Issuu

NOVEMBER 29th, 2021

CONTENTS Academic regulation I-8.5 Amendment seeks to increase linguistic rights in the classroom. FNS karaoke on hold until 2022 Father & Sons received provincial notice from Ottawa By-Law under Reopening Ontatio Act. on Nov. 11 Virtual theatre with Playwrights Canada Press A virtual reading of Canadian plays. Gees dominate Gaiters in 5-2 wi n Women’s hockey team isn’t playing around. Whoo’s interested in owls? Give a hoot for the owls.

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‘Harm comes from deception’ Why do white people pretend to be a race they aren’t?

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Ranking my best interactions with strangers The follow up to Sanjida’s catcalling exposé.

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NEWS

NEWS EDITORS

Bridget Coady & Zoe Mason news@thefulcrum.ca

Amendment to academic regulation I-8.5 seeks to increase visibility of language rights in the classroom

UOSU Francophone Affairs Commisssioner Lia Bosquet worked to get the motion passed for four months Zoë Mason news editor

n amendment has been made to University of Ottawa academic regulation I-8.5 in hopes of providing greater visibility to linguistic rights in the classroom. University of Ottawa Students Union (UOSU) francophone affairs commissioner Lia Bosquet passed the motion to amend the regulation at last week’s meeting of the University Senate. The aim of Bosquet’s motion to amend regulation I-8.5 is to ensure that students are informed of their right to submit assignments in either of the official languages, with the exception of language courses. Academic regulation I-8.5, which had not been altered since being instated in the May 2019 Senate meeting, required professors to provide a syllabus at the beginning of each course, and outlined the materials that must be included within. For example, the unamended version of the regulation required professors to explain assessment methods, attendance requirements, and the University’s regulations on pla-

giarism. Bosquet told the Fulcrum in an interview that a common concern she receives from students is with regard to the violation of their language rights. “Notably, [the issue presents] when it comes to submitting an exam or paper in either French or English, regardless of the language of the class,” said Bosquet. “It’s an issue because it’s a policy that’s highly advertised at uOttawa.” Bosquet notes that the specificity of certain courses is a sure factor in the failure to uphold language rights. “If you have someone teaching medieval studies, you might not have that equivalent, either English or French, because it’s such a specific area of study. But we need to be able to encourage people that have lower levels in either French and English to be able to access these classes with the certainty that they’ll be able to pass the exams in the language they’re actually comfortable in, but still have access to that course.” Bosquet is careful to emphasize that a disproportionate weight falls on the shoulders of professors when it comes to practicing bilingualism in the classroom. “Professors absolutely need more support. When it comes to the process of

taking care of those papers submitted in opposite languages, I don’t think we can expect all professors to be perfectly bilingual to the point where they’re able to correct a copy in the opposite language. So there needs to be a formal process to help them out.” Policy solutions that Bosquet has in mind to address this gap include mandating bilingualism for teaching assistants. For upper-year courses that do not necessarily require a teaching assistant, Bosquet suggested that a survey could be administered to evaluate the language needs of the classroom. The course could then get a teaching assistant if students intend to submit assignments in the other language. The amendment to regulation I-8.5 is therefore only the first step in what Bosquet sees as a much-needed overhaul of language policy and the instruments to support it at the U of O. In a statement to The Fulcrum, a U of O spokesperson wrote that “students have had the option to submit their exams or reports in the language of their choice for years and it is also stated in our policy on bilingualism. The fact that the Senate approved this motion formalizes it.” Bosquet argues that these measures have not provided the necessary visibility

Professors will be required to state students have the right to turn in assignments or exams in either official language in their syllabus starting in May 2022. Photo: Hannah Vigneux

to maintain real linguistic equality in the classroom. “The bilingualism policy was written in 1974. It’s so old. For a really long time, linguistic policy wasn’t the responsibility of a specific office, it was just a collective responsibility: ‘we all need to take care of the Francophones.’ But when you do that, you’re not actually assigning someone to deal with these issues. They’re just kind of floating,” said Bosquet. “It got to a point where tensions got so high that the University had to hire a Francophone bureau, which is now in place. The staff that works there is

wonderful, they’ve helped me through this process.” Bosquet said that this office has only come into existence in the past year. She asserts that the erosion of linguistic rights on campus is not an issue of attitude, but of administration. “It should have happened before. I don’t think it’s because the will isn’t there. I just think it’s because it wasn’t anyone’s responsibility. So those reflections didn’t take place.” While she believes that there remains a significant amount of work ahead to ensure the preservation of language rights at the U of

O, she is happy with the passage of her motion as a first step. “I just think it will help make things more accessible. And I think this doesn’t only benefit Francophone students, too, I think that like any Anglophone student that has a base level of French can also have access to French courses, knowing that they can turn their exams or their papers back in English,” she said. “Overall, I think students are happy.” The University spokesperson told Fulcrum that the policy will come into effect in May 2022.

Students frustrated with the U of O’s plan to end dining hall’s takeout program Petitions have been created asking university to reverse course Charley Dutil editor-in-chief

The University of Ottawa’s Food Services has announced it will be ending the dining hall’s takeout program on Dec. 8. The service says it is excited to return to normal with the progressive lifting of restrictions which will allow the hall to return to a zerowaste, dine-in-only model. “Due to COVID-19, we offered takeout containers to accommodate capacity limits at the beginning of the academic year. With restrictions now being lifted, we’re returning to a zero-waste, dine-in-only model,” wrote the U of O’s Food Services in an email to students. However, this decision by the University hasn’t been welcomed by all, as a petition has been started by students calling on the U of O to reverse this course of action. The petition also condemns the

University for advertising the dining hall as operating for 24 hours a day when in reality it is only open from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. “Hey, uOttawa students! The dining hall is trying to abolish the takeout program! … limiting the dining hall to dine-in only does not consider our limitations as students. Us students have paid upwards of $6,000 for our supposed “24/7” meal plan. For these plans to be changed from 24/7 to 7 [a.m.] to 11 [p.m.] AND limit us to dine-in only, is appalling,” reads the petition. The petition, which was created by first-year biomedical engineering student Ginger Pakrul and distributed on a first-year group chat, has amassed 187 signatures, according to Pakrul. The first-year student says this is one of two petitions that were started by students, the other being on change. org and collecting 210 signatures at the time of writing. Pakrul explained that she created the petition because the takeout program is “super ben-

eficial” for first-year students, who often have classes back-toback and only have ten minutes to grab a bite to eat. She also expressed concerns when it comes to wait times which she believes could drastically increase due to limited seating, a concern the university has told her they were to address by increasing seating, she says she hasn’t seen more spaces added. “By no means were these petitions made to disregard the hard work of the food services team, [they are] our way as students to voice our opinion in a way we can,” she wrote in an email to the Fulcrum. Pakrul isn’t the only student disappointed with the University’s decision to eliminate the program. Tyler Smale, a first-year history and political science student at the U of O who regularly uses the cafeteria’s takeout option also says he is not a fan of the University’s decision to end the program. “I use it quite a lot and I know other students do too. It gave stu-

dents the opportunity to access the food they pay for when they normally couldn’t due to the lack of time they have to sit in for a meal.” “Also they’re saying the reason for ending it is to return to a zerowaste model, but they don’t seem to have any plan for all the reusable containers which will now be wasted and cause more harm to the environment,” added Smale. Food services is asking students to return their reusable takeout containers to the dining hall on Dec. 9. Another issue for first-year students is proximity to the dining hall. As the University opens more and more residences off-campus, students have to come from further away to eat. Having the option to bring food back to residence meant for many that they could limit the number of trips per week they did to the University Centre if they were willing to live on leftovers. “People that live in residences that are further away, it’s more

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convenient for them to be able to take their food back instead of having to walk back and forth and stay here [for every meal],” said Kate Redwood, a first-year nursing student, to the Fulcrum in front of the dining hall entrance. Redwood’s friend, Colleen Matys, added that some of these residences, notably 45 Mann and Friel, are a fifteen-minute walk from the dining hall. The University said in its email that students will “still be able to take a beverage in a travel mug and single-serve items such as a fruit or a muffin from the Dining Hall.” It will, however, ban students from bringing personal containers such as Tupperware and other packing meals-to-go, effectively eliminating students’ right to take food back to their residence. Students who have any questions or wish to voice their concerns are asked by the University to email Food Services for more details.

