Young Canadian’s feelings about climate change and the future are contradictory, alarming, and hopeful all at once
Ask anyone on campus and more likely than not, they’ll be concerned about climate change. And we have every reason to be concerned; living in yet another warmest year on record, one likely to reach 1.5 degrees of warming, things don’t appear to be getting much better.
Our federal politics seems dominated by a party (the Conservatives) running purely on negative politics, screaming for a carbon tax election and offering no viable alternative to addressing the overwhelming body of evidence that climate change is a serious, urgent crisis.
With every other party seemingly doomed to a parliamentary minority in opposition, what hope is there that a conservative majority will be serious about addressing climate change?
Internationally, the situation seems all the more dire.
From the Mediterranean to the US-Mexico border, migrants, increasingly displaced by climate related catastrophe, are facing heightened violence. Domestically, wealthy nations in Europe and North America are becoming increasingly hostile to these same migrants who manage to survive the dangerous journeys to new homes.
These same wealthy nations refused to strike a deal at the recent COP29 climate conference that the world’s poorest countries found satisfactory.
Instead, they only offered to pay a small portion of the necessary funding to address the disproportionate effects of climate change on developing countries. These are the same developing countries who by-and-large did not contribute to the greenhouse gas emissions that are causing the climate crisis, the emissions that were released in making the world’s wealthiest countries as wealthy as they are.
We, it seems, have every possible reason to be hopeless - and yet we overwhelmingly believe that together, we can address the climate crisis.
We, it seems, have every possible reason to be hopeless - and yet we overwhelmingly believe that together, we can address the climate crisis.
But young people’s feelings are not as simple as that overwhelming belief may suggest. But, as a start, our belief that action is possible is a good one.
Of the 71 per cent that believe change is possible, only half believe they can be part of it. In a seeming contradiction, almost half of all young people believe humanity is doomed.
What does it mean for students to be hopeful and hopeless at the same time? While you might take it as a sign of deep uncertainty, a more hopeful reading might suggest students recognize both the gravity of the problem and the necessity of a solution.
Young people’s belief that they will not be as well off as their parents, or that serious life-style changes are required to mitigate the worst impacts of climate change might suggest that they are pessimistic. But our belief that collective action is the path to solutions also suggests we are ready for a future of cooperation, not competition.
Our belief that collective action is the path to solutions also suggests we are ready for a future of cooperation, not competition.
Living in one of the wealthiest countries on Earth is a privilege. We are far closer to power than the world's poorest and most impacted by climate catastrophe. We cannot shed this global responsibility for selfishness.
Whether you choose to get involved at the University level, with groups like the newly renamed McMaster Climate Justice, at the local level with organizations like Green Venture, or at the provincial level, where our conservative government is far more vulnerable, students becoming active is critical for the future.
Getting involved is not just the responsible thing to do, it's a responsibility we all share, not just for ourselves, but for all of humanity, particularly those who lack the privileges we have that allow us to effect change. Students are ready to combat the climate crisis, now all that's left is to prove we can be the ones to do it.
Student housing has been in crisis for years and new laws in Hamilton might offer an opportunity to bring back an old solution, could student co-operatives make a comeback?
Hamilton’s student housing market is a mess. Every year students struggle in a race to acquire limited off campus housing, often making sacrifices in cost or distance.
Student housing has also been subjected to increasing blame for Canada’s broader housing crisis, which has pushed the current liberal government into capping foreign student numbers in a weak attempt to address endemic problems.
Hamilton’s housing situation is particularly desperate, with both buying and renting remaining unaffordable for most. Despite being one of Hamilton’s top municipal issues, progress has been slow outside of the downtown core.
Recent changes to zoning regulations have made space for more gentle density development, allowing duplex, triplex and fourplex buildings in single unit zoned areas. These zoning changes offer a new path for student housing in the Ainslie Wood and Westdale areas where student housing is most concentrated. This could potentially mean a more diverse set of housing options and an expanded pool of available housing, all critical things to addressing the student housing crisis - but will it?
