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a, Arts & Entertainment, Film and TV

Pop Dialectic: Modern Family

by Anna St. Clair and Ariella Garmaise on

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Modern Family just finished its long run of consecutive victories at the Emmy Awards earlier this year. Two writers take a look at the show and its legacy.

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Modern Family was always stuck in the past

Arielle Garmaise

When Modern Family premiered in 2009, it joined network television at a time when ‘normalized gay family was not yet part of the American lexicon, diversity rarely extended past blonde and brunette,’ and the nuclear family was confined to traditional binaries of age, gender, and ethnicity. Creators Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd offered a refreshing pitch; a mainstream television show that could explore complexities real families face; however, Modern Family never expanded beyond these stereotypes, and instead has spent the past six years gliding on what is merely a clever premise. As new television shows like Transparent and Black-ish take legitimate stances on inequality, Modern Family has lost its shock value, and consequently its Emmy streak. Their loss at the 67th Emmy’s was not an anomaly, but rather a reevaluation of an award they never rightfully deserved.

The show created a modernized format of its earlier predecessors in an attempt to refresh the increasingly outdated medium. The multi-camera setup was replaced with shaky handed documentary-style shots, two distinct storylines substituted with an overlapping three, and the fourth wall was broken as characters gabbed with an off-screen interviewer. Rather than transcend the passé sitcom of yesteryear, however, the format entered new, unfashionable territory: The mockumentary. Though successfully quirky on shows like The Office and Parks and Recreation, the Modern Family mockumentary feels like a gimmicky way to glean ‘deep’ insights from its characters. Whereas television icons Michael Scott and Leslie Knope were beloved for their witty confessionals, Modern Family’s Pritchett family is prone to undeserving sentimentalities and cheap tongue-in-cheek jokes:“If you love something set it free—unless it’s a tiger!” Phil Dunphy (Ty Burrell) giggles in one episode.

For a show that is largely character driven, the writers depend on old-fashioned stereotypes and clichéd relationships. The Pritchett family tree starts with Jay (Ed O’Neil), a 60-sommething wealthy businessman who lives with his young, beautiful, Colombian wife Gloria (Sofia Vergara) and her son Manny (Rico Rodriguez). Jay’s relationship with Gloria is limited to the same three jokes about his age, her beauty, and a banal cultural divide that exists between them. Her heritage is a prop, her accent is an easy punchline, and stories of drug-ridden Colombia are merely cutesy anecdotes. Never do they descend into any real issues, such as the intricacies of immigration, the hardships of adapting to a new culture, or the alienation of living in a neighbourhood devoid of other visibl minorities. Vergara is nothing more than the token actress of colour.

Jay’s relationship with his gay son Mitchell (Jesse Tyler-Ferguson) is equally limited. The two have wrestled with the same ‘traditional dad won’t accept gay son’ trope for the show’s entire run. Most of these tense interactions end with an optimistic revelation by Mitchell, where he beams that his father is finally understanding him, and a sweet gesture by Jay, where he publicly supports his son. This routine drags on during all seven seasons. Mitchell’s husband Cam (Eric Stonestreet) plays a stereotypically gay man—he wears paisley shirts, loves musical theatre, and shrieks enthusiastically. The only dimension to his character is that he plays football. On the other side of the family tree lie Jay’s daughter Claire (Julie Bowen) and her husband Phil. Phil may be the show’s only redeeming quality—his knack for physical comedy and quirky dad jokes are both genuinely endearing; however, Claire and her children are all unbearably familiar: type-A mom, stereotypical teenager, socially awkward nerd, and troublemaking youngest child each pushed past their capacities.

Modern Family was never the groundbreaking sitcom it claimed to be, because it never gave its characters a real chance to explore any depth or range. Instead, it relies on blasé jokes and predictable premises, confining both its actors and the diverse populations they are meant to represent to two-dimensional props. As new forms of television emerge, whether it be via Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon, viewers are finally able to find ‘diversity' in lived-in characters with multi-layered problems. They can abandon the shallow sitcom, understanding Modern Family was never really  all that modern.

 

The predictable end of a well-deserved era

Anna St. Clair

When Modern Family won an Outstanding Comedy Series Emmy for its first season in 2009, it won for being a fresh, witty, crowd-pleasing comedy. With a focus on family, the show had a charm reminiscent of ‘80s sitcoms. Everyone could enjoy Modern Family, and it managed to be funny without veering into offensive territory. The runners-up for best comedy of 2009 included 30 Rock, Big Bang Theory, and The Office. 30 Rock’s razor-sharp satire and wit, while excellent, were heavily targeted to a liberal, white, and middle-class audience. Additionally, Big Bang Theory simply took the old Friends formula and added a slew of science and geek pop-culture references. Where other shows were trying to look smarter, Modern Family brought the classic TV sitcom into the 21st century with lovable characters and wit that took a fresh look at an unconventional American family.

