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Science & Technology

OpenMedia McGill equips students with encryption tools

by Omar Arafeh on

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In a rapidly evolving world where people’s information is becoming more accessible and privacy is quickly eroding, anti-surveillance tools are increasing in popularity. To overcome a lack of privacy, OpenMedia McGill, in partnership with HackMcGill, acquainted students with anti-surveillance tools, like Tor and Signal, in a workshop on March 16. The workshop demonstrated how individuals can protect themselves using encryption-based apps while on the Internet to protect messages, emails, or maintain their anonymity online. OpenMedia McGill is part of a Canadian NGO that protects and promotes student interests concerning information policy, privacy, and surveillance.

The workshop stressed the value of privacy in an increasingly information-based and Internet-dependent society.

“Everyone wants to maintain a certain amount of privacy, whether they think they do or not,” Michelle Guo, U2 Arts and director of OpenMedia McGill, explained.

The workshop introduced the application Signal, a messenger that uses end-to-end encryption to encrypt texts such that only those communicating are able to read them—this makes it nearly impossible to be breached by a form of surveillance.

In the Canadian context, Bill C-51, the Anti-terrorism Act that the Canadian parliament passed in 2015, expanded the power of government agencies to share information about individuals. This type of governmental surveillance is what OpenMedia is attempting to curtail by providing free workshops. Using an app like Signal is an initial step to combat the state of increased security from the consumer end. Additionally, such apps offer more individual control over personal information and privacy.

Despite the workshop’s emphasis on surveillance, the fear of a dystopian Big Brother constantly watching is not the incentive that drives OpenMedia’s work.

“The goal is not to insight fear,” Vice-President of OpenMedia McGill, Nina Soulier, said. “It’s more like what steps to be taken to prevent government surveillance and breach of privacy.”

Using a network like Tor would provide its users with anonymity from both government surveillance and any individual that may wish them harm. The focus of the workshop is not only preventing government surveillance, but also that of non-governmental parties.

Distinct from surveillance, hacking is often romanticized in TV shows and movies as a formidable threat in which the average individual is a defenceless target.

“Hacking can be prevented with two-step verification for social media accounts, but mostly [with] common sense,” Guo said. “For example,  changing URLs to 'https' to ensure security whenever you can and avoid clicking on phishing links or suspicious emails.”

It is important for these workshops to rationalize the fear of the unknown. If the concept of hacking is unpacked and attendees understand the steps needed to guard against it, they will begin to feel empowered, which is ultimately what these workshops try to do.

Interestingly, not all of the participants attending were there for the protection of their privacy. Samy Zarour, a fourth-year Computer Science student, explained that he didn’t necessarily attend the workshop for his own privacy interest.

“Encryption is a very important part of developing apps […] and there aren’t any courses at McGill that teach you this skill,” Zarour said. “I’m not here to learn how to protect myself.”

The workshop not only served as an anti-surveillance guide, but also an opportunity for prospective app designers to learn how to protect their future creations.

Regardless of what each individual takes out of the workshops, it’s important to note that OpenMedia McGill is attempting to empower and educate the student body regarding their privacy and teach a skill to avoid unwanted hacking or surveillance.  

Out on the Town, Private, Student Life

Chez Boris is closing its doors at the end of April

by Grace Bahler on

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Coffee and donuts are an age-old combination. But Chez Boris, located on the corner of Avenue du Parc and Avenue Laurier, made the pair extra-good. The quirky café—known for its ¢75 Russian-style beignets and incredible coffee—opened in August 2012; just five years later, it’s closing its doors. 

On March 1, Chez Boris made the announcement on its Facebook page that the café would be gone for good come the end of April, citing a new landlord who has decided not to renew its lease as the main reason for closing. Yet, according to the manager of the café, Michael Heinermann, this came at the right time. The owner and creator, Boris Volfson, is permanently situated in Baltimore, Maryland, which makes managing the café slightly more difficult. And for many people, Volfson is a large part of the draw to the café. 

“[Volfson is] a great guy, and when he’s in town, we see a lot more people come in [.…] He’s a good boss. Not really a boss, kind of a friend,” Heinermann said. 

Heinermann and four other employees of Chez Boris recently began to develop a co-op to continue the café’s legacy—going by the name of “Beigne Oui.” The employees behind the co-op plan to continue serving donuts—among other fried-foods—using a democratic pricing system decided by its membership, as most food co-ops do. 

(Courtesy of Helena Lin)
(Courtesy of Helena Lin)

Volfson is in full support of the plans to turn the café into a co-op. Though he tried to find a new space for Chez Boris himself, serious interests did not turn into serious offers. As a result, the café’s staff has taken matters into their own hands, continuing to pursue a co-op space. The determination of the staff is a true testament to what Chez Boris means to the Mile-End community. It’s more than a café; it’s a part of the neighbourhood itself, a reflection of the value its attendees place in support and togetherness.