As high profile projects in Hamilton’s downtown core, backed by major developers, have been delayed due to increased capital costs, it shouldn’t be surprising that the small-landlord-dominated student housing market would be resistant or incapable of engaging in neighborhood-changing development. But what international investors may see as an emerging market opportunity, is not something students can afford to be kept out of the decision making process on.
The characterization of Canada’s student housing market as underdeveloped has some basis in the lived reality of students; a lack of purpose-built housing options is detrimental to both supply and choice. But current proposed solutions, such as the one offered by the Real Estate News Exchange, are not ideal for students. We don’t need more corporate owners building huge, unaccountable student dormitory towers.
There is however one radical alternative. Student co-operative housing has a long history in Canada. Canada’s oldest co-operative housing project is actually Toronto’s Campus Cooperative Residence, opened in 1934.
Student co-operative housing has a long history in Canada, Canada’s oldest co-operative housing project is actually Toronto’s Campus Cooperative Residence, opened in 1934.
In the latter half of the 20th century, rental co-op's emerged in force to support low and middle income communities in securing affordable, secure housing. The model sought to provide low-cost housing by eliminating a profit motive. Residents also take part in co-operative governance, electing a board to oversee the co-op's affairs and maintenance.
Student co-ops use the co-operative housing model to manage costs and community affairs in their buildings. This democratic process keeps profit making out of student housing and allows for students to create an affordable community-based alternative to extractive student housing. This democratic mechanism could be used to balance student housing needs and sustainable development objectives in the student neighborhoods surrounding McMaster.
The only issue with this utopian vision of democratic student residences should be obvious however - money. Whether it be the capital to build initial projects, or expand upon a hopefully successful model, a bunch of idealist students whose university careers might only last a few years are not ideal for securing loans.
For interested student activists there are examples of successful student co-ops to learn from across Canada. However, moving fast to capitalize on the opportunity offered by Hamilton’s new zoning regulations will take organizational capabilities and infrastructure that would be hard to build from the ground up quickly enough.
If the McMaster Students Union wants to make a serious impact in students' lives, using its organizational capabilities and status to facilitate the creation of co-operative student housing could make a permanent impact on McMaster student’s lives. The MSU could put itself at the forefront of a new movement with a bold, creative solution to student’s problems, but it will take daring leadership and effort to succeed.
The MSU could put itself at the forefront of a new movement with a bold, creative solution to student’s problems, but it will take daring leadership and effort to succeed.
Recent interest from the federal government in using co-operative housing means there are opportunities — and possible funding — to tap into.
As access to abortion stands threatened in the wake of a Trump victory, low support and limited sexual education among young people should be our dominating concerns
Tuesday’s US election was fought over many issues, and access to abortion was at the top of many of our minds. Donald Trump's record of bragging about his role in overturning Roe v Wade, made him a difficult pill to swallow for abortion motivated voters. Vice-president Harris attempted to use this to create contrast between her candidacy — one promising to support reproductive rights — and the former president's.
This election was not just an American fascination, Canadians were also paying attention. As this attention continues to spill across the border, what might a feminist response look like? What could we do with this opportunity?
In the wake of Roe’s overturning, Canadian women shared America’s concern over reproductive rights. 62 per cent of women in one survey said they were concerned about the status of reproductive rights in Canada.
The month Roe was overturned saw the highest ever searches for “is abortion legal in Canada” over Google's 10 years of tracking data. The question has sustained interest since then, picking up by a high of nine per cent since Kamala Harris became the Democratic candidate.
What should feminists do with this heightened attention, even if Canada’s conservative party's official policy is to not support any regulation on abortion?
The answer might lie with respect to McMaster students, our friends, coworkers and peers; those in the age demographic in Canada, 18-34, least likely to support a woman’s right to choose. Contrary to what many young people might think, we are according to one poll 13 per cent less likely to support abortion than Canadians aged 55 and above.
Contrary to what many young people might think, we are according to one poll 13 per cent less likely to support abortion than Canadians aged 55 and above.
