember, and come morning, it would always wake me with the radio.

The radio was background noise; it was familiar. I got to know the morning hosts very well, I got to know Trent Radio 92.7 FM very well, or Trent Radio at a certain time of day, and only very briefly, and I was always mildly irritated when the schedule changed.

The radio coaxed me out of bed, gradually, when I’d really rather be sleeping, and that was good enough for years.

When I was packing up to go to university, I stared at that clock radio and its inconsistent face-lights, showing different intensities of the number “8”. If you squint or if it’s very dark, you can still make out

the time.

“I don’t need you anymore,” I thought, holding my brand new cellphone in my hand. “This has an alarm, too!”

The clock radio stared at me, sadly. But said nothing in its defence.

“I don’t need you anymore!”

It felt like an important growing-up decision and I was determined to stand by it.

Clutching my brand new (and very pretty) cellphone, I headed off to university leaving the clock radio behind.

My first morning in residence, I awoke to the beep, beep, beep on my cellphone alarm and, true to its purposes, I was really very alarmed.

I arose quickly, spurred by tremendous irritation, looking for the emergency. The rest of the day, I walked around snappish and disagreeable because my slumber was so oddly disturbed.

“There must be a gentler alarm,” I thought. “I’ll get used to it. Sure, I will.”

Through subsequent days, I explored other alarm settings but they all felt just as violent to the settled nature of my morning

slumber. Ideally, I would like to be woken in the morning by a gentle kiss on my hand and a cooing whisper not too close to my ear.

That’s clearly not going to happen, but there must be some middle ground between that mid-morning utopia and my cellphone’s best impression of a fire alarm.

For weeks, the beep, beep, beep screamed at me from my dreams. The beep, beep, beep became like the death knell of a new day.

I tried hiding it in the bedside table’s drawer, but still it was: beep, beep, beep.

Placing it across the room didn’t help.

Beep, beep, beep. I would wake, sure, but I was furious!

“Why are you so jarring, cellphone?” I asked.

The cellphone stared at me, smugly. It said nothing worth noting.

Finally one morning my instincts resurfaced. When the bell of ultimate irritation rang its beep, beep, beep, I slammed my first down upon it to hit the snooze button and, through violence, buy myself twelve

more minutes peace.

Of course, cellphones don’t have snooze buttons. Or, at least not ones so sturdy as my old faux wood panel clock radio.

Several hours later as I drifted slowly to wakefulness, I saw the smashed cellphone.

Its screen splintered and cracked. The cellphone stared at me, dead. It no longer said beep, beep, beep. Now it would never say beep, beep, beep again. And I was out one cellphone.

I needed that gosh darned clock radio.

Sure, waking up to the radio is banal and Trent Radio can be especially strange and random in the young hours, but at least it’s human, unlike the robot banshee screams of my now-dead cellphone.

The radio coaxes me out of bed, gradually, when I’d really rather be sleeping. And until I have someone to gently kiss my hand and coo me with not-too-close whispers, a clock radio will do.

“I missed you, old clock radio,” I think towards it, snuggled into bed.

The clock radio stares at me, happily. But still says nothing, and that’s probably best.

Trans Day of Remembrance: a time of social change

By D Dmuchowski

We live in a time of great social change.

Awareness of issues that had previously been ignored have garnered more media attention in recent times. There is increasingly more awareness and acceptance of neurodiversity, how race and class affect people’s life opportunities and experiences in various demographics, identities that diverge and challenge heteronormativity, and conventional ideologies around gender, among others.

However, despite this progress, there is an inevitable backlash; to those who don’t have an understanding of oppression politics, this is seen as the negatively connoted “political correctness” with the admonition of concepts like safe spaces and measures taken to prevent people from being triggered.

This kind of willful ignorance and lack of initiative to understand struggles of minority populations leads to further violence through micro-aggressions.

As Maya Angelou, author of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, famously states in her book, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”

We now know better, so we are doing better in terms of educating ourselves about our privileges, and attempting to make the world a safer and more comfortable place for minorities who are systemically disadvantaged by political, cultural, and social

12

www.trentarthur.ca

structures.

The Trans Day of Remembrance is one of the reasons why such measures are crucial, and even life saving. There have been three trans suicides in our Peterborough community in just this month alone.

The intersections of discrimination and hate become tragically obvious when we look at the number of murdered trans women of colour this year.

In the last seven years alone, there have been over 1,700 transgender people killed, according to the trans murder-monitoring project—an organization that aims to collect this data worldwide in order to increase awareness of this largely silent epidemic.

This day reserved for honouring trans lives lost began with the murder of Rita Hester, a highly visible member of the transgender community, in 1998.

She worked as an educator and trans advocate in her native city of Boston. She was stabbed 20 times in her apartment and died shortly after. Her murderer has still not been found.

The Trans Day of Remembrance/Resiliency (TDoR), which took place last Friday, November 20, at Seeds of Change inside the George Street United Church but is also commemorated worldwide, was a way for the community to remember lives lost due to murder and suicide.