Filmed as a mockumentary, the show follows Jay Pritchett in his new marriage to the much younger Gloria, as well as the families of his children, Claire and Mitchell. Through wit, observation, and slapstick, the generational and cultural divides of the Pritchett/Dunphy clan make for smart comedy. Jay is the old-fashioned baby-boomer who’s still uncomfortable with his gay son’s sexual orientation. And while writers can rely on Gloria’s Colombian accent and trophy-wife status for jokes, the show also addresses the culture clash of her new life. She supports her son Manny when he wants to show his Colombian heritage to his classmates and often reminds him of their humble beginnings. These antics and family drama are what make the Pritchett/Dunphy clan relatable to the average viewer.

What came to define Modern Family was its characters. With his corny jokes, and slapstick humour, Phil Dunphy became the poster child for suburban white dads everywhere. Yet a common criticism of the show was that characters were simply tired clichés, from the ditzy teenage daughter to the control-freak mom. In reality, the show’s tropes felt tired because of how similar they were to actual families. Yes, Jay is the conservative tough guy who likes to play golf and watch football, but who doesn’t have a grandfather or uncle who’s said something off-colour at a family dinner? Even Cameron, with his love of musical theatre and dramatic personality, still had enough quirks that he didn’t become a caricature.

Modern Family broke ground by focusing on two gay men who had been together for five years and recently adopted a child together, normalizing a taboo subject. The couple worry about being good parents, they bicker with each other, and at the end of the day they love each other.

Yet as the seasons went on, Cam and Mitchell’s relationship started to feel different. Rarely were they physically affectionate with each other—although Mitchell’s problem with PDA was addressed in a later episode. It was still hard not to believe their relationship was cooled down in order to make a straight audience comfortable. But with their wedding in season five, Mitchell and Cameron’s relationship began to feel real again.

Modern Family has always been an excellent comedy series that proved TV could be funny, warm, heartfelt, and smart. Where other shows might turn to a constant stream of sex jokes when they run out of material, Modern Family is a family show that never stopped being funny. Was it the best comedy on TV for five years running? Probably not. In its later seasons, the show increasingly relied on stereotyping its characters for laughs, and the wit and cultural insight of the early seasons disappeared. It was high time for Modern Family to end it’s Emmy sweep, but it has definitely been a good run.

 

Marlon Brando
a, Arts & Entertainment, Film and TV

Unearthing Marlon Brando

by Alexia Martel-Desjardins on

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Despite being a great actor Marlon Brando was a human being who struggled with his past and career. Listen to me, Marlon brings viewers into Brando’s mind and captures his tormented search for meaning and internal peace.

Brando is often cited as the most influential actor of all time. He lived from 1924 to 2004 and had a remarkable career, acting in iconic films such as A Streetcar Named Desire (1947), On the Waterfront (1954), and Last Tango in Paris (1972). Apart from achieving legendary status in Hollywood, Brando had turbulent family and romantic relationships. Stevan Riley, the director, used audio recordings of Brando reflecting on his life to create a unique portrait of the actor, giving the documentary a more intimate feel. These tapes, which were previously undiscovered, provide a great amount of unrevealed information to his fans. Although the movie could easily slip into presenting Brando as a hero since he is the narrator, it instead makes the audience understand where he comes from and what could have prompted his often standoffish behavior. Some audio comments from directors he worked with, such as Bernando Bertolucci from Last Tango in Paris, also provide interesting external points of view that contrast with Brando’s own perspective on his work.

Moving chronologically through his life, the movie is mostly supported by pictures of Brando as a child, and interview clips of Stella Adler, an acting teacher for whom he had great esteem. Then, the personal questions and struggles that he reflects on are accompanied by pictures and interview footage—more importantly by clips from his movies, each cleverly selected so that its subject matter matches the theme that Brando is discussing. It becomes clear that acting was a positive force for Brando, stemming from a life-long interest in analyzing people’s behavior, searching for what they are hiding, and imitating them.

As Brando gets older, more clips of the ‘real’ him are included. In fact, the movie begins with clips, which re-appear regularly throughout the movie, of TV news covering a shooting at Brando’s house in 1990 involving his children. Since there are more clips available for this part of Brando’s life than for his childhood, one wonders if this part of his life was unnecessarily focused on because of the greater availability of footage. Thus, while an interesting and visually arresting piece of work, it is somewhat of an uneasy watch as it tries provides a tentative explanation for Marlon’s deep concern with keeping his life private.

Since Brando was very protective of his private life, the audience comes to realize during the film that he probably would have hated his feelings being exposed. These recordings were most likely created for his own benefit only, as the labels “self-hypnosis” on the tapes indicate. While they very informative and offer a new insight on Brando’s career, it is questionable whether or not his wishes have been disrespected. Yet, Brando’s desire to be treated like everyone else might be fulfilled since he is portrayed as a person, not a famous star incessantly followed and raved about.