Why is support for abortion dwindling amongst younger voters? One possible explanation could be a lack of comprehensive abortion knowledge. According to one Ipsos poll, only 56 percent of Canadian women age 16-50 feel they know enough about their options for safely terminating a pregnancy.
More likely, I believe, is the resurgence of the pro-life movement. As this movement has increasingly appealed to emotions for its own patriarchal agenda, it has complicated abortion discourse with debates over fetal-personhood, or abortion’s possible effects on those receiving them.
In the US, anti-abortion victories spearheaded by the republican party have turned abortion into a partisan issue. But this partisanship risks the core of the feminist movement.
By fighting for abortion rights without connecting it explicitly to a broader fight against the patriarchal agenda that fuels anti-abortion politics, the feminist movement risks it’s radical core for sloganeering intended not to be off putting to non-feminists. To quote Vice-president Harris, “One does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs to simply agree the government should not be telling her what to do with her body."
The dire situation America now faces following Trump's election victory is not yet the case in Canada and student activists should be part of ensuring this remains the case.
How then should student activists, facing a belligerent patriarchal movement, decreasing support among young people for abortion and limited knowledge on sexual health, help to build a robust feminist movement? The answer may in fact rest with past generations of student activists, the same students who are now in the older generation supporting abortion at much higher rates.
In 1968, the McGill Students’ Society published the Birth Control Handbook, breaking Canadian law by disseminating crucial information to students about reproductive health, contraception and abortion.
This was not a politically neutral how-to on safe sex. The handbook’s editorial commentary explicitly drew the connection between contraception and women’s liberation. It also drew the important distinction between safe sex and safe relationships arguing that contraception was ineffective without a real negotiation of healthy sexual relationships.
By drawing these connections explicitly, the feminist activists behind the handbook ensured that abortion, safe sex and contraception remained the feminist political issues that they are. This mirrored and helped enforce the broader feminist movement at the time, whose activism helped to create the permissive abortion environment Canadian's enjoy today. To protect and expand this key step in women's liberation, the feminist movement has to remain strong, be willing to be controversial and be explicit and resolute in the goal of ending patriarchy.
Unwanted pregnancy risks not only student’s educations and careers, it also risks their ability to choose to have children if and when they want.
Unwanted pregnancy risks not only student’s educations and careers, it also risks their ability to choose to have children if and when they want. Against a patriarchal vision of everyone but cisgender-men as vessels for childbirth, feminists must posit and work to create a better future of not just bodily but political autonomy too. For feminist student activists, the past is behind us. Now is our turn to advocate for a future free from patriarchy.
After winning his second term as president of the McMaster Students Union in January 2024, President Jovan Popovic made the decision to fast track one of his campaign promises to a referendum.
The promise: to deliver a free meal program featuring soup and bread to students based on the successful Loaded Ladle program offered at Dalhousie University. The referendum failed to reach quorum, with only 9.4 per cent of the student population casting a ballot one way or the other.
As a transfer student from Dalhousie who witnessed first hand how the Loaded Ladle impacted hundreds of students each day, I see this as a tragedy.
But it may not stay that way for long.
As of September, the Student Representative Assembly approved a motion to rerun the referendum. It seems Popovic might have learned more this time than last about what made Dalhousie’s experiment so successful.
As of September, the Student Representative Assembly approved a motion to rerun the referendum.
The Loaded Ladle began life as an unsanctioned food service organization on Dalhousie’s campus serving soup from an ironing board. Despite problems with campus police, the organization gained popularity among students and garnered support that eventually saw them granted a kitchen space in the student union building, as a carve-out from the union's exclusive contract with corporate food provider Aramark.
Its origins — and continued existence — as an explicitly political, anti-capitalist student activist group meant that the Loaded Ladle needed to garner community support from its beginnings.
While I supported Popovic’s proposal, I think that this difference helps explain why his referendum failed to gain enough votes to either pass or fail. What was at Dalhousie a student-run initiative, would be under Popovic a single presidential candidate’s, albeit well planned and thought out, campaign promise.