The event, which gathered approximately 75 attendees, started with a candlelight vigil to commemorate the members of the trans community who are no longer with

us, followed by a community celebration of the community’s resilience in the face of violence and prejudice, as well as in celebration of the diverse identities that exist.

In the words of event organizer, Drew Whatman: “TDoR is a time to bring the community together to remember those we lost due to anti-trans violence and discrimination. The trans community is particularly vulnerable to violence, as well as suicide, and most in it have felt the ripples of those events in their lives.

This event not only gives people a place to remember and reflect on those we lost, but also to celebrate the memory of their lives, and to celebrate those who are still with us. Events like this foster community, connections, and support within the trans community and the community at large.”

Anya Gwynne from Peterborough Aids Resource Network (PARN) speaks to the intersections of health, trans identities, stigma, and discrimination: “To PARN, participating in this day is a recognition of the complex and intersecting issues that result in people’s increased risk for HIV and STBBIs. When people are marginalized and made to feel less than or invalidated, there is a profound impact on their health outcomes.

In our work with the Rainbow youth program and LGBTQ youth, we are aware that connection and support are crucial to shifting from risk to resiliency.”

Cis-gender people (those who are

biologically male/female and identify as a man/woman respectively) can affect much change as allies. Gwynne states, “This day exists because the ‘cis’ stems do not reflect the reality that there are trans people and that there are many genders and many ways of expressing gender. We are taught that there are males and females and that somehow we are owed this knowledge of one another, and therefore, when people are non-conforming or identify themselves as a gender, not their assignment, many cis people react in anger and violence. This violence and discrimination is the reason that we require a day to recognize the losses.”

Whatman astutely adds, “Though there is one specific day set aside to reflect, sometimes it can feel like we are in mourning so often. Lost friends due to a murder, due to a suicide, is not all together too rare.

We need to listen to the voices of trans people before they are lost, when they are alive, not just when they die. Attending TDoR events, for those wishing to remember, can be a good way to show support but not necessarily a good time to learn or be educated, as many people are vulnerable and privately mourning at that time.

What cis folks need to know is that this is a day specifically set aside to remember, but it’s not just one day, it’s everyday. Educating yourself on trans lives can be hard but it can mean so much. Respect is key.

Respect our identities, our bodies, and our existence.”

Community

Peterborough Fashion Week: the final showdown

By Ugyen Wangmo

November 20, 2015 – Peterborough Fashion Week (PTBO FW) this year presented a cheque worth $23,480 to the Five Counties Children Centre.

The fashion week ended with the fashion show performance by STRUTT 4 Kids, which also celebrated their fifth anniversary, at the Market Hall on Friday, November 20.

“Funds raised in the local community are one of the reasons we’re able to maintain our services,” said Dave Adams, Executive Director of Five Counties Children Centre.

“For 40 years, children with special needs, and their families, have depended

on Five Counties. Life has thrown them a curve. Some come in denial, some come with fears, and others come with a lot of questions. What they all leave with is help.”

The fashion show was co-hosted by Theresa Longo, a multi-talented Peterboroughborn actor, model, musician, and fitness expert, alongside a face that is no stranger to Peterborough, Mike Judson, the Weather Analyst on CHEX Newswatch.

The show that commenced with an opening video and act by The Citiots Improv Troupe saw models of all ages, sizes, ethnicities, and abilities walk the runway in clothes from a variety of local retailers and designers.

The retailers featured during the show were namely Charlotte’s Web (women and

children’s clothing store), Antoinette Bridal Boutique (the region’s finest bridal boutique), and John Roberts Clothiers (locally owned men and women’s clothing retailer).

In addition, Cottage Toys (retailer of water sports and surf lifestyle), Plush Boutique (catering to professionals seeking style and grace), Flavour (a vital source for experimental street wear), and Funky Buddha (an eco line of clothing that uses sustainable fabric, which is fair trade and hand made in Toronto), was also featured.

Besides the retailers, the fashion show also showcased three local designers: Charmaine H’s Dot to Dot (athletics-inspired casual wear for children aged 8 to 12), Louise Campbell (children’s, dance, and custom apparel), and Trechiq Designs by Amber Conlon who showcased her collection “ Sinfully Elegant”.

Peterborough Fashion Week took a progressive approach by “being inclusive, not exclusive”. Wanting to lead the way for other Fashion Weeks, show producer and owner of STRUTT Central, Christina Abbott, explained, “It is our intention to create a moral fiber that will help thread the fashion industry together in a positive and progressive way; to show that everyone can access and feel accepted by fashion, and that inclusivity is always in style.”

Peterborough Fashion Week was run completely on an in-kind and volunteer basis. “Over the past few months, more than 100 volunteers, supporters, and sponsors gave time and skills in order to make this week happen,” said Catia Skinner, Chair of

the Steering Committee. “We would like to thank everyone involved, and we’re looking forward to next year being as successful as this year.”