“It’s the people that come here [that make it special],” Heinermann said.

The importance of the café’s communal aspect is a shared sentiment. Helena Lin, U3 Arts, is a Montreal café fiend. A photographer for Foodora, blogger for McGill’s chapter of Spoon University, and soon-to-be manager at Hôtel Ambrose’s café, she has an eye for only the best—and that includes Chez Boris.

“[Chez Boris is] a place where people on all walks of life feel welcome to come in for some comfort in the form of donuts and coffee,” Lin said. “[It] was never a café about making money, it was never a café that wanted to be the next Instagram hot spot or the best third wave spot in Montreal. Chez Boris has always been a café about building community, about supporting everyone who came in.” 

Lin emphasized the role that the staff and Volfson have had in making Chez Boris what it is, creating an entire experience out of the café that supersedes the traditional. In a way, Chez Boris feels like a haven from city life. From the funky background music to the smell of fresh donuts, its instant comfort and coziness undoubtedly make Chez Boris into something greater than a café. 

Moreover, the café has made itself known as a friend to local artists, hosting art shows and selling one-of-a-kind pieces on its walls that fit right in alongside a mini library and collection of board games. No one goes there simply for the aesthetically-pleasing scene or the phenomenal food as they may at other cafés—people go because there is a unique sense of belonging. 

“You’ll always be able to find a good café in Montreal, but you surely will not be able to find any other place like Chez Boris,” Lin said. 

The closing of Chez Boris is more than sad; it is the end of something irreplaceable. Though its legacy will carry on through the Beigne Oui co-op, come the end of April the donuts will not be forgotten—and neither will the space that made them so wonderful.  

McGill, News

SSMU Indigenous Affairs Committee hosts Indigeneity & Solidarity Week 2017

by Margherita de Castro on

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From March 13 to 18, the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Indigenous Affairs Committee hosted the second annual Indigeneity and Solidarity Week in conjunction with the Indigenous Student Alliance (ISA), the American Indian Science and Engineering Society, the Indigenous Studies Program, and First Peoples’ House. Speakers conducted workshops, panel sessions, and public lectures to shed light on Indigenous issues in North America.

This year, the SSMU Indigenous Affairs Committee opted to title the event series Indigeneity and Solidarity Week instead of Indigeneity and Allyship Week. SSMU Vice-President (VP) University Affairs Erin Sobat, one of the main organizers of the event, attributed the rebranding to the problematic nature of allyship, a concept that he claimed prioritizes settler validation over the needs of Indigenous peoples. Sobat said the Indigenous Affairs Committee wished to prioritize Indigenous communities.

“The committee was particularly focused on creating spaces for Indigenous students and staff to think about resurgence and revitalization, or how we can best push back against colonialism and develop responses to contemporary issues in ways that prioritize Indigenous needs and narratives,” Sobat said.

Primarily organized and run by students, the event series encouraged relatable content. Sobat expressed his interest in the week also acting as a platform to hold the McGill administration accountable to their promises of self-reflective education.

With their grassroots, rather than an institutional, perspective, the organizers invited renowned activists and cultural figures to headline the week. One of the guest lecturers was Kyle T. Mays, a Black and Saginaw Anishinaabe post-doctoral scholar at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Mays’ expertise covers urban Indigenous history, Indigenous popular culture, and Afro-Indigenous studies.

On March 17, Mays ran a workshop on creating safe spaces in neoliberal universities. Mays urged attendees to discuss their definitions of diversity and their opinions on the 150th anniversary of Canada. On the latter, many participants felt that the country’s anniversary celebrations did not acknowledge Canada’s colonization process involving forceful assimilation and mistreatment of Indigenous peoples.

“Solidarity is important to move forward, especially now in the context of Canada’s 150th birthday and Black Lives Matter,” Mays said.

Mays followed the workshop with a public lecture on Black and Indigenous Solidarity on Turtle Island, referring to North America. He discussed the dichotomy in the historic relationship between Black and Indigenous communities. Of particular concern was how Black groups contributed to the oppression and dispossession of Indigenous people, such as the role that African-American buffalo soldiers played in the U.S. government’s Western expansionist plans. Mays found that the pursuit of Black liberation often came at the expense of accounting for Indigenous sovereignty.

However, Mays also cited instances where the two communities empowered each other’s movements. For example, Native-Americans participated in protesting the Flint water crisis, a situation that heavily affected African-Americans. Mays emphasized the value of the two communities’ cooperating to resolve the common issue of colonial behaviour.

“We can’t really engage in decolonization without an inclusive idea of decolonization that includes African-American people and others,” Mays said.

Kahawihson Horne, an Indigenous student at Concordia University in her second year of First People Studies, described Mays’ teachings as an instruction manual for young activists.

“He was talking about how self-care is one essential part of being an activist,” Horne said. “That just because someone is from the same community, band, or nation as you that does not necessarily make them your kinsfolk.”