The proposal itself reflects these differences too. At Dalhousie, the Loaded Ladle is an independent non-profit, run largely by volunteers, now with some paid positions at $23.50 per hour. The proposed program at McMaster would be run out of the TwelvEighty Kitchen and would be staffed and operated by existing MSU employees.
This difference is understandable. The President alone would have a hard time building an activist organization during a one-year-term and his current proposal would deliver results to students soon and for a modest fee.
But I think it's these differences that explain why the referendum failed to meet quorum. Without a group of student activists raising awareness, most students wouldn't have bothered checking the email from elections services.
Luckily, Popovic himself seems aware of this fact.
In his request to the SRA to suspend the rules on referendums that would have prevented the referendum from being re-run until next year, Popovic acknowledges that his referendum failed exactly where the Bike Share referendum succeeded.
“[T]hey were only aware of one . . . a student-led campaign team was openly informing students of the [Bike Share] referendum," read Popovic's official motion to the SRA.
This time around, Popovic says he has a “group of students” ready to raise awareness about the referendum to the student body. This, along with Popovic’s other reasons for rerunning the referendum — a commitment to his campaign promise and to the democratic process — demonstrate his interest in the kind of student-led politics that helped the Loaded Ladle and the Bike Share referendum to succeed.
This, along with Popovic’s other reasons for rerunning the referendum — a commitment to his campaign promise and to the democratic process — demonstrate his interest in the kind of student-led politics that helped the Loaded Ladle and the Bike Share referendum to succeed.
Whether he follows through on his commitment and sees the soup and bread program through or not, Popovic is clearly attempting to move forward with these valuable lessons in mind. His new plan is a clear path to success. With this revised plan, I think Popovic has everything he needs to succeed.
Just 10 days ago, the world health organization declared the coronavirus a pandemic. According to data collected by Johns Hopkins university, at the time of reporting there are over 300,000 confirmed cases around the world.
What we’re facing is unprecedented and chaotic. Things are moving so quickly that it is impossible to know what the next days, weeks and months will look like. And while in some ways we’re all in the same boat, we also have to recognize that the impacts of the pandemic are not the same for everyone.
Those of us who are young and otherwise healthy may, without knowing it, infect higher-risk people.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, eight out of 10 deaths reported in the U.S. have been in adults 65 years old and older. Those who are immunocompromised, as well as people with underlying medical conditions like heart disease, diabetes and lung disease, are also at greater risk of adverse outcomes should they contract the virus.
Furthermore, Canada has only 1.95 hospital beds per 1,000 people. If a certain number of people get sick at the same time, hospitals will not have enough beds or ventilators to be able to care for everyone. Practicing physical distancing, washing your hands, avoiding touching your face and disinfecting surfaces are some ways to slow the spread of the virus so that hospitals are able to respond.
Now is a time to stay isolated, but not insulated. While we are distancing ourselves physically, it is important now more than ever to form and strengthen community support networks and look out for the people most at risk. We must navigate this pandemic as individuals, but also as individuals who are a part of a larger community.
Check in with your friends and family, especially those who are at higher risk. The Disability Justice Network of Ontario and the Hamilton Student Mobilization Network have started the CareMongering-HamOnt: Hamilton Community Response to COVID19 Facebook group to connect people in the community to share resources and organize support in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. The goal of the volunteer-run group is to redistribute resources and ensure that vulnerable members of the community have access to food, shelter and healthcare — look out for an article on this to come out shortly.
As vital as it is for communities to support one another, we also need support from institutions and government.
McMaster has made the right decision by cancelling classes. The university now needs to commit to supporting students, staff and faculty who are bearing the brunt of the transition. As classes move fully online, how will students with limited wifi and computer access at home be able to complete their courses? What about students who had been employed at the university or elsewhere and are now facing layoffs and financial insecurity?
How will students be supported as they move out of residence on less than a week’s notice? While international and out-of-province students may be granted special permission to stay in residence, the university has not guaranteed that students who are unable to return home for other reasons, such as unsafe living conditions, will be granted extended residence accommodations.