NFL Fantasy Football
a, Football, Sports

Fantasy Football: Week 3 takeaways

by Josh Blatt on

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With two weeks of injury-plagued, underwhelming football in the books, Week 3 was the fantasy football gods’ attempt at balancing the scales with 15 multi-touchdown games coming from wide receivers and running backs alone. Of those 15 performances, five were hat tricks, which certainly fueled some improbable comebacks in the fantasy world.

Senior citizen appreciation week

Who said wide receivers Steve Smith Sr., 36, and Larry Fizgerald, 32, were done? Both proved that they have plenty of gas left in the tank. In a show for the ages, Smith Sr. rumbled his way to 186 yards and two touchdowns on an incredible 13 catches for the Baltimore Ravens. The 15-year veteran demonstratedtremendous physicality and dominance on the field while reeling in some highlight-worthy grabs. Meanwhile, on the westcard, Fitzgerald caught nine passes for 134 yards and two touchdowns as the Arizona Cardinals wrecked the San Franciso 49ers. The future Hall of Famer is experiencing a renaissance this year with a league-leading five receiving touchdowns through three weeks. You can still slot these two vets up in your lineups every single week with confidence.

Bell tolls on bruised Big Ben

Ben Roethlisberger’sinjury history is so long it need its own section in the Library of Congress. Week 3 added another page to its volumes. A helmet to the knee was all it took to send the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 6’ 6”, 240-pound quarterback to the ground. Fans held their collective breath as Big Ben, famous for playing through sprained ankles and cracked ribs, cringed in intense pain, crumpled on the ground. Early reports project Ben to miss anywhere from four to six games with an MCL sprain and bruised knee. The one silver lining is that Roethlisberger did not damage his ACL, which would have surely benched him for the season. Pittsburgh now hands the offensive reins over to backup Michael Vick, dampening the fantasy outlook of all skill position players on the team. Expect running back Le’Veon Bell to be the Steelers’ focal point going forward and a near lock for 30 touches per game.

 

Colin’s Kaeper–nicked

2012 was a magical year for 49ers’ Colin Kaepernick. He supplanted Alex Smith as the team's starting quarterback, took the league by storm with his cannon of an arm and electrifying running abilities, and guided his team to the Super Bowl. He recorded a record-breaking 181 rush yards in a playoff game. Sadly, flawed mechanics and a deteriorating supporting cast have since thrown a wrench into Kaepernick’s career. His Week 3 performance saw nine passes for 67 yards and four interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns To put those horrific stats into perspective, seven wide receivers had more catches than Kaepernick had completions. With the undefeated Green Bay Packers coming in Week 4, Kaepernick’s days as starter may be numbered. Get him off your fantasy team before the situation gets uglier.

Karlos Williams makes lemonade

Who’s Karlos Williams you ask? Oh, just the guy you added off the waiver wire earlier this season. The Bufallo Bills’ second-string running back has casually put together an incredible season so far, registering three touchdowns and 186 rush yards on 24 carries. Star running back Lesean McCoy has been hobbled by a recurring hamstring injury since the pre-season and is unlikely to play in Week 4. Besides, McCoy’s been far less effective than Williams, rushing for fewer yards on nearly double the touches. Williams is likely to get the start this week in a promising matchup against a weak New York Giants defence. With the lingering nature of hamstring injuries, don’t be surprised if Williams carves out a bigger role for himself going forward. He is a must-add.

The Colts are back on the saddle

Following two shocking losses against the Bills and the New York Jets, the Indianapolis Colts finally got a win after a stunning come-from-behind victory over the Tennessee Titans. Trailing 27-14 by the close of the third quarter, star quarterback Andrew Luck connected with wide receivers Phillip Dorsett and Donte Moncrief for touchdowns a mere 56 seconds apart. The Colts haven’t quite turned their season around yet, but  a Week 4 meeting with the Jacksonville Jaguars should help Luck right the ship in Indianapolis after the Jags were made to look like kittens in a 51-7 loss in Week 3 to the New England Patriots.

Quinn-tessential Atlanta

In his three seasons as Seattle’s defensive coordinator, Dan Quinn turned his unit into the most fearsome in football. The group carried the Seahawks to consecutive Super Bowl appearances and one title. This off-season, he decided to take his talents to Atlanta, this time as head coach. Today the Falcons sit tied atop the NFC South at 3-0, less than a year removed from last season’s 6-10 finish. With an upcoming schedule that should be relatively easy Quinn’s Falcons are shaping up to be true playoff contenders in his first year at the helm and have a defence, and position players, worth adding.