Indigeneity and Solidarity week finished with the ISA’s full-day conference on the role of Indigenous arts in the revitalization of the community on March 18.

Editorial, Opinion

The uphill battle to restoring trust in SSMU

by The McGill Tribune Editorial Board on

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On March 17, the results of this year’s Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) executive elections were announced. The entire process took less than 10 minutes. But brevity was to be expected–as is typical for SSMU elections, many of this year’s positions were uncontested, and the low level of fanfare was befitting of the 20 per cent voter turnout.

What distinguished this election from last year’s, and perhaps from any in recent history, however, was the series of scandals leading up to it. Since the beginning of this Winter semester, students have watched in increasing shock as former Arts representative Igor Sadikov touted violence against Zionists, former Vice-President (VP) External David Aird resigned following allegations of sexual harassment and assault, and, most recently, former president Ben Ger stepped down following allegations of gendered violence.

Across all of these crises, the Society’s response has been uncertain, delayed, and simply inadequate to resolve the concerns of affected students. These scandals do not negate the value of SSMU and the services it provides to students. However, if next year’s executives are to restore student trust in a society that, by and large, has failed as a representative body this Winter, they must learn from the harms of this year, and implement procedures to re-establish the transparency, accountability, and responsiveness of SSMU.

SSMU is important. It’s easy for most students to forget this because, for many students, the Society is only visible when it’s tied to a crisis or scandal. But between these flashpoints, the SSMU and its executives work throughout the year on behalf of students–they provide essential services in areas that the administration scales back on, such as peer support and student medical services, as well as identify and advocate for student interests. With bureaucratic work on top of their mandates, a reduction in the number of permanent staff to support executives, and the steep learning curve that comes with yearly turnover, executives are overburdened and underprepared even for the simple task of trying to keep SSMU running. In the face of this semester’s onslaught of crises, it isn’t surprising that the executives’ response was largely paralysis.

Across all of these crises, the Society’s response has been uncertain, delayed, and simply inadequate to resolve the concerns of affected students.

However, these constraints do not excuse ­SSMU’s poor response. Instead, it reveals the dire need for institutional mechanisms to deal with cases of violence committed by its leaders. Procedures must exist to deal with any student in power that causes harm, or otherwise violates their obligations to the student body. In the case of Sadikov’s tweet, SSMU waffled on the issue, and the former Arts representative’s fate was passed between three different bodies before Sadikov resigned from the Board of Directors. If students are ever attacked or made to feel unsafe, they trust that SSMU will be there for them, and take action to hold the perpetrator to account. For many students, that trust now feels misplaced.

In the case of alleged sexual and gendered violence, this semester has made clear that means of transparent and prompt disciplinary action are sorely lacking­. A statement from the Community Disclosure Network (CDN) prompted Aird’s resignation from the executive council—appallingly, several SSMU executives were already aware Aird’s inappropriate workplace behaviour, and had sought to deal with the issue internally. This is a reprehensible contradiction of SSMU’s mandate to promote equity on campus, and a failure of SSMU’s commitment to the safety of its students. Transparent, accessible, and streamlined processes must exist to address allegations of sexual and gendered violence.

The incoming executive team has a tough job ahead of them. They must apply the lessons that can be taken from this year in meaningful and productive ways to ensure that students feel safe and represented by SSMU. This means establishing clear procedures and consequences for instances of harm and sexual violence perpetrated by student representatives, both for their term and for SSMU executives to come. It means consulting students on how to achieve this, and how to best serve student interests, to actively engage their constituents in ways that elections–largely popularity contests–cannot.

Above all, next year’s executives must follow through on their platform promises of renewed representation and accountability, and remind students why they should trust SSMU. The task of restoring student’s faith in SSMU will likely not be achieved in a single year, but it is imperative that the incoming executives begin addressing the damage done by the failures of this semester.

Arts & Entertainment, Pop Rhetoric

Pop Rhetoric: Youtube star JonTron’s unfortunate foray into alt-right politics

by Joe Khammar on

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Millions of fans around the world love Jon Jafari—the creator of the JonTronShow and former Game Grumps host. For six years, his videos have brought tears of laughter to anyone fortunate enough to have discovered his channel—yet, with his recent foray into the alt-right and white supremacist political spheres, his reputation is taking a hit. Given the content of his comments, many longtime fans will not feel comfortable supporting Jafari in his future endeavours. 

Back in November 2016, he first tested the political waters in an interview with Breitbart. Many fans were concerned that Jafari decided to speak to such an unreliable—and to some, hateful and offensive—news service. However, fans seemed to give him the benefit of the doubt. His comments were generally harmless and mentioned his past support for former President Barack Obama and Senator Bernie Sanders.