The Emergency Bursary Fund sponsored by the McMaster Students Union is still available for students in financial emergencies. However, there have been no mention of plans to expand this fund, despite the increased need. The McMaster administration should follow the University of Toronto in creating an emergency fund for students affected by COVID-19, or commit funds to supporting the MSU’s Emergency Bursary Fund.
In addition to students, McMaster needs to ensure that hospitality, food service and custodial staff are supported.
Custodial workers are cleaning the buildings that everyone is being told to vacate, fighting germs that may endanger their own health. Hospitality services staff are at risk every time they interact with people. While they are at risk when they come to work, they are also at risk of layoffs, as the university shuts down operations and closes facilities.
In an open letter released on March 16 entitled, “Time to take care of each other and our communities,” university president David Farrar wrote, “we are [. . .] caring and thoughtful and it is the time to show our determination to take care of each other and our communities.”
Campus staff are just as much a part of the McMaster community as any student, faculty member, or university administrator, and the university administration needs to ensure that they are supported and their needs are prioritized during this difficult time.
We all have a role to play in looking out for the most vulnerable in our communities. While we need to be physically distant, it is more important now than ever to build community, practice solidarity and be there for one another — from at least two metres apart.
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By Wei Wu, Contributor
On Oct. 30, pro-life demonstrators stood by L.R. Wilson Hall carrying signs with images of aborted fetuses. It is not clear whether the demonstrators were students at McMaster, or whether they had connections to any existing clubs.
According to Michael Coutu, a student at McMaster, the demonstrators exposed passersby to their signs and distributed pamphlets, which contained graphic images of aborted fetuses. Coutu is concerned about whether the demonstrators received clearance to be on campus.
“Although they were not particularly loud or disruptive, I still found the images and rhetoric being spread very concerning and ill-advised,” said Coutu.
Students have raised their concerns online regarding the contrast between the Oct. 30 situation to the May 11 protest during May at Mac, in which student activists were ticketed for trespassing during a peaceful protest that criticized McMaster regarding a range of issues. One of the issues was sexual abuse within student organizations such as the Maroons.
Initially, the May at Mac demonstrators did not provide identification when asked to do so by security and were asked to leave. However, some of these individuals returned and continued their demonstration later on, which resulted in them being ticketed for trespassing.
Mac Daily News released an update after May 11, stating that university security had been working with limited information at the time. According to this update, security had approached the May at Mac protestors because of complaints from community members about the protestors’ pamphlets, which included “unsubstantiated allegations” made against a named McMaster student. Still, the update referred to the method of ticketing as “regrettable and unfortunate”. The university stated they would take steps to rescind tickets and clear them from the students’ records.
The juxtaposition between how the university approached the protests of May 11 and Oct. 30 — initially issuing trespassing tickets and charges for one group but not the other — raises questions regarding the limits of protesting on campus and the types of images that are allowed to be publicized on campus.
In a statement on freedom of expression, McMaster University clearly states that it supports the freedom of expression of all its members, as well as freedom of association and peaceful assembly for all of its members. The university affirms that members of the McMaster community have the right to exchange ideas, challenge received wisdom, engage in respectful debate, discuss controversial issues and engage in peaceful protest.
So long as students do not infringe on the rights and freedoms of others, students are free to host and participate in demonstrations at McMaster. Members of the McMaster community are not required to obtain permission from the university administration in order to protest or demonstrate on campus.
Although the demonstration on Oct. 30 touched upon a highly sensitive topic that some individuals may have found deeply disturbing, university policy protects the right to share their beliefs and engage in public discourse at McMaster.
“Other images, even though we might not agree with them, we might not find them agreeable, would be allowed and permitted. That’s part of the freedoms of expression the university campus has,” said Gord Arbeau, McMaster’s Director of Communications, adding that he did not know about the pro-life demonstration.
McMaster maintains that it supports freedom of expression and peaceful protests on campus.
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cw: white supremacy, hate speech
Hamilton is the hate capital of Canada. Even if you're not from Hamilton, as a McMaster University student, this is the place where you've chosen to pursue your education. This is where you are preparing for your future. This beautiful, vibrant city that is full of artists and music also has the highest rate of reported hate crimes in the country.