Syrian Refugee Crisis McGill Tribune
a, McGill, Montreal, News

Understanding Quebec’s role in the Syrian refugee crisis

by Laura Hanrahan on

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On Sept. 9 the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis was declared the worst humanitarian crisis of our time by the Secretary General of the United Nations. Over 11 million Syrians have been displaced as a result of the current civil war. While the majority of refugees have fled to the Middle East and Europe, Quebec has accepted more than half of the 2,374 Syrian refugees who came to Canada between January 2014 and August 2015.

Appropriate Terminology

Vice-President Internal of McGill’s Syrian Students Association (SSA) Ghalia Elkerdi explained the importance of making a distinction between refugees and migrants when discussing these issues.

“I think we should be very careful when we use the terms refugee and migrant because migrant means something different,” she said. “[Migrant] means people [who] applied to an immigration process to get to Europe and elsewhere. [These refugees] crawled out of Syria because of the war, and then they had to swim, and they found themselves on European soil and under international law; Because they are refugees, Europe has to take them in. This distinction is not being made in the mainstream media.”

The Quebec Context

Stéphane Plante, press officer for the office of the Immigration Minister, explained Quebec’s current role in the refugee crisis.

“Our government felt that it was the right time to show leadership in the face of the worst humanitarian crisis since World War II,” Plante said. “We have a moral obligation toward those men, women, [and] children fleeing violence. We have the opportunity to provide them with peace, security, and a future.”

Plante cited the Quebec government’s intention to admit 2,450 more Syrian refugees this year, bringing the total refugees admitted into the province in 2015 up to 3,650. He additionally explained that Quebec has resettled 60 per cent of all Syrian refugees in Canada.

“Quebec has always responded to the call during humanitarian crsis,” he said. “We have already assured the federal government that we will do our part should they decide to admit more refugees.”

Elkerdi, however, says there is skepticism in the Syrian community that the government will keep these promises.

“There was a time [… when the Quebec government] announced they were going to grant 10,000 people refugee status, but the number suddenly became 2,000 […] and now they’re bringing it back up, so it keeps fluctuating up and down,” Elkerdi said. “And the Syrian community, they’ve learned not to really trust numbers.”

According to Plante, the nature of aid given to refugees who arrive in Quebec includes services such as health care evaluation and coverage, education, French classes, and employment services. While agreeing with the need for these basic necessities, Elkerdi described the importance of additional community support for the refugees.

“I feel like it’s really all about the community,” she said. “The government has responsibilities towards refugees. They have to protect them, they have to give them basic allowance or whatever they need to sustain themselves, but I always found it’s not the government officials who [are] going to knock at your door on a religious holiday and bring you gifts or sweets. It’s really the community around you.”

McGill's Involvement

Elkerdi, who migrated from Syria to Canada in 2010, discussed the obstacles Syrian students can now face when coming to study at McGill.

“When you’re applying, [McGill wants] your official transcripts, but a lot of Syrians lost their official documents and transcripts in the war, Elkerdi said. “They have proof [of their grades] but it’s not, for example, stamped. There’s also the complication of getting a student visa. I think that this is a form of injustice in itself. The university has [said] that this person is accepted into [McGill] and they will be allowed to pursue their knowledge here, and [the government is] saying [they can’t because] they don’t have the visa.”

The SSA has brought the issue to the attention of the McGill administration and hope to help in its resolution.

“We’re trying to work within the administration internally to make it as easy and fluid as possible for students to really pursue their knowledge,” Elkerdi said.

During McGill’s Sept. 24 Senate meeting, Principal Suzanne Fortier addressed McGill’s efforts to aid in the refugee crisis.

“We’re working with our colleagues in government and in other Canadian universities as to what we can do here at McGill to help,” she said. “The provost and vice principal academic are reaching out to […] have students join our university. [They’re also] using the expertise that we have and the research that can be of assistance to people who will be joining our country.”

The World University Service of Canada (WUSC) Program is a service that helps provide education to refugees by bringing them to Canadian universities. Since 1987 McGill has accepted 36 students through this program, 10 of whom are currently enrolled at the university.

“McGill has been part of the [WUSC] program which is a long-standing non-profit that runs international education programs to bring refugees to Canadian campuses,” Fortier said in last week’s Senate meeting.

SSA’s efforts

The SSA has taken on the project of raising money for Syrian refugee schoolchildren in Turkey through bake sales at McGill and Concordia. Elkerdi underscored that the money raised through bake sales did have a substantial impact on the lives of Syrian children.

“One Canadian dollar can actually sponsor one kid’s education for a day,” Elkerdi said. “If we were making $500 a bake sale, we were able to sponsor 500 kids’ education for a day, and this is just by us being social and standing and selling baked goods to people.”

General Director of the Canadian Red Cross, Quebec Division, and McGill alumnus, Michel Léveillé also emphasized the importance of financial contributions.