PTBO FW is a local charity event to raise funds for Five Counties Children Centre while facilitating a creative avenue for the local artists and businesses to thrive, extending to Toronto, through building strong collaborations locally, nationally, and globally.

The Week was sponsored in part by Russelle Toyota, Ashburnham Realty, and Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA).

Photos provided by Ugyen Wangmo and Peterborough Fashion Week

Revolutionary Student Movement organizes clothing drive

By Keila MacPherson

So far, we have been lucky to have a relatively warm autumn, but last week saw the first snowfall of the season. It didn’t stay for long, but winter is indeed coming.

Last Monday, November 23, the Peterborough Revolutionary Student Movement (RSM) ran “Serve the People: Free Winter Clothing Distribution” in Confederation Park, an event to provide those in need with warm clothing for the coming cold

weather. “[W]e help to get those who need them warm clothes for this winter and build solidarity with them so we can together struggle against capitalism and the harm it does,” read the Facebook event page.

The articles of clothing available ranged from winter jackets to mittens and gloves, toques, and scarves for all ages. The Free Market that runs out of the basement of Sadleir House provided the warm wear for this event.

“There are people in Peterborough right now who can’t afford winter clothing. We need people to be warm in the winter and not freezing,” said Cameron McAlpine of Peterborough’s RSM. “I think this really highlights the fact that the system has truly failed the people because there are people who cannot afford winter clothing. That’s a problem. It’s a political message as [well].”

Peterborough’s RSM group holds many anti-oppression events to get the community to be active about important issues. Through this event, they reached out for solidarity surrounding issues such as poverty and homelessness.

RSM created awareness of the issue and took action to alleviate the hold capitalism has on our community, instead of being slacktivists; slacktivism is easily achieved with the accessibility of social media.

The Oxford dictionary defines “slacktivism” as “[a]ctions performed via the Internet in support of a political or social cause but regarded as requiring little time or involvement.”

The event ran alongside the weekly Food Not Bombs (FNB) Peterborough community dinner. FNB provided a warm meal containing a variety of soups and hearty vegetable dishes for people to eat and sit under the tent together, and even take away with them at the end of the night.

OPIRG board member Sabrina Calogeracos added that the Free Bin at the Market is overflowing with donated winter clothing. If anyone missed out on the event last week, there is still a chance to find something before the cold sets in at the Free Market.

About the Revolutionary Student Movement: The RSM is a Canada-wide revolutionary, combative, militant, and anti-capitalist student movement. They align their struggles with the broader working class.

They are a movement guided by communist principles that serves the people in their fight for emancipation from the capitalist system. They organize proletarian students in the interest of the revolutionary working class movement.

Volume 50 | Issue 11 |November 30| 2015

13

community

Punk Rock’s not dead!

By Tyler Majer

Punk Rock. A music genre once prominent in the growls of pissed-off youth seems to be dying… But is it?

The music of anger and angst looms in the catacombs of small-towns, and lurks in grime-filled bars. Punk thrives in a dungeon-esque environment. Dark and dreary.

Hidden. The music may be loud, but its impact seems to be quiet. Although still alive, punk rock seems to be subsiding. It is not as easy to find on a mainstream level.

That may sound counterintuitive to what punk rock is, but by mainstream, I mean well-known. Punk will never be mainstream. That is the complete opposite of its intention. However, Punk throughout history has at least been noticed. Until now.

When was the last time you heard a really great and new punk album that was noticed on a large-scale level?

I am sure there are specific examples of a new punk record that hits all the right notes and handles all of those delicate screams very well.

However, the more I hear people talk about punk, the more it seems that punk is something of the past. What are your favorite bands? “I really like the Sex Pistols.”

Yeah, so do I. Everyone does. The Dead Kennedy’s. The Misfits. The Descendents.

Bad Brains. The Circle Jerks. The Damned.

Right, yeah. We get it. These are the best punk bands. All of these bands are important, and all of these bands deserve every bit of praise they have received. However, these bands are old. They’re almost as old as the people they were fighting against, if not older. Glenn Danzig, lead singer of The Misfits is 60 years old. 60 fucking years old. The Misfits’ first album was released in 1982. Ronald Reagan, the supreme leader of the USA at the time, and a main target of punk anger, was 51. Glenn Danzig is older now than the man he most likely hated.

That is not to say that just by being old,

you are outdated. It is also not to say that being in-style means being young. However, Glenn Danzig has aged, and so has punk rock. Eventually Glenn will die, and maybe punk has already passed away.

Some music critics and fans believe that true punk rock died with the rise of poppunk. Punk rock was never meant to be played on mainstream radio, but with the rise of grungy guitar chords, interlaced with melodies, perpetrated the idea that being badass could be commercialized. It is true that being ‘badass’ has been used for monetary means before. Just look at the

fighting industry in sports. Kicking ass and taking names is a moneymaker. However, was the intention of punk to make money?

Or did the rise of pop-punk and groups such as Green Day, Nofx, and Blink-182 lead to this melodic money-making malaise? Was punk truly concerned with commercialization? Or was it this subgenre that took advantage of angst, but did so by means of standardized melody?