After the Hamilton Council updated a trespass bylaw in response to the hate seen at City Hall, Councillor Sam Merulla said that the counter-protestors have given a small group of right-wing extremists a platform and that the city’s focus on hate issues have “manufactured” this problem. If you’re reading this, councillor, how dare you? How dare you ignore the systemic hatred in our city?
Council passes updated trespass bylaw related to cracking down on hate activities at #Hamont city hall, etc. A feisty Coun. Sam Merulla suggests city's focus on hate issue is giving "six morons" a national platform. "We have manufactured a problem in this city."
— Matthew Van Dongen (@Mattatthespec) October 23, 2019
For months now, several hate groups, including the so-called Yellow Vests, have been protesting outside City Hall on Saturdays. This far-right hate group has co-opted the name of a French movement protesting rising fuel prices and calling for changes to economic policy and taxation. The Yellow Vests’ activity has attracted other far-right groups, such as the Soldiers of Odin and the Proud Boys.
These groups have been appearing more frequently and are much more aggressive towards the counter-protestors. When they first appeared they came in a large group, walking purposefully towards us and through us. I was with fellow counter-protestors that day, yet I felt so frightened that I started sobbing, and I couldn’t stop.
On October 6, the organizers of the Gandhi Peace Festival invited the Yellow Vests to attend the event. People associated with a group that carries signs such as “Make Canada Holy and Righteous Again” or “No Immigration, Legal or Illegal” were invited to take part in a festival that is supposed to celebrate peace and acceptance. They even spoke with the mayor. While I recognize that the invitation was intended to foster a sense of community, it did just the opposite. This invitation made it seem like the Yellow Vests were accepted by the community, giving them an opportunity to validate their harmful rhetoric and portray counter-protestors’ efforts as unreasonable and violent.
This invitation made it seem like the Yellow Vests were accepted by the community, giving them an opportunity to validate their harmful rhetoric and portray counter-protestors’ efforts as unreasonable and violent.
The Yellow Vest protests are not an isolated incident. This violence and hatred spreads through our city like a virus — but instead of addressing this hate, some city councillors have remained silent on the issue or in the case of Merulla, have blamed the people who are trying to right this wrong.
It hurts. It hurts to see these hate groups spewing their harmful rhetoric every week. But I am white, cisgender and middle-class, and it is my responsibility to stand up for the people who aren’t safe or comfortable being there. It is my privilege that I can stand in the City Hall forecourt on Saturday afternoons to counter-protest. But even with all that, I feel apprehensive. I am frightened. When the midday sun is shining down on me in the heart of the city where I have lived my whole life, I feel afraid. And that is unacceptable.
When the midday sun is shining down on me in the heart of the city where I have lived my whole life, I feel afraid. And that is unacceptable.
It hurts to see hundreds of people filling the streets for a climate strike, while only around 20 people appear regularly to protest against the Yellow Vests on weekends. Yes, striking for the climate is a vital cause and it fills me with joy to see revolutionary action on such a scale, but I can’t help but feel bitter. Where are those numbers every week outside of City Hall? Where are those numbers when counter-protestors are arrested?
This article is by no means blaming people for not attending the counter protests. It is not safe for everyone to attend and I know that. But the lack of knowledge about what's happening in this city is not okay. Nothing will change if we don’t change. Please, my heart can’t take this anymore.
And to the counter-protesters: you have my wordless gratitude. Thank you for persevering. Thank you.
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In Dec. 2018, posters featuring the same font and design as McMaster University’s Brighter World campaign posters but instead reading “Whiter World” began popping up in various locations around campus.
According to the De Caire Off Campus Facebook page, the group behind the campaign is the Revolutionary Student Movement, an anti-capitalist student activist movement that claims to “support the peoples’ struggles against capitalism, imperialism, and colonialism in Canada and internationally.”
One poster reads “Farewell Patrick!” and accuses McMaster president Patrick Deane of promoting white supremacy and far-right groups, alleging that he was a “settler in apartheid South Africa.”