“We always say with one click you can make a difference,” Léveillé said. “Though our website we accept financial donations and that’s the best way to support the refugee operations. We do not use those donations for our regular budget.”

The Red Cross has used these funds to supply Syrian refugees in Europe with necessities such as beds and blankets. In terms of what the average student can do to help with the refugee crisis, Elkerdi explained that she believes the most important thing is to exercise the right to vote.

“If you really want to help people reasonably, I would say that we have to challenge the current status quo,” she said. “One of the things that you’ve probably heard about is the travel ban that Prime Minister [Stephen] Harper is trying to impose if he gets elected. To us, this has very dramatic consequences because a lot of people – even in the McGill community – go back to the refugee camps to volunteer, and they have family to see there.”

Elkerdi also discussed the importance of what the McGill community can offer to Syrian refugees.

“There are golden opportunities that they find here because it is a free environment,” said Elkerdi. “You’re fostering creativity and there’s free speech. I can speak up and say anything against my government without being arrested or shot – that’s a huge step forward. When people like us can meet on campus and discuss ideas, these are all things we don’t have in Syria.”

Screen Shot 2015-09-29 at 10.07.20 AM
(Hayley Lim / McGil Tribune)

 

Infographics by Hayley Lim

Blackhawks during a shootout
a, Behind the Bench, Hockey, Sports

Behind the Bench: Just don’t let it be a tie

by Genevieve Citron on

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The very last tied game in NHL history was played between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Florida Panthers on April 4, 2004. It was anything but slow. The Hurricanes took an impressive 4-0 lead in the first period before allowing six unanswered goals to start out the third. Carolina recovered when Eric Staal and Brad Fast­—in their first and last NHL games, respectively—tied up the score. When the regulation clock expired, the official scorer entered 6-6 in the books, and the crowd shuffled out of the stands.

Excitement nonwithstanding, the final score of this game would probably be incredibly unsatisfying to today’s NHL fans. Nowadays, it seems that thrilling hockey comes from sitting on the edge of your seat, waiting for your team to score that winning goal. Hockey fans want to walk away with a win and, of course, bragging rights over their friends who so foolishly chose to support another franchise.

After the 2005 lockout, the NHL removed the tie. Ten years later, the NHL is reconsidering whether drawn-out overtimes and shootouts are the best way to trigger excitement. After a successful trial run in the pre-season, NHL overtimes will now go straight to “three-on-three” play this season, leaving behind the old ways of “four-on-four” and hopefully leading to more dramatic finishes.    

This new overtime format is perfect for the fans. It gives athletes a greater chance to wow spectators with their skills. With fewer men on the ice, there will be more room for fluid interactions among players. This will free up ice space for quick puck movement and greater scoring opportunities. The three-on-three  regulation will lead to many more electrifying game-winners from the league’s best scorers, as Eric Staal and Joffrey Lupul demonstrated in the pre-season. They both managed to end their games less than a minute into overtime.

This fast-paced OT will also remedy the problem of excessive shootouts in the NHL; since 2005, shootouts have decided an average of 13.5 per cent of games per season. No fan wants to see their team crush every play, only to be taken down by an arbitrary breakaway. Ending a game in a shootout is like walking into a Tim Horton’s, only to find out they’ve started serving Burger King. It’s just not what you came for. 

Redmen goaltender Jacob Gervais-Chouinard was very positive about the new OT rules and sees a place for it in the CIS.  

“I think that three-on-three OTs would definitely be an improvement, as it would make games more exciting for fans,” Gervais-Chouinard said. “I think there is huge potential for better attendance at games in our league and this could be a good place to start working on it.” 

This new overtime format is perfect for the fans. It gives athletes a greater chance to wow spectators with their skills. With fewer men on the ice, there will be more room for fluid interactions among players. This will free up ice space for quick puck movement and greater scoring opportunities.

Gervais-Chouinard went on to say that the overtime changes would also play to the strengths of his teammates. 

“In practices, I really like three-on-three scrimmages,” Gervais-Chouinard explained. “My teammates would [also] love three on three. They are skilled and understand the game well. Plus, they love to have fun and be creative on the ice, so I think they would appreciate the gameplay a lot.”

Three-on-three overtime hockey brings the NHL into a new age of competition. Perhaps it can do the same for university hockey. Imagine watching the Redmen in three-on-three overtime at the CIS championship game: The McGill faithful are on edge as Chouinard keeps the game alive with outstanding one-on-one saves. Then, passing with artistry and shooting aggressively, McGill hits the back of the net to win the cup. That would be a breathtaking spectator experience, a truly satisfying conclusion to the season. 

a, Opinion

Commentary: There are too many weeks in a year

by Norman Yallen on

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September has seen three large week-long campaigns on McGill’s campus. The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) organized Anti-Austerity Week, which advocated against the provincial policy of austerity. The following week, Divest McGill had its own week-long protest, Fossil Free Week, which coincided with Indigenous Awareness Week. All events sought to engage and mobilize students; however, these efforts were met with the disinterest of the vast majority of students and, so far, inaction on the part of administration. In failing to engage students, these initiatives failed in their goals of spreading awareness and provoking change.