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Wednesday night karaoke at Father & Sons on hold until 2022 following provincial notice from Ottawa By-law Father & Sons received provincial notice from Ottawa By-Law under Reopening Ontatio Act. on Nov. 11 Desiree Nikfardjam staff writer

ust two weeks after its return, Wednesday night karaoke at Father and Sons (FNS) has been put on hold until 2022 after the longtime student establishment received a provincial notice from Ottawa By-law under the Reopening Ontario Act. On the evening of Nov.10, patrons lined up all the way down to the 3 Brothers Shawarma and Poutine, three stores down from FNS. This was the second karaoke night, the first which was very well attended on Nov. 3, had not seen lineups of this length according to Fulcrum staff members who were present. Unfortunately, these lineups alerted Ottawa By-laws and Regulation Services which shut down the beloved event just after midnight. “On November 11, By-law and Regulatory Services

conducted a proactive inspection of the establishment Father & Son’s after observing multiple contraventions, such as masking, physical distancing and capacity limits, under the provincial regulations. Once the inspection was completed, a provincial offence notice under the Reopening Ontario Act was issued,” wrote Roger Chapman, director of By-law and Regulatory Services, in a statement to the Fulcrum. One U of O student, who requested to stay anonymous for fear of reprisal from ByLaw, told the Fulcrum that they were waiting in line for two hours before they were let in. When asked if the establishment was busy the student responded, “Yes, lots of people, but no more than usual.” “Everyone was kicked out shortly after the by-law came,” said the U of O student. ”They [By-law] showed up approximately at 12:30 a.m.” While FNS did not respond

On the bright side, $14,99 pitchers of sangria are back on the menu Wednesday nights. Photo: Charley Dutil/Fulcrum

to the Fulcrum’s request for an interview, they tweeted on Nov. 15 that Wednesday karaoke nights will be on hold until the new year. The establishment had announced the return of

Wednesday Night karaoke on their social media accounts back on Halloween. This was the first time karaoke nights took place since March of 2020. While students will have to

wait until 2022 for the return of Father & Son’s karaoke, the establishment is still open for dining and the $14,99 deal on their famous pitchers of Sangria is back on the menu for Wednesday nights.

Besserer Park saved as TCU abandons plans to pave the Sandy Hill green space Action Sandy Hill wants to continue focus on preserving and creating more green spaces Shailee Shah staff writer

fter a months-long fight against the City of Ottawa and TCU Development Corporation, community efforts to preserve Besserer Park in Sandy Hill have finally proven successful. The development corporation has abandoned plans to pave the park for the creation of a pathway to a parking lot for a residential building that has yet to be built. TCU formally revised its site plans to exclude the green space at 244 Fountain Place. The revised plan states that rear private parking spots will no longer be created in the park and their plan to have Besserer Street extended to cut through the park will be abandoned. The number of units in the proposed development has been reduced from 20 to 16 as well. Action Sandy Hill (ASH) was

thrilled to announce this update after organizing a petition which garnered over 750 signatures. ASH Board member Hilary Duff was pleased with the development: “Sandy Hill was really excited to hear from city planners on October 28th that the design consultants who work for TCU development had submitted updated site plans for 244 Fountain Place,” said Duff in an interview. The preservation of green spaces in the Ottawa region is a cause that Duff and ASH will continue to fight for. “The new location of the Ottawa Hospital has been quite contentious as well, and there have been a number of groups that have been hoping to preserve the green space near Dow’s Lake, where now the city has approved for that new hospital to be constructed,” said Duff. “But I think the issue is not only about protecting the green spaces that we have, but also advocating for new developments to have green spaces associated with them. How can we increase the number of so-

cial services and increase the number of parks and green spaces? Our goal is to protect, but the long term goal is also to just advocate for more space.” In terms of the next steps for Besserer Park itself, ASH intends to focus on regreen-

The entrance of Besserer Park. Photo: Emilie Azevedo/Fulcrum

ing the entrance to the park, which is currently paved. “Now that the site plans have been updated, that could allow us to potentially go forward with that, and maybe a request for a couple of park benches to be put into the park and just really focus on making

NEWS | 4

that space what it is — a spot of community refuge and the gathering spot for neighbours,” said Duff. For those interested in further details about the development application, please visit the City of Ottawa’s development applications website.

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U of O signs the Scarborough Charter, now has to work to implement its objective says special advisor on anti-racism de B’béri

“You have to work,” said Professor Boulou Ebanda De B’éri. The Scarborough charter’s objectives have to be implemented. And it will be a long process.” Ciku Gitonga contributor

n Nov. 18, University of Ottawa president Jacques Frémont signed the Scarborough Charter, a declaration of commitment to addressing anti-Black racism and fostering inclusion in the University community. This is the latest development in the string of initiatives and committees launched to tackle this particular issue. “Racism has no place on our campus,” said Frémont in the press conference following the first of a series of racial profiling incidents on the U of O campus in 2019. Jamal Koulmiye-Boyce, a conflict studies major and vice-president of the program’s student association, was handcuffed and detained for around two hours by campus security. An investigation into the incident would later categorize the events as racial discrimination.

In response, the President’s Advisory Committee for a Racism Free Campus (PACRFC) was launched, tasked with discussing pathways to tackling racism and promoting inclusivity on campus. In the minutes of the committee’s meeting on Nov. 12, 2019, the original name for the committee was modified to remove the phrase “AntiRacism”: “using wording that denotes a negative connotation, such as ‘anti’, may turn people off from engaging or participating in the Committee’s work.” In the fall semester of 2020, the academic community was divided when a professor used the “N-word” in a pedagogical context during a virtual lecture. One side, spearheaded by current and retired University of Ottawa professors, called for academic freedom — the ability to freely discuss ideas. The other side argued that the use of the word was another example of the microaggressions they had dealt with for years.

The committee formed in response abandoned the earlier concern with connotation: it was named the Action Committee on Anti-Racism and Inclusion, tasked with another discussion of the ways in which the University’s policies and structures might contribute to racist discrimination. However, this new committee was notably missing a number of student members that had sat on PACRFC. Disillusioned by the discussions they had witnessed and the lack of tangible action, former members such as Jason Seguya formed the uRacism collective, a grassroots organization of BIPOC students. On their Facebook page, they rejected the Action Committee, opting for a more action-based approach to advocating for anti-racism. In December of 2020, uRacism organized a sit-in at Tabaret Hall, demanding a meeting with Frémont and provost and vice-president,

academic affairs Jill Scott to discuss the University’s stance on tackling anti-Black racism. Although this meeting never took place, it is obvious that the clamour for Black voices to be heard at the University of Ottawa has been growing. Initiatives like the recent launch of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Black Health demonstrate that the University is making efforts to address its recent failures.

Now, the University of Ottawa joins more than 40 other post-secondary institutions in Canada in the signing of the Scarborough Charter, a nationwide initiative to promote inclusivity in higher learning institutions. In an interview with the Fulcrum, professor Boulou Ebanda de B’béri, a full professor of communication and cultural studies, and the University’s special advisor on anti-racism shared his thoughts on the charter.

“I think the Scarborough Charter is a dream come true,” said de B’béri. “Signing it means that this institution is part of a network of universities, a network of best practices and advice when solving issues of inclusion. It forces the University to create structures for the management of systemic racism, to end systemic racism within its walls.” Although de B’béri admires the Charter’s mandate, he recognizes that words mean nothing without practice. In his term as special advisor, Dr. de B’béri has made recommendations on how the University can promote inclusivity on four fronts: the improvement of the campus experiences of BIPOC students, the hiring of BIPOC faculty, the diversification of the University’s pedagogy, and the incorporation of antiracist and inclusive rhetoric into the University’s training practices. “You have to work,” he said. “The Scarborough Charter’s objectives have to be implemented. And it will be a long process. It is about changing the culture. The culture of Eurocentric domination is not going to change tomorrow. It must be understood first.” “The Scarborough Charter is just one step. You need to have people changing, engaging. For example, you must have heard of the controversy on academic freedom? It will take time to have the cultural change necessary to make sure that professors are not free to say whatever they want to say, whenever they want to say it.” “The Scarborough Charter is just one step into the mess of the current culture. It is one step in assuring that white professors do not feel free to speak about my people’s pain without being held accountable.”