However, I don’t think it is all pop-punk’s fault. I am not placing the blame solely on one subgenre. Pop-punk is very interesting in its own right, and there is a lot to be said about anger and angst portrayed through a lighter lens.

However, I do believe that punk may have had its day. Besides local music scenes, punk rock has essentially died out in the eyes of critics – not that they really fucking matter – and it seems that punk only exists as a form of nostalgia.

The Sex Pistols were a really great band.

But what about _____? See, I can’t even think of a fantastic punk artist that is well known from the last ten years, let alone five, or even this year.

Basically, punk seems to be dead. But is it only sleeping? Has punk manifested itself into another genre? Where is punk?

And how do we wake it up from its shallow grave?

West Hammock rocks the Spill

By Jordan Porter

Last Thursday, the up-and-coming band West Hammock played the Ska-/Punk-inspired night at The Spill alongside friends The Cardboard Crowns in downtown Peterborough. The band took the stage second, and although the guys say they don’t particularly subscribe exclusively to ska or punk exclusively.

In fact, they consider themselves closer to an indie-rock style. However, the crowd didn’t seem to notice and were exceptionally responsive to the clean and fun style of the group. With Hunter Sheridan on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Sean Thornton on the keys, Ryan Mead rocking the drums, and Curtis Stewart slamming the bass, I found the group to be extremely tight both socially, which I would find out later after the performance, as well as musically. They showcased some original work as well as some well-known covers to get the crowd engaged.

I got to talking with a few band members prior to the show in order to get a sense of what they were all about, and how West Hammock came to be.

“We’ve been playing with each other for probably around four years now and are really starting to gain some momentum musically, and have been fortunate enough to play with some really great bands, and made a lot of good friends along the way,” said Frontman Hunter Sheridan to Arthur before heading on-stage to set up for the performance. “I go to the University of

14

www.trentarthur.ca

Guelph, although we play primarily out of Oshawa because that’s where the rest of the guys live around. It’s a lot of driving for everyone but we do our best to get together at least once a week to practice and, in the end, it’s all worth it to see something we work so hard on come together.”

The band has a number of shows lined up including opening for 2014 Juno Award

winners, The Strumbellas, at the Moustache Club in Oshawa for the third time this year, as well as some appearances in Guelph, Oshawa, and Toronto areas.

West Hammock has been busy in recent months with the release of a few new songs of their own, as well as some covers such as “West Coast” by Lana Del Rey, and an original entitled “Anchors”, both of which were

recorded at Claremont’s Chalet Studios.

These tracks and others can be found on YouTube or iTunes under the band name and have even appeared on our own Trent Radio in past weeks during the Radio Free Arthur hour on Mondays at 1PM. The future certainly seems bright for these young, talented, ambitious, and all-around nice guys, who say they are looking forward to getting started on their next full-length album set to be released in 2016.

The group also has their sights set on the possibility of embarking on a small Canadian-based tour, venturing as far north as Quebec, but the guys say that at this stage, it’s just an idea and will depend on tackling the ever so daunting task of working around each members hectic school and work schedules, a truly painstaking assignment that every band, large or small, is all too familiar with.

West Hammock encourages anyone who will find themselves in the downtown Toronto area on December 3 to check them out at The Central (603 Markham St), where they will be performing alongside Red Eye Flights and The Sky Valley Band.

As is necessary in this day and age, the group is highly active on a variety of different social media platforms, with Facebook being the primary outlet for the most current information regarding the band.

They also run a meticulously managed and up-to-date website featuring upcoming shows and recently released tracks at www.westhammock.com.

community

By Dane Shumak

What do we think of when we hear “musical theatre?” Tap-dancing, chorus lines, big cheesy songs and romantic happy endings?

The modern rock-musical filled with angst and real-life drama? Andrew Lloyd Webber’s weird face? Probably at least one of those. Maybe all 3.

We don’t usually think of ass-kicking, high-energy, pop-punk set in post-Grunge America featuring the music of the band of our tween years, do we?

Well, that’s exactly what “AMERICAN IDIOT: the Musical” is.

Cordwainer Productions is bringing the exciting punk-opera musical to the stage at Market Hall on December 4th, 5th, 6th, 9th and 10th and it’s absolutely breaks the mould and shatters all the expectations you might have about what a musical can, should and does look like – and that’s ex-

actly why you should see it.

Featuring a soundtrack entirely of recomposed Green Day songs (all of the album ‘American Idiot’ and part of the album ‘21st Century Breakdown), written by Billy Joe Armstrong and Michael Mayer, and with orchestrations by the incredible Tom Kitt, ‘American Idiot’ is an 80 minute chaos-ride of awesome.

Set in the early 2000s, on the backdrop of the grunge of the 90s, American Idiot explores pre and post-9/11 Bush Administration America and the forgotten about youth struggling to find their identity in the vapid consumer culture of the time. Three boys - Johnny, Tunny, and Will – all seek to escape the small-town America they’ve been trapped in since birth.