The broader problem with student engagement in politicized topics on campus, in the case of week-long awareness campaigns, is evident on social media. A tiny fraction of McGill students were involved in these week-long protest events. McGill has over 39, 000 students, and while it is difficult to say how much participation these weeks have exactly, Facebook events provide some information. 616 people attended Fossil Free Week on Facebook, and Anti-Austerity Week had 562 attendees. All students had to do to attend on Facebook was click a button, and less than two per cent of students even bothered to do that.

The transient nature of these protests discourages student participation. It is difficult for students to focus on changing any one issue when every few days a different issue takes precedence. By the time students are made aware of the events, the week is over and it is too late to act on that insight. The goal of these events is to get students involved. Students are more likely to be motivated if they feel an issue is of the utmost importance, or when they can personally identify with the objectives of a campaign.

It is difficult for students to focus on changing any one topic when every few days a different issue takes precedence.

While the student protests of 2012 caused change at the provincial level, there is little to suggest that this month’s activities will follow in those footsteps. Unless a significant proportion of students are mobilized, the demands of a few can be easily ignored. Without sustained attention throughout the semester, students will either become disengaged from movements altogether or shift their attention depending on the loudest issue on campus. McGill administration is logically unmotivated to make long-term policy changes in response to protests that last only a week.

These weeklong campaigns do not motivate action on the part of students and administrators. Students have many time commitments, from school, to extracurricular activities, to their social lives, and do not have time to engage meaningfully with a new protest every single week. Moreover, the time that is spent on these issues may lack substance if the larger student body has been unable to fully educate themselves as to the current topic.

Taking up a new issue every few days is an ineffective means of mobilizing students, indicated by the lack of people attending these events. The McGill administration also has issues they have to deal with, from budget cuts to renovations, while attempting to ensure that McGill has a bright and sustainable future. To ensure that the administration hears students' messages, student activism must draw a larger proportion of the study body and must do so over a sustained period of time. Small, infrequent protests on a new issue every week can be easily ignored by administration and students alike. Focusing on one issue at a time, like the 2012 student protests, increases the momentum of issues as well as the participation by the student body. With improved focus, the possibility of sparking real change rises.

a, Features

Altering the face of history

by Jack Neal on

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ues change over time and so do the institutions that were created for specific purposes over various centuries. As cities expand, they are reorganized and refashioned in manners deemed suitable for the ever-evolving societies that inhabit them. Instead of knocking down and rebuilding infrastructure, many cities have repurposed oft-unused buildings for new uses.

While these projects may revitalize disused spaces, they do not always take into account the building’s pre-existing structural elements, thus overriding its historical and architectural significance in order. In fact, over the past two decades, Montreal underwent a transformation that is changing the interior of its historical value: The retrofitting and refurbishment of its churches into apartments and public spaces, such as gymnasiums and spas.

 

The Wall Street Journal

There is no shortage of churches within the city; Mark Twain said of Montreal, “This is the first time I was ever in a city where you couldn’t throw a brick without breaking a church window.” Of the 2700-plus churches in Montreal, over 400 have closed down for various reasons, and the process is accelerating.

“A church closes every week,” said Denis Boucher, project manager for Héritage Montreal, in an interview with the National Post. “It’s a huge phenomenon.”

According to Boucher, whereas the council’s grants used to be reserved for churches that were used as places of worship, today’s grants are generally used to repurpose Montreal’s closed and often forgotten churches. With the change in direction, the council can help non-profit organizations, municipalities, and even private owners looking to transform old churches.

The empty structures attract private investors, and a number of the historic buildings were subsequently renovated to provide alternative uses for unique places as there is an increasing demand for residential and commercial space. These projects are deemed worthy by Héritage Montreal to receive funding, as the organization’s mandate calls on the provincial and federal government to adopt tax incentive measures to increase investment in architectural heritage and its revitalization and enhancement.

a, Editorial, Opinion

Editorial: The case for a central student hub at McGill

by McGill Tribune Editorial Board on

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Currently, the University’s academic plan for 2012 to 2017 (detailed in Achieving Strategic Academic Priorities 2012) focuses on improving McGill’s rankings, its research, and thus its attraction and retention of world class students. But such plans do not reflect McGill’s reality as a physical space for students. Despite McGill’s downtown location and limited space for expansion, there is ample room to improve preexisting spaces.

Multipurpose and accessible student spaces should not be viewed as separate from McGill’s strategic goals in terms of improving its ranking. Improving spaces will attract a higher calibre of students, influence the engagement of current students, and redefine McGill’s legacy as students become alumni. The definition of an excellent institution must extend beyond its academic ranking to include the institution’s dedication to improving student living.