Although de B’béri admires the Charter’s mandate, he recognizes that words mean nothing without practice. Photo: Hailey Otten/Fulcrum-

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NEWS | 5

ARTS

ARTS EDITOR

VACANT arts@thefulcrum.ca

Virtual theatre with Playwrights Canada Press

Virtual format adds unexpected layer of intimacy Ciku Gitonga contributor

he Press Play Reading Series, an event organized by the Playwrights Canada Press, offers its attendees a mini-theatre experience — a chance to discover the works of both well-established and up-and-coming Canadian playwrights and theatre artists. Each event in the series features several writers on the publisher’s roster, each giving a dramatic reading of an excerpt from one of their plays. The latest event took place on the evening of Nov. 23. The wideness of a real-life stage was scaled down to the small rectangle of each attendee’s screen: virtual events are still, clearly, a lingering effect of the pandemic. However, this virtual format added an unexpected layer of intimacy. Each person on the screen was broadcasting from their private sphere, rather than a shared public space. To make the event accessible to the visually impaired, everyone gave a verbal description of their physical traits and their background. “I am a white woman with mid-length brown hair sitting in my living room, in front of a shelf with plants and books,” said Carly Maga, the host of the event and the senior manager of marketing and communications for the Arts Commons performance centre in

Calgary. “I am a mature, silverhaired woman in the dark living room of a friend,” said Barbara French, the first playwright welcomed to the screen by Maga. She read from her play, Muse, together with David Owen, the editor of the collection within which it was featured, Long Live the New Flesh: Six Plays from the Digital Frontier. This play takes place within the mind of Grace, a mischievous and troubled musical genius who has been institutionalized in a mental care facility since she was seven. French played Grace, while Owen played both a doctor and a nurse of the institution. Both immersed themselves into the performance. Grace was brought to life by a high, girlish voice that began the narrative with a fast-paced, excited narration of a childhood memory before her days in the institution. At the sound of the doctor’s cold, clinical voice, Grace clamped a hand on each ear, crouching in fear. “I am calling from my bedroom. The background is green,” said the next playwright, twenty- four -year -old Nam Nguyen, writer of A Perfect Bowl of Pho, a hip-hop musical about food and culture and the experience of being Vietnamese in the Canadian diaspora. In contrast to French’s disappearance into Grace, Nguyen’s humorous personality shone throughout the performance. “My publisher is forcing me to write this,”

This event was a delicious taste of what Canadian theatre has to offer. Photo: Playwrights Canada Press/Provided

the host had read from the short bio she used to introduce him. Beaming wide, Nguyen delivered his dialogue, voice booming occasionally to match the intensity of his lead character, Jen. Rap verses were woven between the spoken lines, and Nguyen performed these with full physicality, head bopping to his smooth flow, right arm tapping out a drum beat. “I am a Black human,” said the Zambian-Canadian playwright, Makambe K. Simamba. She read from her play, Our Fathers, Sons, Lovers and Little Brothers, exploring themes of racial profiling, police brutality, the afterlife, and the journey of spiritual discovery that each person must take to achieve self-actualization. As Simamba performed her excerpt, both her tone and physicality changed as she switched between the parts of the young, boisterous Slimm, her murdered lead character, and the grandmother spirit that he encounters in the afterlife, that says with an authoritative voice: “Baby, you stand on the shoulders of the ancestors who chose you to

represent them in this moment.” Next was the pair of actor Maev Beaty and playwright Hannah Moscovitch, a native of Ottawa. They laughed through their self-introductions. “I am sitting on the third floor of my home, in front of the keyboard where my eight-year-old daughter practices piano,” said Beaty. “After I make her,” she added. “It’s very clear I’m Jewish,” Moscovitch said, “from the Menorah with candles sitting on the fireplace in the background.” Beaty performed an excerpt from a work cowritten by the two playwrights and another artist, Ann-Marie Kerr, The Secret Life of a Mother. The play is an honest, confessional retelling of

moments from the women’s lives. For example, this particular excerpt concerned Moscovitch’s near-miscarriage. As if she was confiding to a friend, Beaty frankly narrated the ordeal, not immersing herself into the unfolding scenes but rather recalling them with her words, looking back from the other end of the tunnel. Finally, the event was capped off with Moscovitch performing an excerpt from her Governor General Award-winning play, Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes, switching from the persona of the young, infatuated student, Annie, with a fumbling, reverent voice; and the object of her affections, the wry and slightly menacing professor and author, Jon.

Moscovitch spoke about the resistance she initially got when writing plays centering on women’s experiences. “I got told my whole career: ‘You don’t wanna do shows where women show up’, like that would be bad.” Now, her reward for pushing past the naysayers is witnessing how her stories have resonated with her audience members (as well as winning prestigious awards for her work). “Women will come up to me and say that they relate so much to Annie’s experience.” Overall, this event was a delicious taste of what Canadian theatre has to offer. See new events in the series on the Playwrights Canada Press Facebook page.

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SPORTS

SPORTS EDITOR

JASMINE MCKNIGHT sports@thefulcrum.ca

A royal flush: Wrapping up Gee-Gees fall varsity sports The Golden Gaels ended the Gee-Gees pursuit of championships this fall Jasmie McKnight sports editor

Any loss sucks. No one wants to lose (unless you’re the Montreal Canadiens, then maybe you should look into tanking). But playoff losses hit differently, and seemingly all Gee-Gees fall sports varsity teams had their playoff runs ended by the same university — Queens. It started with the women’s soccer team, a team that I was incredibly confident would make a run to the U Sports National Championship. I was shocked when the GeeGees were stopped in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) semifinal, shot down by a team they’d defeated in exciting fashion during their dominant regular season. 2-0. Two goals is all it took. That’s it. You were undefeated in the regular season? Congratulations, back to the locker room, back to the offseason, you couldn’t get it done in the playoffs, better luck next year (a narrative a certain Toronto hockey team is used to). There was never an argument that Queen’s was the strongest team the Gees faced all season, and while a team can move on from a loss, was this the beginning of some sort of curse? The football team had a tough year, no doubt, but they earned a place in the OUA semi-final. This

Queen’s really didn’t let the Gee-Gees off the hook this fall. Photo: Stefane Kemilev/Fulcrum

obviously did not come without hard work and fucking grinding through the loss of a teammate, rough looking games, and defeating the team that handed them their first loss of the year. I hate to doubt a Gee-Gees team, but I was nervous for the playoff game against Toronto. A first round exit would have been sad, but not too far-fetched. Some teams make it out of those situations and claw their way to victory. The Gee-Gees did make it out,

and honestly, I hoped that Carleton would too. It feels illegal to root for the Ravens, but in this case, seeing the Gees face them seemed like the cooler next step in an incredible underdog story. Nope. Carleton lost out to Queen’s. Okay Gee-Gees, hop on the bus, go to Kingston. 32-15 loss to the Gaels. Game over, playoffs will proceed without you, no storybook ending. Unless you hate Queen’s and love the fact they got stumped 29-0 by

the Western University Mustangs in the Yates Cup game — then you got your storybook ending. I applaud every person involved with the football team. I cannot imagine the emotions that were felt throughout the 2021 season. When things happen twice, it’s probably just a coincidence. But, the Gee-Gees and Queen’s story did not end there. Another dominant Gee-Gees team, the women’s rugby team, could not seem to defeat Laval. Two losses to the Rouge et Or in

the regular season, a third in the RSEQ final. Not ideal, but okay, because the team secured their spot in the U Sports National Championships. Guess who’s hosting? Queen’s. Fast forward to Kingston. The Gee-Gees fought their way through the quarters and semifinal games to earn a shot at the national championship. Surprisingly enough, Laval would not be joining them — they choked to Queen’s. Another date for the Garnet and Grey with the Gaels. An evening under the lights in Kingston with Queen’s — a familiar narrative. Tied at half, it could have gone either way. The universe had a decision to make, and it went with Queen’s winning a national championship on home turf, and the U of O returning to the comforts of Father and Sons with silver medals. Queen’s really didn’t let the Gee-Gees off the hook this fall, and now that I think about it, my team’s first loss of the season was to Queen’s. The lacrosse club was also ousted from their playoffs by the Gaels. Really makes you think. That wraps things up for the U of O’s fall sports run. Now, it’s time to shift focus onto the teams just starting up their regular seasons. I’d like to believe this whole Queen’s situation only applies to the fall season, but I guess we’ll wait and see.