On their journeys, they find themselves dealing with teenage pregnancy, addiction, and getting caught up in the military conflicts in the Middle East at the time. The

musical explores addiction, relationships, abuse, anarchy, the American dream, 9/11, the punk subculture and what it’s like to grow up not being sure of exactly where you fit. While it’s set in the modern era, these themes are universal.

“But Dane,” you’re saying to the paper you’re holding (or screen you’re reading this on. Let’s be real. It’s 2015), not even caring about how you look to the public “isn’t the point of punk music not to sell out? Isn’t a musical exactly that?” Good question, reader! Stop talking out loud, and let’s break it down.

Punk music came about in the 70s and was about eschewing the pervasive mainstream rock styles of the time – something harder, edgier and that shirked the establishment.

“AMERICAN IDIOT: the Musical” not only stays true to its Green Day routes, but in doing so, totally undermines Broadway

musicals at their core. Entirely music-centric, about stuff that Broadway almost never dares to talk acknowledge, the musical’s entire existence is subversive.

Maybe you’re not usually the type to go and see a theatre show, or maybe you’re into the high-art avant-garde. The cool thing about this musical is that it’s universal – we all know the songs because they were anthemic, blasted into our heads as pre-teens.

We all know what it’s like to grow up and want to be a little bit different. Hell, you go to Trent. And we all appreciate a good bit of #aesthetic – and this musical thrives on its aesthetic elements.

Get your tickets today – outside the OC Cafeteria from 12pm-4pm Monday to Friday until December 4th or at tickets.markethall.org – and don’t forget to stretch your neck. You’ll be banging your head along with us.

Volume 50 | Issue 11 |November 30| 2015

15

I blame James Cameron: a 3D movie survey

By Troy Bordun and Reba Harrison

I recently conducted an informal survey on the experience of 3D cinema. Due in part to the digital revolution in Hollywood just prior to 2005, 3D films have now become a staple of local Cineplex Cinemas. During the time leading up to writing this article, at the Peterborough Galaxy Cinemas, there were about three 3D films to choose from in a given week.

77 individuals participated in the short survey. 21 of these were surveyed at Galaxy Cinemas. To get more informative results, a larger sample is sorely needed. In further quantitative research, I would consider sets of questions about film genres and the 3D experience – several respondents noted that 3D is best employed in specific genres.

In the below summary, bolded phrases indicate the question on the survey. Thank you to all the respondents.

First of all, I wanted to know why individuals were going to see movies in 3D. Did they value the experience of 3D itself, regardless of movie (22% response)? Was it the movie itself that appealed to them, without reference to the dimensional presentation (34% response)? Or was it merely the scheduling that forces audiences into a particular screening (32% response)? Sur-

16

www.trentarthur.ca

veyed respondents could select more than one answer to this initial question, so we see that the appeal of a certain film and the scheduled time likely results in more 3D attendance. Several respondents made such a comment – they don’t actively seek out a 3D movie unless it is the only option available.

What does the 3D cinema experience offer? I suggested a few possible answers since it is sometimes difficult to describe your sensations or aesthetic judgments, and more than one answer was possible: 3D offers a heightened bodily experience (15%), better depth of field (24%), and has its own unique aesthetic and styles (36%).

16% also said 3D adds nothing to their film experience.

Most found the experience of 3D generally enjoyable, or that it varies (64%), while a smaller number found it rarely enjoyable or deplorable (25%). Very few believed the extra three dollars are worth the added benefits of 3D (10%) and in fact, many participants strongly believed it is not worth the extra cost (40%). Others thought it occasionally worth the cost or worth the cost on Tuesdays during cheap movie night (49%).

I thought to do this study inside Galaxy Cinemas with audiences of one title

screened in both 2D and 3D. Without reason, Cineplex turned down my request to conduct research. The very small sample I collected in front of the theatre generated similar results, but perhaps a larger theatre sample might prove more positive attitudes towards 3D cinema: 33% of the theatregoers said 3D was worth the extra cost while out of the general sample, 10% agreed that it was worth it.

One significant finding of the survey was movie attendance. Only three participants never go to the movies in a given year. Remarkably, almost half see six or more movies a year, with nearly a third going more than 10 times a year.

I pulled these six+ movie attendees from the data. Most were going to see more 2D screenings than 3D. The simple answer is that there are more 2D screenings (20%), but a few individuals wanted to see more 3D (9%). A majority of participants actively viewed 2D screenings because they felt that 2D is superior and/or 2D is cheaper (58%).

Cineplex offers a reduced number of 2D screenings (or sometimes none at all) for their 3D films, and will usually schedule the 2D screenings in the afternoon. If a large percentage of the audience is going to the theatre to see a particular film, re-

Arts

gardless of 3D or 2D presentation, the extra profit made from the 3D tickets certainly adds up over a number of screenings.

