One in 10 female-identifying students at Canadian post-secondary institutions experienced sexual assault in 2019. According to a survey from 2014, only about five per cent of sexual assaults are reported to police. As sexual assault garnered more attention through the #MeToo movement, many used the phrase “innocent until proven guilty”[Read More…]
Commentary
Communication through Facebook is no longer ethical
In early 2018, The New York Times reported on a leak of close to 50 million Facebook users’ data—the most significant breach of data privacy at the company ever. According to a cache of documents, Facebook user data had been improperly disclosed to Cambridge Analytica, a political consulting corporation which used[Read More…]
Alarmism about the extinction of French is alive and well
On Nov. 13, the Journal de Montreal published a synopsis by journalist Marie-Lise Mormina about her investigation into the language customers were being greeted and served with in retail stores and restaurants. The full report, which was published the next day, brought Montreal’s ever-present language debate back to the forefront of[Read More…]
Don’t expect much from in-person courses this winter semester
Despite announcing earlier in the semester that the Winter 2021 semester will mostly take place remotely, on Nov. 4, McGill sent an email describing its intention to expand in-person teaching for Winter 2021. The news broke while COVID-19 outbreaks continued to rise within primary schools and high schools, and alongside[Read More…]
Switch banks: It may save the planet
The Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) recently became Canada’s first major financial institution to refuse to invest in fossil fuel drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). RBC’s new policy comes after the U.S. government’s controversial decision to open some of the refuge for oil and gas development, to[Read More…]
Harm reduction in residences can save lives
For many students, experimenting with recreational drugs is part of the university experience, and a subculture of illicit drug use exists at McGill. To mitigate harmful consequences such as addiction and overdose, floor fellows in first-year residences have historically been trained to practice a harm reduction approach to drug use,[Read More…]
Gyms are not a COVID-19 risk
On Oct. 26, Quebec Premier Francois Legault announced that Montreal’s red zone restrictions would be extended until Nov. 23. This, among other things, means that gyms and fitness centres in the Montreal region are to remain closed. A group called Centres d’activités physiques du Québec, composed of some 200 fitness[Read More…]
Better engagement with students can prevent another failed SSMU referendum
The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) recently held its Fall 2020 Special Referendum to ratify changes made to the SSMU constitution. One of the key proposals would have renamed SSMU’s Judicial Board (J-Board) to the “SSMU Appellate Committee.” The name change would reflect SSMU’s new vision for the J-Board’s[Read More…]
New international students need more support on immigration procedures
On Sept. 15, I, along with many other international students, received an automated email from McGill Legal Services notifying me that I was at risk of deregistration due to missing immigration documents. Although I applied for my documents over the summer, the Quebec documents uploading system did not correctly upload[Read More…]
Solidarity in Montreal must outlast COVID-19
The Montreal Student Initiative for COVID-19 Response and Relief, a McGill student-led mutual aid group that formed during the pandemic, shut down on Oct. 1. Along with delivering material goods, such as food and prescriptions, to people in need, the group also organized virtual social events to connect their communities.[Read More…]