Women’s hockey: Team Canada continues preparation for Olympics games at Capital City Challenge The women’s team lost their first game by a score of 7-3 Jérôme Ouellet sports intern

fter taking part in four games against the women’s U.S national hockey team in the framework of the Rivalry Series, Team Canada continued its preparation for the 2022 Beijing Olympics with an interesting challenge: the Capital City Challenge. This tournament regrouped the women’s national team with the best U17 male Canadian players which were separated into three teams: team white, team black and team red.

For the opening game, the Women’s Olympics team faced team white. Unfortunately, for the women’s national team they were defeated 7-3. Nathalie Spooner and Marie-Philip Poulin (two goals) were the goal scorers for the women’s national team. The captain, Poulin, was excited about this opportunity to play against the best U17 talent in Canada. “We are super excited to have been included in this challenge. The guys [U17 White] have a lot of skills. They are very fast,” said Poulin after the game. “We face a lot of challenges, and this sea-

son will have some ups and downs. It’s a tough stretch now because we are travelling and we travelled a lot this time but we do what we love,” said Saskatoon native, Emily Clark. For women’s national team assistant coach, Kori Cheveri, it’s a great moment to continue the preparation for the Beijing Olympics games. “We do a lot of preparation, we played a lot of games and some practices earlier, and we just try to build […] To wrap up here against the guys, we can always find something to take away from every game that we played.”

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Team Canada Logo. Image: Team Canada/Provided

SPORTS | 7

Gees dominate Gaiters in 5-2 win

Gagnon, Birkby, Aubin, Gareau and Reedman all score in Gees win Jérôme Ouellet sports intern

fter a brilliant 3-2 win against the McGill Martlets, the University of Ottawa’s women’s hockey team was back on the ice to play against the Réseau du Sport Étudiant du Québec’s (RSEQ) last-place team, the Bishop’s Gaiters. The Gee-Gees had beaten this opponent earlier this season by a score of 5-2 in Lennoxville, QC. The Garnet and Grey imposed their momentum out of the gate on Friday night when rookie Arianne Gagnon scored her second goal of the season only 16 sec-

onds into the game. Alice Filion and Kiah Vail were credited with the assists. ‘’I think that we were ready for this game and [that] quick goal right at the beginning of the game was helped us impose our momentum,” said Gagnon, after the match. The Gees were quick to add on to their lead, 39 seconds later, forward Katherine Birkby jumped on a loose puck that Gaiters goaltender Charley Wing believed she had frozen and shot it directly into the back of Bishop’s net to give Ottawa a 2-0 lead. In the second period, Ottawa head coach Chelsea Grills’ players continued to dominate the Gaiters with Arianne Aubin and Sophie Gareau both scoring a

goal. The Gaiters were able to cut down the Gees lead in half with a goal late in the second period and one early in the third period. But Gee-Gees rookie Kathleen Reedman cut the Gaters legs from under them when she scored a clutch powerplay goal with a little bit more than ten minutes left to go in the third period to give Ot-

The Garnet and Grey won a second game in a row. Photo: Hailey Otten/Fulcrum

tawa a 5-2 lead. According to Gee-Gees assistant coach Greg Bowles, his team was able to keep the momentum throughout the game. “I thought that we came out, especially in the second period with a lot more tempo and a lot more pace and deserved, you know, the outcome that we got,” said Bowles, in his post-game in-

terview. Gaiters players, Jessica Bélanger and Angélique Paré each scored a goal. The Garnet and Grey will look to avenge an early-season loss to the Carabins of the University of Montreal when they face them on Sunday at 2 p.m. at Minto Sports Complex.

Gees men’s volleyball club wins Adidas Cup on their path to nationals in May U of O men’s volleyball club has overcome the lable of a “rebuilding year” Jasmine McKnight sports editor

ne great thing about fall 2021 has been seeing Gee-Gees teams back in full force. During the COVID-19 year, when teams could not compete, the University of Ottawa men’s volleyball team took some hits to their roster. With the team’s entire starting lineup leaving the team, outsiders were quick to label the 2021 roster as a ‘rebuilding’ year. An 11-6 record and a tournament championship trophy don’t really scream ‘rebuilding’ year, though. Gee-Gees head coach Yacine Amalou, himself a graduate from the volleyball program, praised the way the team has stepped up so far. “The players really stepped up and committed themselves to the team,” Amalou said. “This group has a lot of passion and drive to improve as compared to previous teams.” The Gees compete in exhibition matches and tournaments against both Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA)

and Ontario University Athletics (OUA) teams throughout the season. This year, they are preparing for the Men’s Open Nationals in May. “We’ve had a lot of success against the OCAA teams but we’ve also been able to secure two wins against RMC who is currently ranked third in the OUA East,” Amalou explained. The Adidas Cup, a tournament that took place over the weekend of Nov. 20, was mostly composed of OCAA teams. The level of competition was high, as the hosts, Durham College had defeated Trent University, an OUA team earlier in the year. The Gee-Gees lost their first matchup to Seneca College. Mathew Gaerke, captain of the U of O squad, expressed that it was a close game. “We ended up losing in five sets, it was a very tight match. We did manage to win our next two games.” The Gee-Gees defeated their other opponents to end up in the finals, where they met Seneca once more. This time, things went in favour of the Garnet and Grey after another five set nailbiter. “Winning the Adidas Cup was a big boost of confidence,” Ama-

The Gee-Gees are the defending champions of the Coupe de L’Est tournament. Image: Pexels/Stock

lou said. “Us coaches know how good our players are… I don’t think our players believed it until now. Gaerke commented on the team’s performance so far, as well as the team’s goals moving forward. “We have been doing pretty good after a rough start at the beginning of the year,” Gaerke said. “We want to finish the sea-

son with a winning ratio, also we always want to be the loudest team in the gym.” “In terms of tournaments, we had a goal to place first at the Adidas Cup, which we did. We also want to place first in the Coupe de L’Est which is our largest tournament of the season.” The Gee-Gees are the defending champions of the Coupe

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de L’Est tournament. The top college teams gather from across the country to compete in the tournament in January. While the Gees have tallied up plenty of wins this season, there are still more local tournaments and games on the road to the national championship tournament that will be hosted in Edmonton in May 2022.

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SCIENCE

SCIENCE & TECH EDITOR EMMA WILLIAMS science@thefulcrum.ca

Whoo’s interested in owls? Give a hoot about owls Emma Williams science editor

regory Rand is the assistant collections manager for all birds at the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa. As the resident bird expert, Rand has a bachelor of science in biology. This week he met with the Fulcrum to discuss owls, their population, and some of your burning questions. In Canada there are 16 owl species out of 200 worldwide: some key characteristics are their large heads, round forward-facing eyes, acute hearing ability, and specialized feathers. Most interesting owl behaviour? When asked about some notable owl behaviour, Rand responded, “I love the fact that they can basically detect things by hearing it. A lot of owls have asymmetrical ear placement which al-

lows them to pinpoint things moving underneath snow without actually seeing it. Their flat faces helps to funnel sound which allows them to hunt by sound.” Additionally, “there’s a lot of really cool vocalizations, you can get the typical whooo from a great horned owl and that’s always the sound you hear in the back of the movies. Barn owls can produce this really bloodcurdling screech, which can be really terrifying.” He continued, “Saw-whet owls and many other owls have this protein called porphyrin which is deposited into their feathers as they grow. Under UV light the protein glows hot pink as the feather ages the protein degrades and it becomes a pale blue.” Why do owls turn their heads 180 degrees? Owls have a unique ability to turn their heads 180 degrees. According to Rand, the reason for this is because “owls have weird eye