Unfortunately, the discourse didn’t stay so benign. On March 12, Jafari tweeted out his support for Iowa Representative Steve King in the wake of his comment that, “We can’t restore our civilization with somebody else’s babies.” His words of support immediately set off a chain reaction within his fan base, and as well as with other YouTubers, leading to a debate with streamer Steve Bonnell.

During the Twitter debate, JonTron doubled down on his stance.

“It’s not as if we’re saying all black people are irresponsible,” Jafari said. “I’m just saying, like you can’t make the argument that whites should be okay with becoming a minority in the country their ancestors built.”

The issue is not that he is conservative, it’s that his political views are closer to that of Richard Spencer’s—a well-known white supremacist—than President Donald Trump’s. There is no question that fans of his, especially minorities, feel uncomfortable with Jafari’s beliefs and statements. In fact, the backlash was so ferocious, the JonTron Reddit was locked because of the toxic atmosphere.

The situation with Jafari is part of a larger trend within YouTube. On Feb. 13, Internet celebrity PewDiePie, real name Felix Kjellberg, found himself in trouble with both fans and sponsors because of an anti-Semitic joke calling for “Death to all jews,” in a now-removed video. While many do not believe Kjellberg is anti-Semitic, fans needed to re-evaluate their support for someone who regularly uses race-based humour. 

These two controversies are similar because they remind viewers that popular Youtube content creators are individuals. Unlike Hollywood celebrities with teams of public relations and employees vetting their every word, Internet stars are largely independent. Their personal views may, at times, collide with the audience’s. Whether it’s an off-kilter joke by PewDiePie or the racist political beliefs of JonTron, fans need to understand that these people are being themselves. Some will be able to look past their issues as imperfect beings in a world with high expectations, but others will regard them, especially Jafari, with justifiable contempt. The beauty of the YouTube platform is that it allows fans to take a stand against Jon Jafari via  public comments, unsubscribing, or using AdBlock to prevent ad revenue to the Youtuber.

Regardless, these two instances will not be the end of JonTron or PewDiePie. They will continue to produce content on their YouTube channels at the same rate as before; however, with Jafari, videos will be forever tainted by his deplorable political views.  Given his voting history, it’s equal parts perplexing and infuriating that Jafari has bought into the alt-right movement. Jontron previously supported Senator Sanders, meaning his views are subject to drastic change. Hopefully Jontron will change his views, so that the content that has brought happiness to  millions of viewers around the world can be enjoyed without the heavy blight that is attached to it now. 

McGill, News

First annual ‘Clash of the Professors’ covers global economic affairs

by Julia Metraux on

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On March 13, the McGill Students Trading Society (MSTS) hosted its first annual “Clash of the Professors’ event on the subject of global economic affairs. Economics Professor Paul Dickinson moderated the debate between Economics and North American Studies Associate Professor Tom Velk and Economics Associate Professor Christopher Ragan.

MSTS Chief Marketing Officer Omar El-Sharawy introduced Ragan and Velk, noting that they both have had influence on financial institutions in their past positions, as Ragan served as an advisor to the Bank of Canada and Velk sat on the Board of Governors of the American Federal Reserve System.

Debate questions were divided into four topics: Environmental policy, international trade, central bank policy, and government spending in Canada. For every question, Ragan and Velk had two minutes to present a position and one minute for a rebuttal.

Dickinson first posed a question about whether carbon pricing would affect greenhouse gases.

“The logic of carbon pricing is based on the idea that markets work pretty well, that prices actually allocate resources,” Ragan said. “It goes way back to Adam Smith, when scarcity is reflected by higher-level prices and abundance is reflected by lower-level prices. By changing [carbon pricing], you are going to change behaviour.”

Velk disagreed with the notion of carbon pricing, dismissing climate change entirely.

“The notion of climate change and global warming is like religion for me, it doesn’t have support,” Velk said.

On free trade and trade agreements, Velk and Ragan agreed that the real-life implications of industry specialization are often overlooked.

“England makes great cloth, lousy wine,” Velk said. “Portugal makes great wine, lousy cloth. As trade gets going, England clothmakers and Portuguese winemakers are better off. The problem is, Portuguese clothmakers are out of business, as are English winemakers.”

However, Ragan pointed out that the country specializing in the more valuable resource has increased bargaining power in negotiations, resulting in national benefits.

“We actually have some bargaining power […] with the United States because we do some things very well,” Ragan said. “We export all of our natural gas to the United States.”

Another topic that Velk and Ragan differed on was their view of central banks.

“Central banking has the danger of allowing governments to borrow money irresponsibility,” Velk said.

Ragan, while agreeing with Velk that central banks have not always been  productive to society, argued they are more successful than changes in policy.

“I don’t believe that central banks are perfect by any means, but I think the period from 1991 to 2008 shows central banks operating very successfully,” Ragan said.

When asked about government spending, Velk used the Affordable Care Act (ACA) as reasoning to have reservations against government expenditure.