The data from the general group and the active cinema-goers unsurprisingly indicated that spectators want a more even split between 2D screenings and 3D screenings (38% and 46%). Further, in the general group and active cinemagoers group, a third even preferred more 2D screenings than 3D screenings. Lesser numbers believed that 3D films should be solely seen in 3D (24% and 17%).

Going to the cinema costs money – both spectators and corporation know this. The data suggests that customers are not satisfied with their experience of 3D for the price paid. Only 10% of the surveyed respondents were consistently pleased with 3D films.

In the comments section of the survey, there was some appreciation of 3D films with the caveat that superb, innovative 3D films are rare.

Several complained about the added cost and a few felt that 3D is a useless gimmick that distracts from the movie/story/acting.

Finally, the most frequent comment: people with prescription glasses have a hard time getting the 3D glasses to fit properly.

Master of None: a season review If you’re one of two readers who regularly read my column, you’ll know that I had a strong and negative reaction to the Master of None pilot that debuted, along with the rest of the series, on Netflix earlier this month.

I found the introductory episode stiff, the humour anything but funny, and the execution stylistically in contrast to what the episode was going for in terms of its tone. It felt like a mismatched and haphazard offering that left me confused as to how this show was earning such rave reviews across the board.

Despite my pessimistic review, I tried to remind myself that pilot episodes are rarely indicative of a show’s true and full potential. With that said, I made it my mission to watch the rest of the first season to see if my opinions held true or if my view of the show would change over time.

Boy, what a difference another nine episodes can make…

Those who enjoy Louie, The Mindy Project, and the films of Woody Allen will find much to love in the first season of Master of None. Though the first episode is a stumble in the wrong direction, the rest of the episodes shine as a hilarious critique on race, family, sex, and relationships. Created by and staring Aziz Ansari as Dev, a 30-something actor who wanders through life in New York, Master of None supports its narrative with ten episodes, each based on a particular subject that is addressed in combination with a loose narrative weaved throughout.

Depending on the subject, each episode may play with various editing techniques or narrative styles that not only keep the show fresh, but experiments with different doses of humour. Some are subtler than others, but overall I was laughing throughout.

I must admit, I am not usually a fan of Aziz Ansari’s stand-up routine, but his

Hollywood at Home is a weekly column by filmmaker, writer, and critic Keith Hodder that highlights the variety of films and television programs that Netflix has to offer, along with recommendations of what to watch next and his opinions on the world of entertainment. humour is far more relaxed and at home in this medium and form.

The scenes are usually conversational, and most of the actors do a great job of contributing to the mood. The camera work remains stiff and oddly cinematic despite this, but after a few episodes, I forgot that it was an issue. Maybe it changed and the humour kept me distracted. After all, I can only binge so many TV shows with my schedule that is dependent on binge-

watching anything and everything. Give me a break.

What’s great about a lot of the episodes is that there is a lesson learned, but it doesn’t feel like it’s forced down your throat or preached in a Republican sermon.

The realizations Dev makes are subtle, but the ripples they make throughout the episodes are potent. Now, these aren’t lessons that are particularly life changing, but they represent the small steps that we

Arts

take in life in the pursuit of becoming a better and more experienced individual. It makes Dev more human, more relatable, especially since the lesson is learned, meaning that mistakes are made along the way.

As of recent, I have found that a lot of comedy is bogged down by a heavy dose of seriousness, a key moment that the writers feel is important to the character before the film or season ends.

I understand why they do it, I understand why they think it’s right, but we all watch comedy because we want an escape from the serious; we want an escape from life and the stresses that it brings. We want to laugh.

Master of None seems to recognize this.

When the show takes a serious turn, which is rare, it pairs with humour like fine wine.

Though not a sitcom or a similar style of ha-ha, Master of None controls this rapidfire change of pace like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, a show that can focus on a serious discussion of race that brings us down-toearth, but quickly turns a corner to reveal a joke that lifts us up again.

Say what you will about the sitcom format, say what you will about these two shows, but you must recognize and acknowledge the talent required to write such short episodes and create both a potent dose of humour and control it from start to finish. You’ve got just over 20 minutes to tell a story, include a small subplot, give each character a memorable moment of screen time, make your audience laugh, and leave them with something to think about. Go ahead, give it a try.

If you can stick around after the pilot, which I still see as an immense disservice to the rest of the amazing and hilarious episodes, your loyalty will be rewarded.

If anything, Master of None’s title may be misleading. The show is indeed a jack-ofall-trades, but it is also a master at most.

Trent Film Society presents: Black Christmas (1974)

By Trent Film Society

TFS presents the next screening in our fall line-up: Canadian filmmaker Bob Clark’s legendary horror film Black Christmas (1974)!