structures, their eyes are actually held in place by capsules. Meaning they cannot move them, so for owls to be able to see it’s not a matter of just shifting their eyes left or right they actually have to swivel their head.” How do owls nest? This question depends on the species of owl, their environment, and resources available to them. Snowy owls typically reside in the arctic. Here it would be impossible for them to nest in a tree therefore, they must nest on the ground. Luckily for them, they are all white and blend into the snowy backdrop. Additionally, great horned owls are known for using old herring nests. Saw-whet owls and boreal owls are cavity nesters, meaning they nest inside hollow trees or woodpecker nests. Are owls endangered? Rand explained that “the great horned owl, barn owls,

are both species at risk. In terms of population numbers that also depends on the species, some of them are stable however, a lot of them are declining.” He added, “owls in general are losing habitat space, due to urbanization, or agricultural practices, etc. Some owls fly really close to roads to try and catch rodents and they get clipped by cars pretty frequently.” What can the public do to best support owls? For those looking to support owls, Rand suggested “you can always support our research, or support initiatives such as wildbird care center, safe wings Ottawa and they will be helping any injured owls.” He added, “you can also participate in increasing awareness by just joining some of your national clubs nearby. By supporting initiatives such as setting up nest boxes, which are useful for locally breeding species such as the screech owls,

Luna snowy owl at the live owl exhibit. Photo: Christopher Rhode/Fulcrum

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saw-whet owls, and even barn owls.” Where can I see owls up close? For anyone looking to catch an owl up close and learn about these species here in our backyard, there is a new exhibit at the Canadian Museum of Nature. The live owl exhibit features birds of prey, known as raptors: a Great Horned Owl, Eurasian Eagle-owl, two Snowy Owls, and one bald eagle. Stuart Baatnes, head of animal care at the museum, discussed the exhibit in more detail. When asked about each owl and how they ended up at the museum, Baatnes responded, “so we worked with little ray’s nature center and they provided the owls for us. All of our owls were bred in captivity for the purpose of education and awareness. Our Eagle Juno was rescued after being injured in the prairies where she lost a third of her wing span. Juno will never be able to fly again and without our intervention, she would not have survived.” In terms of feeding and care, “we’re morning people, we come here first thing and clean each habitat, change the water, and feed them. We keep a record of everything we do and any information on the animals. We also try to do as minimal contact as possible, we don’t want to handle them or pick them up very often.” “We don’t use live food, everything here is frozen. To help with enrichment we like to change the arrangement of perches, hiding the food in different locations, and sometimes we change the diet by offering rats, fish, or even beef and this helps introduce different textures,” he added. For more information regarding the owl rendez-vous visit the website. To see a sneak peek of the owls and the exhibit watch the Fulcrum’s YouTube video.

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Dinosaurs and digs: Everything you need to know Mallon discusses what to expect at a dig, dino myths and why dinos were so big Emma Williams scienceeditor

ordan Mallon is a research scientist at the Canadian Museum of Nature here in Ottawa. He mainly studies horned dinosaur evolution and dinosaur paleoecology which is the study of past ecology. This week Mallon interviewed with the Fulcrum to discuss dinosaurs, digs, and all your burning questions about life on Earth millions of years ago. “There’s a species I described called Spiclypeus shipporum about five years ago. That’s on display right now at the museum. I’m working on describing some new species. I’ve worked on looking at growth and variation in horned dinosaurs and what that can tell us about, you know, how these animals grew up and how one species might differ from another,” said Mallon describing his research. Currently, Mallon and his undergraduate students are looking at the neck musculature of horned dinosaurs and the area on the bones where the muscles would have been attached. By studying this, they’re hoping to learn more about how the head was used and wielded while the dinosaurs were alive.

What to expect at a dinosaur dig? Mallon often works in a specific field area near the village of Hilda in Alberta. More specifically, there is a vast stretch of badlands north of Medicine Hat, where a number of fossils have been recovered. In terms of finding fossils, “it’s just a matter of having boots on the ground and walking along with a sharp eye. You’re out there for days and weeks on end and if you’re lucky, maybe you’ll find a little trail of eroded bone. You can follow it along and if the good Lord is on your side maybe you’ll see a big tibia eroding out of the hillside.”

“In some cases, you can get pretty lucky. For example, back in 2015, or 2014, I found the skull of the horned dinosaur Chasmosaurus, which are quite rare as far as dinosaur fossils go. It took a couple of years to dig it up. Ultimately, we had to get it out of the Badlands with a helicopter, which was a lot of fun,” he added.

How do scientists reconstruct dinosaur images?

Mallon explained that over many decades and centuries scientists were able to accumulate a collection of fossils to aid in creating a general idea of a specific dinosaur build. Paleontologists can look at their muscle insertions, which are scars left on the bone that show where the muscle was attached. From looking at those muscle attachments, we can determine the size of the muscle, as well as which direction it was laying across the body. In addition to fossil records, scientists can study the living relatives of dinosaurs like birds and reptiles to learn about the muscle to determine whether or not they shared the same myology (muscle structure).

For reconstructing skin there are a number of skin impressions preserved from dinosaurs, “we know for example that some of the horned dinosaurs had big scales, they weren’t feathered. They had big scales. And the reason we know that is because we found skin impressions alongside their skeletons,” added Mallon.

What were the biggest dinosaurs and how did they become so large? According to Mallon, the biggest dinosaurs were the sauropod dinosaurs, which were the long-neck dinosaurs. They are unique because of their extremely long necks, which scientists believe was an adaptation for feeding. Mallon continued, “their long crane necks allowed them to feed across a huge swath of land while expending very little energy. Meaning that they could eat all day and turn all that food into energy that would then be used for growth. So these sauropods were more easily able to convert food energy into body mass.” Additionally, sauropods are not mammals, and as a result, had comparatively slow metabolisms. Consider a giraffe,

Jordan Mallon in the badlands. Photo: Shyong En Pan/Provided

which also has a long neck and they do have high metabolisms. To maintain themselves, they must keep eating because a large majority of energy that they take in is lost to heat as a result of their high metabolism.

Sauropods and other dinosaurs had hollow bones, “their vertebrae were especially full of what are calpleura seals which are just big vacant air sacs within the bones. Although their bones look big to the eye, they are actually not very dense. So this would have served to lighten up the skeleton. So they could afford to grow bigger because there were these efficiencies.”

Dinosaur myths we need to debunk When asked which dinosaur myth Mallon would like to debunk, he responded, “Oh, boy. There’s a lot of them. The biggest myth would maybe be that everything that lived in the past was a dinosaur. People seem to think that if it’s a fossil, it’s a dinosaur. If you dig a skeleton out of the ground, there you just found a dinosaur, and that’s not true at all. Dinosaurs were a very specific group of animals.” He continued, “we dig out

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the skeletons of fossil fishes, fossil mammals, marine reptiles, winged pterosaurs and all kinds of other things. So, that’s a big myth, not every fossil is a dinosaur fossil.”

Can we clone a dinosaur? Consider Jurassic Park, “at the time the movie came out It was state of the art stuff, you know, there were still some small inaccuracies there. And the movie science wise hasn’t aged very well. As far as bringing the dinosaurs back and being able to clone a dinosaur from DNA out of a mosquito. You know, that’ll never happen.” He added, “there are no mosquitoes as far as we’ve ever found with dinosaur blood. And even if there was blood it would be digested, and there wouldn’t be any DNA to get out of it. So that’s very unlikely to ever happen. If we are so lucky as to get DNA we might get a few bits and pieces of it but never actually the entire genome from which we can clone a dinosaur. Jordan Mallon continues to work at the Canadian Museum of Nature. For more information about his research visit his website

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FEATURES

FEATURES EDITOR AMIRA BENJAMIN

features@thefulcrum.ca

‘Harm comes from deception’: Why do white people pretend to be a race they aren’t? What is with the outrage of pretending to be another race? AmiraBenjamin features editor

n late October, CBC released an article investigating the true heritage of Carrie Bourassa, a University of Saskatchewan professor and the scientific director of Canadian Institutes of Health Research’s (CIHR) Institute of Indigenous Peoples’ Health. Bourassa has been accused of pretending to be Indigenous, an egregious accusation during a year in which 1,300 unmarked graves have been found at former Canadian residential schools. A collective of her colleagues, as well as media reporters, determined that Bourassa was actually a white woman who had cultivated a false Indigenous identity for years. Bourassa is just the latest addition in a specific line of white folks pretending to be a race that they aren’t, including Rachel Dolezal — who pretended to be Black and even Elizabeth Warren, representing a slew of people who claim Indigenous heritage. But why the outrage? What’s the big deal with pretending to be another race?