“Everyone should pay for what they get,” Velk said. “The money [for ACA] comes from taxpayers and a lot of us end up having a life better than what we deserve to have and what we paid for.”

By contrast, Ragan supports government spending if it benefits a community.

“Yes, as long as the infrastructure is actually going to benefit the future generation,” Ragan said. “So, if you’re going to build stupid stuff that doesn’t benefit you or your children, I don’t think we should go with it at all or make you pay for it. If we are going to use money to build libraries or universities, […] I have no problem about using money to create a good infrastructure.”

Campus Spotlight, Private, Student Life

Women who draw at McGill

by Avleen Mokha on

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Although visual arts have historically been gendered as a feminine pursuit, making them more socially acceptable for girls to explore their creativity than boys, a clear gender imbalance exists among the top figures of the industry, with male artists receiving more representation than women. To counter this inequality, Julia Rothman, co-founder of Women Who Draw, created an online directory of female* professional artists. After enlisting the help of co-founder Wendy MacNaughton, the pair developed the platform in order to increase the visibility of female illustrators, emphasizing female illustrators of colour, LBTQ+, and other minority groups of female illustrators. Inspiration from the site came after noticing a disparity of female representation in mainstream media sources.

“We counted a certain magazine that often has illustrated covers, and noticed that in the past 55 covers, only four were by women,” Rothman said, in an interview with the BBC.  

While McGill is globally known for its contributions to science and medical research, there exists a cozy but thriving community for visual artists on campus. The McGill Tribune spoke with three female artists from this community to discuss how their creative journeys have informed their lives.

Kelly Luo

(Lauren Benson-Armer / The McGill Tribune)
(Lauren Benson-Armer / The McGill Tribune)

Kelly Luo, U3 Arts, can trace her initial fascination with drawing back to her childhood, when she would scribble with crayons and markers at the age of three. Luo began working with ink and pen around the age of 13, which is when her style began to develop. Over time, Luo has observed the patterns in her style and now feels motivated to consciously develop them. 

“I think […] my style has gotten more consistent,” Luo said. “For example, I’m very detail-oriented. I like realism. But I’m making an active effort to be more surrealist.”

[metaslider id=51659]

Because of her inclination toward geometry and symmetry, a lot of Luo’s work involves cityscapes. At the same time, Luo has discovered that many of her works also convey a distinct mood.  

“I really like the melancholy, intimate kind of drawing. I love to draw the same theme of someone looking, an onlooker [to capture] the feeling of taking part in life, but also being away from it,” Luo said.

Luo advises young artists to not shy away from learning by imitation. In fact, she believes imitation helps emerging artists understand why and how someone produced the work they did, which can be crucial to refining one’s own style.

“I think a lot of people when they start to draw, especially when they are older or don’t have much creative experience, are apprehensive of mimicry,” Luo said. “They don’t want to copy someone because they think it’s wrong, […] but the best artists in the last hundreds of years learned by imitation. There’s no shame in admiring someone else's work and trying to recreate it.”

Pauline Chi

(Lauren Benson-Armer / The McGill Tribune)
(Lauren Benson-Armer / The McGill Tribune)

While she had an interest in art as a child, taking high school art and design classes allowed Pauline Chi, U2 Science, to extensively experiment with her style. One component of her design class was to depict the same object through multiple mediums to see which one allows the most freedom of expression.

“[The course requirement] helped me figure out which medium to use and in which configuration [depending on the work I’m creating],” Chi said. “I mostly […] use acrylic or pencil because they’re the most convenient. Oil painting takes more time, but it gives more details. So it really depends on what the purpose of my painting is. If I’m trying to depict an abstract idea, I go for acrylic. But […] I use oil for portraits.”

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Creating art is mostly a solitary process for Chi. She finds it to be a fulfilling experience as it serves as an emotional outlet. 

“I need a very quiet environment [to work in],” Chi said. “[Painting] is my way of putting my emotions into paint and lines. For me, it’s actually something really private. While I post some of my work on social media, I have paintings that are more narrative, almost like a personal diary.”

When Chi was about to begin university, she considered studying fine arts, but ultimately decided against it. 

“I’m not doing fine arts because the biggest challenge would be that when you treat it as a job, you can’t wait for ideas to come to you. You have to push yourself. It feels less like a creative process.”

Chi’s biggest takeaway from her artistic journey is to have faith in her own course of artistic development, especially when it looks different from someone else’s.

“Don’t try to compare your progress with others because art means different things for different people and because each person has their [way] own of learning,” Chi said. “The feeling that other creative people are living the life you want is a very toxic one. Don’t focus on them, and just keep painting.” 

Sinthusha Kandiah 

(Sinthusha Vandiah)
(Lauren Benson-Armer / The McGill Tribune)

In CEGEP, Sinthusha Kandiah, U3 Science, had her teacher encourage her to make her passion more than a hobby. Now, while she is not pursuing visual arts at McGill, she is paving her own path with her artwork. 