Since December is upon us, and we’ve shown a fair number of horror films so far this term, perhaps we should explain our reasons for showing a slasher flick at this time. It could be because Halloween is in the fall, and we did a slew of horror films then. Another reason is that this week marks the transition between fall and winter. Another reason is that we don’t

show enough Canadian films at TFS, and Canadian films as a whole don’t get enough exposure. Clark, who is best known for his lowbrow comedy Porky’s (1982) and partially redeemed himself with A Christmas Story (1983), made it early in his career when slasher films had just begun to peak. Although the film was a success (it made back several times its budget, which was fairly small), it has been largely forgotten about now. Like many films from the 1970s and 1980s, it was remade in 2006, which was critically panned. Today, the film has been reassessed as an important influence on the genre and credited with originating many of the conventions of the genre. (I’ll get to that.)

Films invoke memories in us. Black Christmas reminds me of being in a video store in high school. (It wasn’t that long ago.)

I went there fairly often with my girlfriend to rent movies (Netflix had not become popular yet). While browsing, I noticed she was looking at what to me looked like the cover of some horror B-movie: a slasher flick set around Christmas? I put this in roughly the same category as Santa Claus Conquers the Martians and wondered why she was even bothering with it, since she had good taste in films – probably better than mine. She explained that she had heard of this low-budget Canadian film from her father, who saw it when it originally came out in theatres (!) and said it was one of the scariest films he had ever seen. We later rented it and even though I generally only watch horror around Halloween, I enjoyed it: my taste in horror cinema tends towards

psychological thrillers (hello, Clarice...) more than outrageous gore-fests, and that describes this film. Perhaps “scary” isn’t the right word – I don’t find many films to be scary – but it was intriguing and definitely different from what I was expecting.

Black Christmas is a strange film. It’s nominally a horror film, but it’s also set at Christmastime, which provides an ironic background for the events of the film. It also has comedic elements, which seems unusual for a slasher flick. Perhaps it would be better categorized as a (no pun intended) black comedy. The film seems to treat alcoholism as something of a gag, which probably wouldn’t fly today.

There are lighthearted moments and also atmospheric, creepy scenes. It sounds like the premise for some lurid exploitation film from the 1950s – sorority sisters are stalked by an unknown terror! – but its feel and overall look are definitely all 1970s. Some of the content was edgy by the standards of its time. The heroine is pregnant and wants to have an abortion, for example, which is plot-relevant but isn’t treated with excessive angst or moralizing. The film depicts young women in a realistic way, something that the slasher genre is not known for: they drink and swear and do everything that young people do. The college-aged women in this film aren’t stupid; the heroine Jessica knows she’s being stalked by a killer, and she is properly wary. The police aren’t useless like they are in most films; they believe her and try hard to catch the killer and use clever tactics to lure him out in a cat-and-mouse game.

Not unlike Psycho, the plot concerns an unknown psychopath who hides in an attic. Like The Silence of the Lambs, he taunts the heroine by harassing her with phone calls. (You know those creepy phone calls where some guy just breathes heavily?) The film drops false leads about the identity of the killer. Is it Jessica’s boyfriend, the conservatory pianist who’s prone to emotional outbursts? She suspects so. How does the killer always know when she’s at home to harass her? (Spoiler: the calls are coming from inside the house!)

Here, we can see a precursor to countless films like When a Stranger Calls (1979) that exploited this trope/urban legend.

One way the film disguises the killer (again reminiscent of Hitchcock) is by filming from his perspective. Like The Silence of the Lambs, there is a tense standoff in a basement. Do the police get the right man in the end? Like many great horror films, it deals in ambiguity, and that makes it interesting. If not anything else, the film has originality.

Certain cast members stand out to contemporary viewers: Olivia Hussey (Romeo and Juliet, 1968) is the star, and Margot Kidder (Superman, 1978) also appears in a supporting role, but the rest of the cast are unknowns. It’s impressive that this film was made at all: Bob Clark simply liked the script and it became something of a vanity project for him.

TFS is showing Black Christmas this December 2 at Artspace, in conjunction with that organization. Popcorn and drinks will be available, and it’s free!

Volume 50 | Issue 11 |November 30| 2015

17

arts

By Marina Wilke

Hot Dish: Quiche

Quiche is one of the easiest, most costeffective ways to satisfy a crowd.

This delicious French egg pie is so versatile you could make it for brunch, lunch, or dinner, and it remains classy and appropriate. This recipe uses only vegetables; however, quiche is also delicious with meats. Ham, bacon, and cooked chicken are some of my favourites.

You can put almost any vegetable, meat or cheese in a quiche, so if you don’t like my combination, use your imagination and create your own! Make this for your next potluck and you are guaranteed to come home with an empty dish!

Ingredients:

t 4 eggs t ½ cup milk t ½ tsp dried thyme t 1 cup grated cheddar cheese (or t t t t t t t

your favourite melting cheese) ½ cup spinach, chopped 1 cup broccoli florets, steamed ½ cup red pepper, diced ½ an onion, chopped 1 store-bought pie shell Paprika Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions: 1. Preheat the oven to 350F and place an empty frozen pie shell inside. Bake for 3-5 minutes or until the shell starts to puff up and become golden. Remove the shell from the oven and set aside.