Pretendings of the past Some may define Bourassa’s manufactured identity as an instance of passing, which is “a process of crossing over from one identity to another, usually a higher status identity” as defined by author and journalist Lipika Pelham. Passing may become necessary for safety and ensuring livelihood. Amina Mire, an associate professor in sociology at Carleton University, says that passing may be legitimate when their lives might be in danger. “[An important] point is that passing is a very complex issue. For example, passing is legitimate when living under fascism [as seen in the past in the ] Nazi state, or when one is forced to hide their sexual orientation in [a] homophobic society,” she said. However, it does not hold the same value if a privileged person is pretending to be someone who is disadvantaged. So why do it? Mire says that Bourassa’s facade was about ‘banal careerism’. “Harm comes from deception,” she said in an interview. “If Carrie Bourassa had truly cared about Indigenous people, she could have forged friendship and allyship with In-

digenous communities. But that was not her aim.” “Neither CIHR nor the University of Saskatchewan demanded Carrie Bourassa to produce credible evidence to show her Indigenous identity. In this case, passing is a new form of rebranding white settler colonizers as Indigenous people.” Veldon Coburn, an assistant professor in the U of O’s faculty of arts, has observed that public perceptions of Indigenous people have significantly changed in comparison to 10 or 20 years ago, which may relate to these cases of deception. “It wasn’t something that people wore on their shoulders as a badge of pride. We were starting to do a lot of work to elevate the esteem that Indigenous identity had in the general Canadian population,” he said. Coburn said that Indigenous people would often adopt stereotypical tropes such as the ‘noble savage’ when integrating themselves with non-Indigenous audiences, which would further misrepresent Indigenous peoples. “They give non-Indigenouscentered organizations and peoples especially employers a sense of feeling good,” he said. “They’ve achieved their saviorship [saying], ‘we did hire an Indigenous person on staff here. They’re one of the good ones.’ And it’s same, perhaps within academia.” Both Mire and Coburn argue that by pretending to be Indigenous people while disingenuously conducting research on Indigenous communities is perpetuating the colonialism that universities and government agencies try to publicly deconstruct. “This creates mistrust,” said Mire. “It reinforces white supremacy and colonial deception. It also opens up historical wounds of Indigenous people and defers the healing process of Indigenous people from the pain and traumas caused by centuries of colonial oppression.”

Improper qualifications Both Dolezal and Bourassa were well-respected academics with prestigious positions under their belt — Dolezal was a chapter president of the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) and Bourassa led a federal branch of health and community research in Indigenous communities. But how can they accurately represent these communities when they have not properly lived similar experiences or

CBC released an article investigating the true heritage of Carrie Bourassa. Photo: Dave Stobbe/University of Saskatchewan

share similar physiological responses? You do not need to be Indigenous to study Indigenous health or culture, and Bourassa clearly has the resume to do so. Reasons as to why she adopted this identity are still unclear, yet that does not undermine the harm she has done to Indigenous peoples with this deception. “You’re talking for people that you don’t even know, for example, generational trauma. You don’t live their lives, you don’t know their stories,” said Sadjo Paquita, a PhD student in feminist and gender studies at the University of Ottawa. “I think the repercussion is that everybody can just come and go on what they want. This is not how it works, because we created knowledge that that will be used by so many people as truth [and knowledge].” Paquita went on to say that by having deceptive people in charge of research and teaching, the results they produce will reflect their dishonesty. “You don’t have to trust everything you read, but most of the time a scientific article or research is something that you can trust. You think it’s [peer] reviewed.” Coburn outlines that historically, Indigenous populations have faced atrocities at the hands of colonial authorities, such as government health agencies, so for them to be deceived is unacceptable. “[Health agencies] also [integrate] themselves with Indigenous populations to get access for the purposes of doing research, for advantages and having that particular access that other researchers don’t

have,” he said. “And [so] you’ve lied to your human subjects, so it crosses the boundaries and blurs the line of the ethics. I think it’s entirely unethical.”

Identity inquiries Following the news that several of its professors were pretending to be Indigenous, Queen’s University announced that it would review its Indigenous identity process regarding staff and faculty beginning this month. Indigenous Corporate Training defines self-identification as “the voluntary, confidential, self-described declaration of Indigenous identity.” Veldon Coburn, an assistant professor in the faculty of arts at the U of O, says that the Indigenous academic community has been long aware of these fraudulent identity claims. “You grin and bear it as an Indigenous professor [when] your university employer is telling you and telling everyone else that this established hire they’ve had for a long time is Indigenous,” he said. With several post-secondary institutions — including the U of O — undertaking several initiatives to Indigenize their campuses, restructuring their selfidentification processes might be a step in the right direction. “If you’re on Algonquin territory, go to the Algonquin nation and don’t just pick up some straggler off the street who’s waving their hand saying ‘I’m Indigenous’ because you know, that’s the case all over Ottawa,” said Coburn. “[Organizations and institutions] actually have to

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respect Indigenous sovereignty by going to the nations and their representatives themselves.” Mire believes that producing evidence claims of being a racialized minority might help prevent these kinds of deceptions. “While self-identification is critically important, when one lays claim to a group or racial identity in order to access resources in the name of equity and inclusivity, one must be required to show evidence that one belongs to the group or the race or ethnicity one is using to access these resources,” she said. Paquita understands that shifts in intersectionality can be confusing, but there should be greater instances of allyship and collaboration to resolve these issues. “Being an academic, it’s more approaching those people asking asking them about their experience,” she said. “So it’s more that you’d come to these people and you ask them about their experience if they are okay with you researching certain experiences and how they can help you.” Coburn went on to say that although universities may have good intentions with hiring Indigenous academics, this ‘pretendian’ matter may be one on multiple university campuses. “It goes to the heart of the highest standards of academia, which is its integrity,” he said. “So you have somebody who’s who’s deliberately propagating falsehoods about who they are kind of using that to produce their research, and then also coloring the university in their Indigenous [vernacular].”

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OPINIONS

OPINIONS EDITOR SANJIDA RASHID

opinions@thefulcrum.ca

Opinion: Call defensive architecture what it really is: antihomeless and inhumane

The terms and conditions of public spaces SanjidaRashid opinions editor

s temperatures drop and many of us search for the trendiest shackets and puffer jackets, others are searching for shelter amidst antihomeless architecture. On your way to the Rideau Centre, you will pass many edifices created specifically to leave houseless populations sleepless in Sandy Hill. These hostile urban designs may take the shape of excessive armrests on park benches, studs on concrete, and other structures that fruitlessly deplete resources with the sole goal of creating discomfort for an already at-risk population. This is without a doubt the laziest way of targeting the real housing and homelessness crisis that has permeated Ottawa for more than 15 years. If this is the first you’re hearing of this, I’m sure it’s at least not the first you’ve seen it. These designs litter our streets unbeknownst to us. Upon seeing a bench of this design on campus, I started scrutinizing public spaces for such architecture and have been disappointed to find them decorating the streets of Byward, Sandy Hill, and the whole of Ottawa alike. Consequently, it is clear that the term ‘public’ space is followed by an invisible asterisk. Apparently, like everything that exists in modernity, urban spaces are accompanied by a set of elusive terms and conditions. They are illicit, quietly whispering to the unhoused populations of urban spaces: “you don’t belong here.” Urban design of this nature

is often referred to defensive, exclusive, or hostile architecture. Regardless of the nomenclature, it is incontestably a silent killer. Why not call it what it really is: anti-homeless and inhumane. What is defensive design other than sleepprevention techniques and a waste of resources? Rather than ignore the problem, why not acknowledge it and structure public spaces accordingly and practically? Architecture of this nature won’t create change. Policy reform creates change. Services create change. An extra railing here and there? No such luck. As a homeless person living on the streets of Ottawa, Cristina Dufaure is familiar with defensive architecture and deplores it as “disgusting” and “sad”, as she stated in an interview. “That’s disgusting. That’s sad. Where else are we supposed to go when the shelters are full? We need to find nooks and crannies like that, that keep us warm at night, and they’ve barricaded them all with big spiky things and all these wooden pieces that block you out,” continued Dufaure. “Some people have to resort to panning a little bit of money to sit inside a 24/7 Tim Hortons to sleep inside. It’s not right. I don’t think they should be allowed. There are places in other cities that have homeless shelter benches and I think they should do that here and in every city.” In order to eradicate these eyesores of anti-homelessness in our city, we must recognize them and deplore them. In Toronto and Montreal, public criticism of hostile urban design has successfully resulted in their removal. A bar structure outside Toronto General