“As a first-generation immigrant and a woman of colour [from the Tamil community], I face a lot of difficulties,” Kandiah said. “[….] But my dream is to fuse my passion of art with science. I really want to become a medical illustrator.” 

At the age of 17, Kandiah’s passion for art led her to envision and start the Divinart Foundation. The organization raises money by providing henna services and custom art to assist communities in need in Sri Lanka, her country of origin.

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“Starting to apply [henna] on paper, then on skin, gave me a way to stay connected to my culture, as well as help me improve the lives of struggling children back home in Sri Lanka,” she said.

Kandiah remarks that, at first, her loved ones were ambivalent about her ambitions. 

“[People close to me] would say, ‘You’re a woman, how are you going to do this alone?’ However, through my journey, I’ve [learned] to not let the pressure of setting the path for my future generations get in the way,” she said. “I’ve convinced my loved ones that following your passion is right. That opportunities will open up if you put your heart and soul into it.”

Kandiah advises her Tamil community and other immigrants  to be fearless with their goals. 

“Go ahead with what you want to do in life,” Kandiah said. “You don’t want to wake up not wanting to go to work. You want to wake up because what you work in motivates you and makes you happy.”

*Women Who Draw is trans-inclusive and includes women, trans, and gender non-conforming illustrators.

Baseball, Basketball, Hockey, Private, Sports

Lack of players dissappoints Team Canada

by Selwynne Hawkins on

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For Canadian hockey players, wearing the Maple Leaf is one of the highest honours in sports. For the chosen men and women, it signifies that he or she is among the world’s best. Unlike league play, representing one’s country is a patriotic duty, demonstrating pride in unparalleled ways.

While hockey is still quintessentially Canadian, multiculturalism has brought other sports into the Canadian athletic picture. The recent successes of Toronto’s pro sports teams and their growth in popularity across the country—including the notable “We The North” Toronto Raptors campaign—have made it abundantly clear: Canadians love other sports, too. However, while the Canadian men’s and women’s hockey team never struggle to get their top athletes to suit up, the nations other teams unfortunately struggle to bring top-talent and inspire the next generation of players.

 Most recently, the Canadian national baseball team competed in the quadrennial World Baseball Classic (WBC), in a prime example of this struggle. Though Canada has produced all-star calibre baseball players, the country’s WBC roster certainly has not shown it. 

“For us to compete at this level, we have to have all of our professional players,” Team Canada Manager Ernie Whitt said after the team was eliminated from the WBC on March 19. “We can’t put our roster up against teams like the Dominican and the United States if we don’t have all of our big league players.”

Admittedly, Canada was placed in a tough group—with games against the Dominican Republic, the United States, and Colombia—but their relatively weak roster and lack of quality pitching didn’t give them much of a chance to advance. Canada lost 9-2, 4-1, and 8-0 in their three first round games.

 While the United States also struggles to put its best athletes forward, it’s the Caribbean and Latin American countries that have really taken to the WBC, putting together powerhouse rosters with their nations’ stars. Unlike the United States who can still compete with second-tier athletes, Canada needs their top athletes to be a threat. The absence of MLB All-Star Joey Votto and Phillies’ outfielder Michael Saunders, who chose to stay home to prepare for the upcoming MLB season, hamstrung Canadian baseball. Although these players’ priorities have certainly disappointed Canadian baseball fans, their decisions aren’t unprecedented in Canadian sports. 

On the Canadian men’s basketball team, 2015 NBA rookie of the year Andrew Wiggins cited similar reasons for withdrawing from Team Canada’s FIBA Olympic qualifiers. The Cavaliers’ big man Tristan Thompson, too, was unable to attend the tournament as he and his agent worked through lengthy contract negotiations last summer. While it’s certainly important for Canadians to compete in professional sports at the highest level, international sports have a unique role in inspiring the next generation of Canadian talent—just ask members of the Canadian Women’s Soccer Team. Though most of these women have impressive careers in the National Women’s Soccer League, it was their Olympic Games performances in 2012 and 2016 that turned players like Christine Sinclair into household names. 

If Canada wants to become a sports powerhouse, its top athletes need to play a part and compete on the pitch, hardwood, or diamond. As long as players like Votto and Wiggins choose to stay home, Canadian teams–aside from hockey, rugby and lacrosse–will never be able to establish themselves as serious competitors on the world stage. Canada has proven its hockey dominance—now it’s time to show that it isn’t a one trick pony.

Baseball, Martlets, Sports

Martlet Basketball wins National Championship

by Gabriel Rincon on

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The McGill Martlets women’s basketball team capped off a historic 2016-2017 season with a national championship win–the first in Martlet basketball history. Despite a dismal 2-5 start to the season, the coaching staff never lost faith in the team.

“[Coach Thorne’s] confidence is just beyond belief and you just feed off of it,” junior guard Frederique Potvin said. “Our coaches were confident from the start that we could win this whole thing and just needed us to be confident as well.”