A well-designed student space must be a long-term goal of the administration and Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU). The Shatner University Centre, despite its purpose, is not perceived as a space for students to convene. The second-floor cafeteria space is poorly organized and not an attractive destination for students, and the furniture of the main floor lounge is outdated. Seasonal affective disorders are common on campus during the winter months, and isolation is increasingly shown to cause mental health issues, particularly during exam season. There is a clear need for versatile communal spaces that are student-developed and student-oriented.

The majority of existing student spaces are specific to certain groups on campus. Departmental associations have dedicated offices, faculty associations have their own lounges, and even libraries are limited to the students they were designed for. By creating a central hub, all students would have common access to a space for collaborating and participating in the McGill campus community. As these spaces become more exclusive, more must be done to both improve accessibility and create a common space for all students, regardless of field or level of study. McGill and SSMU can follow the example of Ryerson’s new Student Learning Centre, which was designed by students, for students.

Certain areas must also be refurbished to suit the immediate needs of students, and plans must be developed to ensure that spaces can evolve as these needs change. Due to the proliferation of laptop computers, for example, the need for extensive computer labs (such as in the Ferrier computer lab) is not as dire as it was 10 years ago. The time and money spent on creating a space for students will be wasted if they are not used to address student needs. Deciding which spaces to prioritize must be a collaborative process between administrators, associations, and faculties.

Improving spaces will attract a higher calibre of students, influence the engagement of current students, and redefine McGill’s legacy as students become alumni.

Redesigning student spaces need not be a costly endeavour. Such a project could focus on the creative process and finding cost-effective new ways to use the spaces that we already have. The process of consultation should involve students throughout, and has already started through initiatives such as the McGill Spaces Project. SSMU and faculty associations could also foster student engagement by encouraging case competitions for students alongside student consultation, something was done with relative success for the Student Run Cafeteria. Opening up the process of redesgin would ensure that students have a major stake in the project.

In the short-term, student societies are in the best position to address the space deficit and may do so through a fee levy, such as the one passed by the Science Undergraduate Society in Winter 2015. This solution is unreliable, as made evident by the difficulty faced by SSMU in ensuring its building fee passed in Fall 2014. Our student leaders must take steps to lobby McGill to improve student spaces on campus. Ensuring a sustainable and equal improvement of student spaces must be a common goal for all stakeholders.

The creation of a functional and multipurpose student space should not be perceived as dichotomous to improving academic results. Should McGill wish to achieve the same calibre of results as it has historically, it must adapt to a post-secondary standard that emphasizes student living. This must entail the provision of opportunities and spaces that are conducive to student well-being. By continuing to ignore student spaces at the expense of student well-being, McGill will unwittingly perpetuate its image as an enterprise rather than a reputable institution of a quality, well-rounded academic experience.

a, McGill, Montreal, News

Indigenous Awareness Week focuses on truth and reconciliation

by Aislinn Kalob on

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The Social Equity and Diversity Education Office (SEDE), held its fifth annual Indigenous Awareness Week from Sept. 21 to Sept. 25, with events focusing on themes such as truth and reconciliation, sovereignty, and resisting gendered and state violence. The week was hosted in partnership with on-campus indigenous student groups, including the Aboriginal Law Students’ Association (ALSA), the First Peoples’ House, KANATA, and Indigenous Student Alliance.

The first panel event of the week  featured Elder Fred Kelly (Kizhebowse Mukwaa), a practitioner of Sacred Law, who cleared misconceptions about the ownership of land in Canada.

“Treaties say that we relinquished, surrendered, and ceded our territory,” Kelly said.  “This is impossible [….] the law of the land constitutes you be part of that land.  How can you sell yourself, how can you sell your grandmother? You belong to it; you can only agree to share.  That’s what we did.”

Kelly sees a path for the future of Canadian and indigenous legal reconciliation.

“You are going to start to see traditional law […] and how it must equate with other laws,” Kelly said.  “How you’re going to do that is to harmonize the administration of these laws, because Canada’s laws are not for negotiation, and we’re not interested in that.”

Michael Loft, associate professor of Social Work at McGill, spoke to the responsibility of the Canadian government to honour treaties made with indigenous peoples, in his speech “Reflections on Truth and Reconciliation,” on Thursday evening.

“[Indigenous people] gave up plenty of land,” he said. “We made agreements with the Crown […] to get medicine, to get food […] because our world was changing, and we knew that. Modernity was happening and the chiefs knew that [….] Those agreements were eventually forgotten. But we don’t forget them [….] That’s what I expect out of the Canadian state, to honour those treaties.”