Hospital and spikes outside a department store in Montreal were both removed after they underwent scrutinization on social media. Such is the power of social media and why initiatives like #defensiveTO are incredibly valuable to exterminating physical manifestations of anti-homelessness from our locale. This social media campaign documents the use of hostile architecture in the Greater Toronto Area and has been adopted by nations worldwide. A hashtag like this has the power to incite social movements that force accountability from the implementors of these exclusive urban designs. I encourage residents of Ottawa to follow suit and force such culpability in their own city — once you know what to look for, you will regrettably find it on nearly every street corner. Anti-homelessness manifests in many ways in urban cities. By-laws have the capacity to disproportionately target populations without homes by way of panhandling, soliciting, disorder, loitering, and obstructing neo-vagrancy offences. Toronto, in particular, boasts of far too many of these such by-laws, rendering it to be “against the law to be poor,” in that the impoverished are hyper-policed. This issue permeates Canada and nations in its likeness, as depicted by the Policing and Homelessness Initiative’s depiction of neo-vagrancy laws across Canada. 75 per cent of Canadians live in a jurisdiction with a neo-vagrancy offence. Ottawa does not seem to implement by-laws of this nature, as people living on the streets of the nation’s capital have shared that they have had

This is without a doubt the laziest way of targeting a real housing and homelessness crisis that has permeated Ottawa for years. Photo: Hailey Otten/Fulcrum

A homeless person has set up a tent to defeat the purpose of the cage under the underpass. Photo: Sanjida Rashid/Fulcrum

varyingly amicable experiences with policing. “Ottawa’s pretty good that way. They don’t bother us at all. I’ve never been bothered,” shared John Arsenault, a member of Ottawa’s homeless, in an interview. “Cops used to be really hard on it,” stated Dufaure when asked about how local bylaws surrounding panhandling and soliciting affect homeless populations. She continued to say that she is able to panhandle without a problem so long as she’s “not causing any issues.” “Cops are hard, depending on where you are in the city. They’ll boot you off private properties near restaurants, banks, post offices, anywhere where there are large amounts of money coming in and out,” resolved Dufaure. What is most frustrating to me about anti-homeless architecture of this nature is the waste of resources. Rather than funnel money into incorporating an extra railing to keep homeless people from having a place to sleep, why not invest in programs that would help mitigate homelessness? John Arsenault has been homeless since splitting with his wife and the death of his son, and is now “in the middle of Ottawa, trying to make a couple dollars.” “It would be nice if there were more services for the homeless. They do have quite a bit here for the homeless, compared to other cities, but there’s always room for improvement as far as housing and stuff. It’s hard to find housing when you’re homeless. If you have a home, it’s easier to find a home. So, yeah, it would be nice to have more opportunities to find a home,”

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concluded Arsenault in an interview. Like Arsenault, Dufaure emphasizes the cyclical nature of homelessness and the systemic nature in which people without homes are obstructed from entering homeownership and tenancy. “I don’t think renters should be able to refuse you because you’re homeless. I mean, most people looking for units are either homeless or on the verge of it and it’s sickening,” stated Dufaure. “Maybe if they built more affordable housing and had more programs, like subsidized housing that had more funding, we would be able to rent decent apartments.” Like housing services, investing in mental health resources would be a more efficient and effective use of resources. Saul Alvaresaverris is not from Ottawa, but ended up living on Rideau Street after a journey with addiction. “This is the first time I’ve got help. I just got diagnosed with PTSD, which does help. I chose to get that help and getting real help, it takes a long time — there’s a long waiting list,” affirmed Alvaresaverris in an interview. “If you end up homeless, you cannot get the right help that you need to improve yourself as a person and keep going in life like a regular person. Mental health is a big issue for people that end up as homeless because they just cannot deal with their mental illness and addiction,” continued Alvaresaverris. “Me, myself, I medicate myself because now I’m waiting for help. Getting medication, or therapy — it’s hard. Either you have to wait — or you cannot afford [it]. It’s a lot of money. It’s like six months to a year waiting list,

so, really, it’s what you have to do to survive, you know?” It is this exact lack of resources that keeps people on the streets. This cycle of poverty and homelessness is what we should be seeking to stop in its tracks, which is only possible through real systemic change and the implementation of services that support at-risk populations. “Mental health and addiction affect us all,” asserted Dufaure. “I ended up in a Canadian Mental Health Association. They had a unit for me and it was full of cockroaches. There were bedbugs in that place — in that building. I have dealt with immense amounts of flooding — and, like, there’s nowhere good,” stressed Dufaure in an interview. With a large homeless population in Canada and Ottawa alone, this problem is not one that can be ignores. The Ottawa Mission has been operating at more than 100 per cent capacity for more than three years. Moreover, prior to the pandemic, the City of Ottawa “declared a housing and homelessness emergency, yet we still have over 12,000 households on the waitlist for social housing,” wrote Bader Abu-Zahra in a statement to the Fulcrum, and the situation has reportedly only worsened. The housing and homelessness crisis is not one we can ignore, nor can we fix it with Band-Aid solutions like that of anti-homeless architecture. If your goal is to keep homeless people off the streets of Ottawa, your best bet is not extra railings nor studded concrete to incite discomfort, but rather real, tangible change that eliminates roadblocks obstructing homeless individuals from getting the help they need.

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Fun Sh*t: Ranking my best interactions with strangers

With great power comes great responsibility Sanjida Rashid opinions editor

he saying goes: sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me. Though usually a fan of cheesy sayings, I have to express my contempt for this one. Yeah, sticks and stones hurt — you’ve got me there. However, as a writer myself, I esteem words to be incredibly powerful. They have the capacity to leave scars that last far longer than the impermanent bruises of sticks and stones. Last week, I shed some much-deserved light on the dangerous capacity of strangers to leave lasting impressions. In recalling my most memorable catcalling experiences, I cemented the profound magnitude that words hold. Because with great power comes great responsibility ( just one of the many cheesy sayings I do favour): this has the capacity to be used for good or evil. Due to my affinity for the darndest things to happen to me, I also have a number of amazing interactions with strangers that foster my fascination with sonder. In case I tarnished your faith in the goodness of strangers last week, I will share my most fondly remembered experiences with strang-

ers to hopefully reignite this faith and establish the weight that words hold. The main character at Major’s Hill Our story, contrary to the title, does not begin at Major’s Hill. Rather, it commences in the comfort of my bathroom. Equal parts nervous and excited, I was about to hang out with some guy — was it a date? To this day, I don’t know. Anyhow, I had just finished curling my already curly hair (ironic, I know — if you get it, you get it), doing my makeup, and putting on an outfit that I had deemed just effortlessly cool enough, when I received an unfortunate text — he couldn’t make it. He had a good reason, sure. However, I couldn’t fight that sinking feeling of rejection. I wasn’t mad… just disappointed. All dressed up and nowhere to go, I decided to make the most of a good hair day and take a good old-fashioned long walk. The warm weather and beautiful sights offered some comfort to me as I tried not to think about the almost-maybedate. Typing an article, not unlike this one, I was approached by a man in a quintessential indie boy outfit: a sweatshirt that he probably thrifted layered over a collared shirt, with pants that were likely Dickies brand — you know the