The Martlets’ trainer—Danielle Dobney—was unphased by the slow start to the season. Trusting themselves to bounce back was key to McGill’s success in the second half of hte season.

“At times, I felt we didn’t believe we were as good as we were,” Dobney said. “Our confidence was low after some hard losses and it took a lot of work collectively from all of the players and staff to remind us of our abilities. It’s really hard to win a national championship, [but] you’ll never do it if you don’t believe you can.”

Dobney’s hard work both on and off the court preparing the team for every game was crucial to the Martlets’ championship run. 

“I feel like I have to give a little shout out to [Dobney],” senior guard Frederique Potvin said. “From the beginning to the end, she was truly the one person that believed in us. She had a huge impact on the way our team got together in the end.”

Not having senior forward Jennifer Silver in the starting lineup due to a hand injury added to the shaky start to the season. In the 2015-16 season, she averaged 5.4 rebounds and 8 points per game. Withour Silver, Coach Thorne and company were forced to make changes on the fly, trying to build chemistry into their new lineups.

“It definitely took some time to adjust [after Silver’s injury],” senior centre Alex Kiss-Rusk said. “Silver gives that spark on the court, she really hustles every rebound. She’s more of a quiet leader, you follow her more by example than what she says because she works so hard.”

Silver’s energy on the court earned the respect of her fellow teammates, who look to her to push them to hustle.

“[She] is a fighter, she always goes [and] gets some boards, she’ll never give up,” Potvin said. “It just makes the team feel like everyone should do the same thing.”

Silver embraces her role on the court and looks to inspire her teammates to work harder.

“I’m definitely a lead-by-example type of player and I try to leave everything out there on the court,” Silver said. “I give my full energy to everything I do so as to never look back and wish I had.”

With Silver out, senior wing-player Marie-Love Michel was moved from playing out on the perimeter to playing inside the key. Despite standing only 5’9’’ tall, Michel relished her new role logging significant minutes matching up against significantly taller competition.

“She really embraced that role and really played it well. I think it was a huge positive that came out of it, as much as losing [Silver] hurt,” Kiss-Rusk said.

If anything, the slow start gave the Martlets underdog status, helping them to sneak through the RSEQ and into the U Sports playoffs as fourth-seed. Last year, they went into the CIS tournament—now called U Sports—the top-ranked team in the country, but were upset in the second round by the Ryerson Rams. 

“A lot of [this year’s success] had to do with the pressure that wasn’t there that’s been there in the past,” Kiss-Rusk said. “Last year, we were ranked number one. There was ton of media coverage, we were the first [Martlets] team to be ranked number one in the history of McGill  going into the tournament. There were a lot of expectations and I think that also affected the way our coaches were dealing with us. This year, [the reduced pressure] helped them be a lot more calm and be a lot more relaxed, and that really helped us stay relaxed.”

Laval was the first seed going into the playoffs and had only lost twice all year–both times against McGill. The teams split their season series and the stage was set for a grudge match in the finals. The Martlets had a tough third quarter where they were outscored 17-11 and clung to a slim one-point lead at the end.

 “By the time we got to the fourth quarter, we knew that it was our game and we just had a bit of a tough run in the third,” Kiss-Rusk said.

Confidence remained high and the team stayed fixated on their goal of winning the national championship. 

 “In the fourth quarter, we literally all looked at each other and said; ‘What are we doing?’” Potvin said. “‘Let’s go, let’s get this,’ [and] we got the [win]!””

McGill’s swarming defence was another key to their 66-55 victory over Laval. The Martlets held the Rouge et Or to only 30.3 per cent shooting from the field and 27.6 per cent from beyond the arc. After playing Laval four times during the season, McGill knew they had to neutralize their shooters.

 “We played [Laval] like four times during the season, so we know what they do best,” Potvin said. “Pretty much Laval-type basketball is they shoot the ball really well, so we had to contain them one-on-one so they wouldn’t beat us and create open threes.”

 The McGill offence was led by hot three-point shooting, 40 per cent from deep. Their barrage from outside the arc was led by Guerin, the RSEQ’s best three-point shooter. In her last game as a Martlet, Guerin hit a team-high three triples to round off her 14 points. 

 “All season we worked on [our three-point shot],” Guerin said. “Sometimes you have games where even if you [practice] four times during the week […] you’re not going to make your shots. I think we felt comfortable in that gym—the whole weekend we were comfortable—and you could see it in the way we were scoring.”

 However, it was Kiss-Rusk’s huge 15 points and 20 board stat line that really secured their victory. 

“We felt we have a huge advantage inside with Alex and we have great shooters on the outside. Alex is a great player and really sees the court,” Silver said. “We played great inside-out basketball where Alex was the centre, scoring herself and setting up our teammates.”

With Kiss-Rusk dialled in in the first quarter, there was no looking back.