18

www.trentarthur.ca

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, thyme, salt, and pepper. Add half of the cheese and mix thoroughly.

3. Arrange the broccoli florets, red pepper, onion, and spinach evenly over the bottom of the pie shell. Pour over the egg mixture until the vegetables are covered

and the pie shell is ALMOST full. Sprinkle remaining cheese and paprika over the top.

4. Place the quiche on a baking sheet and return to the oven. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Voilà, a simple delicious meal for any time of day.

Hint: Always put the quiche on a baking sheet before going in the oven.

The egg mixture can overflow and no one wants the smell of burnt egg and milk permeating their house.

Seriously.

listings: Want your event in the paper? Send yours to listings@trentarthur.ca

classifieds

Electric City Gardens offers a 40% Student Discount on all Entrees. Daily changing menu featuring lovingly prepared seasonally-inspired dishes. Can cater to any special dietary requirements (vegan, gluten-free, etc) and culinary cravings. (Advanced notice appreciated for menu alte rations). ECG offers attentive service in an intimate setting. Find us on Facebook.L.G.B.T. friendly.

LLBO Licensed.

Reservations strongly recommended: 705-749-1909.

Interested in Learning how to play guitar, uke, or bass? Take lessons with Nick Ferrio at Hank to Hendrix Guitar Co. Personalized one on one instruction for beginners or intermediate players.

Contact: 70-768-7544 or nicholas.ferrio@ gmail.com Free Introductory Talk on Transcendental Meditation: Sunday Dec. 6th: 5:30pm - 7:00pm. Location: Peterborough YMCA Boardroom.

This free introductory talk will help you learn everything about the TM technique and how to learn if you

are interested. Endorsed by Dr. Oz, Seinfeld, Oprah, Russell Brand, Paul McCartney, Ellen Degeneres and many other well-known celebrities.

To pre-register: http://ca.tm.org/web/ peterborough/introductory-talks

campus Volunteer with B!ke: Low on gold? Pay for your bike with experience points! Level up your mechanical skills by volunteering in our teaching shop to earn experience points, then put your skills to use by refurbishing a bike from our dungeon! Collect 100 points in the shop and the bike is yours!

For more information or to register for the EarnABike Programme.

Contact B!KE at jeff@communitybikeshop.org Seasonal Celebration and Potluck:

Local Board Game Pub Night at Sadleir House: Back by popular demand!

Sadleir House hosts a Board Game pub night. We have a small collection of games at the house but please bring your favourites to share. Free cov-

er, coffee and tea provided, cash bar ($4-5 for alcohol and $1 for soft drinks).(Unfortunately the Dining Hall is not wheelchair accessible).

Thursday January 7 at 9:00pm. Sadlier House (751 George Street North)

prize package worth over $8000. Located at The Gordon Best Theatre 216 Hunter St. W. Peterborough.

When: November 27th from 5pm to 7pm

The Seasoned Spoon is delighted to invite you to a seasonal celebration that is sure to warm your heart and belly. It’s been another great semester here at the Spoon and we would like to celebrate with our community of supporters, members, friends, staff and volunteers and to thank you for all that you do to make the Spoon what it is.

Expect hot cider, cookies for decorating, music and more! Please bring a list of ingrediants for your dish as well. December 8th at Seasoned Spoon. 5:00-8:00pm.

Please bring a veggie dish to share Cubs’ Lair Entrepreneurship Competition: Cubs’ Lair is designed to meet the growing need for youth entrepreneurship programming, to help launch new companies. The 5 finalists (Kawartha Artists & Artisans Online, Modern Alchemy, Royal Hydrographics, SimbiH2O and Zatiq) will pitch their ideas to judges (Leslie Bradford-Scott, Andressa Lacerda and Neil Morton) and have the chance to take home the

AMERICAN IDIOT: The Musical to the stage. American Idiot is a Tony Award winning adrenaline rush - running just over 80 minutes, with no intermission, it’s a nonstop punk-grunge extravaganza.You won’t want to miss out! SHOW TIMES: Friday December 4 - 8:00 PM, Saturday December 5 - 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM, Sunday December 6, - 2:00 PM, Wednesday December 9, - 8:00 PM, Thursday December 10, - 8:00 PM. TICKET PRICES-General: $20 plus fees.

Student: $15 plus fees. Available at the above link, at tickets.markethall.org, outside of the OC Cafeteria from November 23rd-December 4th or at the Market Hall Box Office.

street style

arts

Focus Fair Annual Craft Sale: Lots of great locally made creations to be had. Come out to meet some of Peterboroughs many talented makers of art, crafts and more. Treat yourself or get some truly one of a kind gifts!

Starts December 12th at 11:00am and goes until December 13 until 1:00pm.

Will be hosted at The Spill!

Photos by Samantha Moss

Pictured above: Daniel Sterling stands infront of Scott Moss House at Traill College Photos by Samantha

Pictured above: Zach Simmonds having a drink at Amusé Coffee Co.

Volume 50 | Issue 11 |November 30| 2015

19