vibe. The cherry on top was the camera decoratively dangling from his neck — whereas my outfit was effortlessly cool, his was effortlessly artsy. In a beautiful French accent, he introduced himself, complimented me, and asked if he could take my picture. While avoiding visibly swooning, I said yes — duh. With that accent, he could have asked for much more than a picture. We had a lovely conversation in which we spoke in French and he told me about his journey with photography. Though it turned out he was visiting from too far away for this to have been anything more than a lovely fleeting encounter, it is a beautiful moment that I’ll fondly remember for a long time. After feeling a little dejected from being blown off by some guy just an hour prior, the nice words of this stranger were exactly what the doctor ordered. I was feeling rather down in the dumps before he’d approached me and he was the reason my day turned around, though he’ll never know it. Such is the power of words and the kindness of strangers. The only good catcall to exist ever I know what you’re thinking — good catcalls exist? I thought not, too, until experiencing a

pseudo catcall from an unlikely culprit on Osgoode Street. It is worth noting that I regularly pass an elementary school en route to campus. This means that I often hear the nostalgic ringing of the school bell, the screaming of overzealous kids playing incredibly competitive games of tag, and adorable french accents as they greet “Maman” and “Papa” at pick up time. As a camp counsellor of four years, my adoration for children is a prominent personality trait of mine. On this particular day, I was walking down Osgoode, backpack and numerous deadlines in tow, as I miserably sentenced myself to study in isolation on campus. All of a sudden, I hear a high-pitched voice cry out in my direction, “Hey, you!” Startled, I stop in my tracks. Upon seeing a little girl clad in unicorn headbands and monochromatic pink outerwear — not the usual attire of those who heckle me on the streets. Hesitantly, I replied: “Hey?” My school-yard catcaller yelled back: “You’re really pretty!” I’m even more taken aback than before. Genuinely touched, I mean it when I respond: “Thank you! So are you!” Our interaction ended when she told me to have a good day — and if I did, it was because of

I have never felt more flattered. If ever I pursue a career in reading audiobooks, it will be because of the too-kind cashier at Première Moisson. Photo: Hailey Otten/

how her words affected me. I walked the rest of the way to campus with a smile on my face. Is it possible that she said this to every pedestrian on Osgoode and that her words had no real meaning? Sure. Does that negate how uplifting they were at that moment? Absolutely not. I was nothing short of elated — this is the uncanny ability of strangers to improve otherwise okay days. Premiere Moisson and the reason why I never stop talking I’ve spoken to the sparseness of the cafeteria during my year of living in residence at the height of the pandemic. If you doubted that there were really that few people on campus, this is evidence of it. Premiere Moisson, found on the first floor of FSS, boasts sandwiches, soups, and tookind cashiers who dish out compliments in conjunction with utensils and receipts, if you’re lucky. On this particular day, I was. Prepared to check out my chickpea coconut soup (which ended up being quite good, actually), I made my way to the cash register. I recognized the woman working. She was among the staff I spoke to throughout the course of the year. When I approached the counter, she was tinkering with something below and had her head down. I did my customary: “Hi, how are you?” Her head shot up and her eyes lit up with recognition. She fondly returned my pleasantries before telling me she not only remembered me, but recognized me based on the sound of my voice alone. She said that she always thought my voice was very pleasant and calm the year prior and that she knew it was me without even looking up. I have never felt more flattered. If ever I pursue a career in reading audiobooks, it will be because of her. I think I must have smiled for the next hour — oddlyspecific compliments, especially from strangers, stick with you in

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the sweetest way. It’s a testament to the fact that we exist in other peoples’ lives in ways we will never be fully privy to. An incredibly Canadian encounter Because I don’t have the self-restraint to do work at my desk that is mere inches from my bed (Sandy Hill bedroom sizes, am I right?), I exile myself from my house on a daily basis to different nooks and crannies of campus. As I write this article, I am making use of the academic ambiance of CRX to induce — or rather, force — some semblance of concentration into my abysmal attention span. Luck would have it that, as I was searching my memory for the best interactions I shared with strangers, my latest one would transpire. A nice girl approached my friend and I, only to offer us a box of Tim Hortons donuts — how delightfully and stereotypically Canadian. This interaction was sweet in the literal and figurative sense of the word and felt like a sign from the universe: strangers really do have the power to make or break your day. If you take anything away from this article, I hope it’s that we all have the capacity to impact other peoples’ days. Perhaps it’s unfair to say, but I remember the compliments that I received from strangers better than the ones I’ve received from friends and family. It just means more hearing your hair looks pretty from someone who has no real obligation to say such a thing and went out of their way to do so. I like to remember that I have the ability to be the kind stranger that makes a person’s day, too. As such, I pay it forward by complimenting the cool outfits, adorable dogs, and pretty hairstyles of Sandy Hill streets as often and earnestly as I can. I encourage you to do the same.

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T O M AT

MANAGING EDITOR

ALY MURPHY content@thfulcrum.ca

Tomato: 10 Reasons to join the Fulcrum Number three is our favourite

Amira Benjamin features editor

Looking for something to do with your time and skills? Want to make some money? Look no further — we have a revitalized list of reasons to join the Fulcrum right here. #10 — You need something to fuel your caffeine addiction with as little labour as possible. #9 — Your roommates are

obnoxious/making you comfortable.

#5 — You love criticizing people.

#8 — You just HAVE to share your opinion with everyone, #4 — You love criticizing your because it’s obviously the right student union. one. #3 — You love cool animals #7 — You have above-aver- such as zebrafish and owls. age photoshop skills and want to impress your peers. #2 — You’re good at making fun of your boss. #6 — You want a workspace that’s slightly less depress#1 — Ghost the edboard kiting than Morriset but slightly ten (not the one that haunts the more paranormal. office).

We love to roast our EIC. Photo: Charley Dutil/Fulcrum

TOMATO | 14

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Dear Di

MULTIMEDIA DIRECTOR HAILEY OTTEN multimedia@thefulcrum.ca

Dear Di, It seems like Hot Girl Summer has turned into Fun Girl Fall… and then whatever the winter equivalent of that is. I’ve been trying to embrace the college disposable dating culture, albeit half-heartedly. I did the whole ‘meet some average guy, get obsessed with him for a couple of weeks, forget about him in lieu of my latest fixation, rinse and repeat’ malarkey. I’m not sure if it’s for me, though. It could be that I’m more of a relationship girl in a hook-up culture world, or that I haven’t given hookups their fair shot. My friends seem to have fun and find it empowering. I’d give it a try, but I think I would get too emotionally attached and end up getting hurt. Should I give the one-night stands a chance, or should I keep looking for Mr. Right?

-Hoe-less Romantic

Dear HLR,

The line between empowerment and emptiness in hook-up culture is blurry. 2021 is host to some progressive times and sex positivity is all the rage, albeit with much room for improvement. However, when it comes to hookup culture, the capacity for empowerment absolutely depends on who is benefiting from the exchange. If both parties leave the night satisfied, then it has the power to be empowering. However, if you’re getting hurt and sacrificing what you really want, what’s the point? If your friends enjoy it, good for them. However, I have to caution you to never do something just because everyone else is. At the risk of sounding like an after-school special, I must ask: if everyone jumped off a bridge, would you? You mentioned you’re more a relationship girl – that is totally valid. Don’t sacrifice what you want in the name of fitting in, ever. Not in terms of fashion, food, or friends — and definitely not in terms of boys. If you crave a certain level of emotional connection, hookups might not be your style — and that’s totally okay. If that’s the case, I don’t think you’ll find your particular Mr. Right on the other end of a one-night flirtatious encounter. It is worth mentioning that my catchphrase is: I’ll try anything once. It’s a notion that I’ve been trying and succeeding at popularizing. Life is short and there’s so much to be tried — part of me wants to try it all, at least once. In the case of hookups, I would encourage that, should you choose to try it once, you tailor your expectations accordingly so as not to get hurt. Protect yourself from STIs, of course. Just make sure to do the same for heartbreak, as well. Wishing you the best of luck and the safest of sex (in more ways than one).

Love, Di Daniels

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DEAR DI | 15