“Towards the beginning of the game, I got a board and then [had it] stripped, and [Coach Thorne] kind of pulled me aside and he [said], ‘If we’re gonna win this you’ve got to get them all,’” Kiss-Rusk said. “That kind of stuck with me for the rest of the game. My teammates did a good job of boxing-out and letting me go get some easy ones.”

 Kiss-Rusk’s dominance was also appreciated by her teammates.

“You can give [Kiss-Rusk] some credit, nobody could guard her in there,” Potvin said.

 Looking towards next season, two starters—Guerin and Silver—are graduating, so Thorne will need to make some adjustments. But compared to last season—when the Martlets lost four players—the core of the team will remain relatively intact. The future looks bright with young players who now have finals experience. Kiss-Rusk, for one, is sure McGill will continue to contend for championships.

 “Every season the goal is to win a national championship,” Kiss-Rusk said. “We got it done this year and it’s gonna be the same goal next year. We’re gonna have to face the same challenges, people are gonna have to step up and fill different roles. But I think we’re certainly capable of [a repeat].”

News, SSMU

SSMU motion against ancillary fee increases invalidated by legal contract

by Becca Zhuang on

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On Feb. 20 at the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Winter 2017 General Assembly (GA), the Motion Regarding Policy Against Ancillary Fee Increases was introduced by Vice-President (VP) University Affairs Erin Sobat.

The motion was approved at the GA and scheduled for online ratification until, according to Sobat, the SSMU executives were informed of a pre-existing and contradictory contract with the McGill administration.

Had it been enacted, motion would have had SSMU not approving referenda questions for increasing ancillary fees, also known as frais institutionnels obligatoires (FIOs) or mandatory institutional fees, until the university met certain conditions. Some of these conditions include implementing a moratorium on increasing overhead charges, developing a transparent formula for overhead fees, and McGill providing yearly financial information to the Executive Committee about the distribution of all ancillary fees by SSMU members.

The motion was moved due to concerns about overhead fees that are charged to fee-funded units, such as Student Services, Student Housing and Hospitality Services, and Athletics and Recreation. Yearly budgets of the above units would each need to be approved by a university committee with at least parity student representation.

Currently, both graduate and undergraduate McGill students are required to pay annual non-opt-outable FIOs that support fee-funded units. These fees vary from approximately $1,500 to $3,000, depending on the student’s residency status and program of study.

“The fees that you would have to pay […] that are not part of the tuition […] would be the student services fees,” Kyana Alexandre, student services secretary, said. “You would have to pay fees for [services, such as] the student society, the transcripts and diploma, and the McGill writing centre […] a lot of them are not expensive, but it’s just that they accumulate.”

According to the motion, required university overhead charges for fee-funded units have risen significantly since 2010. Overhead fees are not regulated and are exempt from ministerial control in Quebec, meaning that universities are able to change overhead fees through a referendum process, but without provincial restriction. These overhead fees fund resources such as legal, accounting, and maintenance services—which are not provided through the central university operating budget.

Governmental regulation of ancillary and overhead fees is difficult, as fees can be numerous and vary greatly between different institutions, while power over these fees are usually distributed among different administrative services.

The Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) Secretary-General Victor Frankel said that PGSS does not have a contract similar to SSMU’s.

“The requirement for PGSS to run a referendum on [FIOs] specifies that [the Legislative Council] initiates the process, but [the university] can’t compel us to run a referendum if, [after we] initiate it, Council votes to not put the question out,” Frankel said.

PGSS’ ability to vote on fee increases before they are put to referendum was demonstrated on Feb. 15, when the PGSS Legislative Council vetoed a request for an ancillary fee increase from McGill Athletics and Recreation.

“The university […] said that PGSS has to put the motion up for referendum, but PGSS responded that if they were compelled to initiate the process […they] complied with the mandate by putting the question up to Council,” Frankel said.

According to Sobat, services that are funded by [FIOs] are charged overhead fees because they are not considered to be part of the university’s main operating budget.

“The issue is that there is no formula for determining how those charges are levied and they have been increasing exponentially the past few years, alongside overall budget cuts to the university,” Sobat said.

Sobat wrote in an article for The McGill Daily in September 2016 that overhead charges on Student Services have increased from $30,679 in 2009 to $651,385 in 2016. According to Sobat, SSMU cannot legally renegotiate their contract with the university.

“It’s indefinite, so there’s no end date on this agreement,” Sobat said. “[….] I’m not sure that the current Executive is in a position to look into the full legal scope of this contract. I would certainly encourage the next Executive to do so […] to ensure that [SSMU’s] rights [as] a student association are being respected.”

Frankel also believes that students should have more control over fees.

“A lot of […] services that should be provided [to students] by the university are being pushed on to students through all these extra fees,” Frankel said. “[….] If we’re paying for these services, there needs to be a specific effort to provide as much transparency as possible.”

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