Another key aspect of reconciliation, according to Loft, is developing mutual respect between indigenous communities and the Canadian government. Loft illustrated that there had been respect between 16th Century explorers and indigenous communities.

“If we could get back to how we were doing things in 1534, with Cartier– we fed his men, we healed them from scurvy,” he said.  “Let’s get back to that. That’s what you call respect. We didn’t have to act like that, but we did.”

In closing, Loft called for an increased cooperation from the Canadian population on indigenous issues.

“You guys aren’t [sic] going away, we’re not going away,” he said. “You have to learn to cooperate, get something solved. We can’t go on the way things are right now.”

Other events held throughout the week included film screenings, creative workshops open to students and faculty, and to conclude, a two-day symposium entitled “Resisting Gendered and State Violence: Indigenous Women’s Activism.”

Allan Vicaire, indigenous education advisor at SEDE and main organizer of Indigenous Awareness Week, pointed to the importance of continuing to promote indigenous awareness at McGill.

“We continue to always do educational programming, but sometimes it’s not enough to just educate,” he said. “We need to really push for that inclusive environment by shifting the culture, how we interact with one another.”

SEDE will host their “Safer Spaces: Indigenous Perspectives” workshop, on Oct. 19.  It will cover topics such as the colonial history of Canada, and the current relationship between indigenous people and the federal and provincial governments.

“It's really important that the community really better understands who we are, and how we came to be where we are today,” Vicaire said.  “Also, to highlight over the last years the resilience and how we've persevered to keep our culture and identity alive.”

Additional reporting by Shrinkhala Dawadi

MYOCARDITIS Dancers
a, Arts & Entertainment, Theatre

Beyond street dance

by Greta Rainbow on

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An amber glow cut through the darkness, illuminating only part of the stage between floor and ceiling. Music began to thunder, and hands suddenly shot up, puncturing the glow, writhing on their own for a few moments before their bodies joined. This is not contemporary dance; this is dance in a contemporary world.

PHASE 1 and MYOCARDITIS are two urban contemporary dance groups who have derived their moves from ‘60s and ‘70s urban subcultures in the U.S. that do not require an audience sitting in the dark to empower and invigorate the individual dancer. Rather, viewers are fortunate enough to be privy to the emotion and expression found in the vibrating, rhythmic bodies, turning the role of the spectator on its head.

“The party is the foundation,” PHASE 1 choreographer and dancer Martine Bruneau says of “waacking,” a style of dance characterized by jerking limb movements that began in the LGBT community and the club scene. When dancing at a party, there is no narrative or metaphor, nor a forced adherence to a formal style. The motive is to impress and to enjoy.

“There is no wrong or right in freestyle,” explained a MYOCARDITIS dancer. “But I always say there’s ugly and attractive.”

PHASE 1 effectively brought this to a performance space in the 21st century. As dancers focus on their propelling arms and snapping legs, responding to the smallest intricacies of the music, the audience gets to experience the sense of peeking through the curtain and glimpsing their chaotic and throbbing joy.

When dancing at a party, there is no narrative or metaphor, nor a forced adherence to a formal style. The motive is to impress and to enjoy.

On the tile floors of the lobby, girls in cigarette pants mimicked the dancers of PHASE 1—knees bending and ankles twisting across black and white hexagons. A man slid his tennis shoes across the tile, jumping up to the first step of the marble staircase to make room for friends who swayed, sauntered, and crumped their way over. His arms swung out, nearly hitting a potted palm and the woman sitting beside it, who was doing a dance of her own. Another girl jutted out one hip and threw her shoulders back, miming the feeling they evoked. It is natural to compare this to the tight hair buns and cracked pointe shoes of the ballet world, and the exclusivity that comes with it.

MYOCARDITIS choreographer and dancer Handy “Monstapop” Yacinthe emphasized that “street dance is still intelligent.” Yacinthe is considered a leader in the development of Montreal’s current “popping” community. Popping is a technique that originated in northern California in the ‘70s as a physical response to soul and funk music. During the dance, muscles alternate between loosening and tensing, creating a jerk-like effect that transforms the dancers into something at once human and mechanical. On stage, lighting, length, and mise-en-scène all contributed to the performance, but the overall attitude of the performance stressed that street dance should never be considered a lesser form.

Street dance is raw—it’s a talent that receives constant cheers from the audience when dancers hit the floor at the same time as the bass, and twist so gracefully it seems like they’re all tendon and no bone. Today there is a prevalence of conceptual art and a desperation to create something authentic. It is possible to interpret PHASE 1 and MYOCARDITIS as modern dance productions, but this would be a misunderstanding. Yacinthe is a popper, a locker, and a freestyler who says he, “cannot have influence from something I do not know.” This “something” is the study of contemporary dance. This is not an ode to an era, or even an avant-garde modern production. This is a style seen on the streets, on the competitive battle-stages, and for the audience as a performance.

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