Another poster displays two photos of University of Toronto professor Jordan Peterson, calling him ‘anti-trans’ and ‘fascist’ and mentioning the treatment of protesters during his appearance in March 2017 and the ensuing free speech debate. It also highlights the vandalism of McMaster’s pride crosswalks.
The third poster details McMaster director of parking and security service Glenn De Caire’s history of support for carding, alleging that police presence around campus has increased dramatically.
The campaign initially began in Dec. 2015 in response to McMaster’s hiring of De Caire. In spite of the student backlash that the hire ignited and the McMaster Students’ Union Student Representative Assembly’s vote to endorse De Caire’s removal, the university stood by him, and De Caire has remained in his role since.
“The Whiter World posters outline white supremacist activity that the McMaster administration has actively facilitated on campus, as well what we see on the rise in the city,” the De Caire Off Campus group said in a statement to The Silhouette. “The campaign emerged out of the increasingly urgent need to push back against far-right and white supremacist organizing.”
When asked for an interview, Gord Arbeau, the university’s director of communications, responded by condemning the Whiter World posters.
“Our approach when there is graffiti or there are acts of vandalism is to remove the material when it is found. That’s what has happened in the handful of times these leaflets have been discovered,” said Arbeau.
The group behind the Whiter World campaign is particularly concerned about the alleged ineffectiveness of student consultation efforts by the university and the MSU and the university’s free speech guidelines, which they say have not seriously considered the concerns of marginalized communities.
In November, the SRA passed a motion opposing the Ontario government’s free speech policy mandate. MSU president Ikram Farah has been vocal in her opposition of McMaster’s free speech guidelines.
On Nov. 14, Farah, Deane, and McMaster University associate vice president (Equity and Inclusion) Arig al Shaibah hosted an open town hall to consult students and discuss the free speech mandate.
“[Consultation efforts have been] nothing more than manipulation and exploitation, and we refuse to cooperate,” the De Caire Off Campus group said.
The De Caire Off Campus campaign has also condemned the allegedly bolstered police presence in and around McMaster.
They are also in opposition to the increase in bylaw officers in Westdale and Ainslie Wood, which city council voted in favour of in 2016 and in 2017.
Every school in the Hamilton area employs at least one ‘school resource officer,’ a special police officer stationed at that location to ensure security.
“Police presence brings with it, for so many marginalized people, a constant threat of violence,” said the De Caire Off Campus group.
They also accuse Hamilton’s ACTION police teams of targeting racialized and working class residents and creating a hostile environment for marginalized students.
It is unclear whether the De Caire Off Campus group has any further plans to protest the university or consult with the student union or university administration.
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The Global Citizenship Conference (GCC) is typically held in March, but this year’s has been re-scheduled for September. For the conference’s planners, this reflects a long-discussed need for change.
Founded in 2006 by McMaster students, the GCC aimed to engage students in global and local issues and develop passionate activists and advocates. In its inaugural year, Dr. Phil Wood, Associate Vice-President of Student Affairs, referred to GCC as “the most impressive student event I have seen in my past 30 years at McMaster.”
Past speakers at the GCC included Council of Canadians chair Maude Barlow, AIDS activist and former McMaster Professor Stephen Lewis and former Liberal Party leader Michael Ignatieff.
Shanthiya Baheerathan, GCC Co-Chair of Logistics, explained how over the years the March timing has just not fit well into the student calendar and leaves little room for follow-up after the conference.
“The idea of having it at the beginning of the year is to build a community early on and to have a thread of student involvement continue for the whole year.”
This year, GCC has been hosting smaller but regular panel series on topics such as Idle No More and Think Global, Act Local. On March 5, they will host a panel on Refugee Health.
Shahana Hirji, Co-Chair of Programming, described how the GCC wants to put a higher emphasis on grassroots forms of engagement. Recent panel topics and local activists and instructors chosen to be on the panel are a result of the community focus.
Baheerathan also discussed funding issues that may have precluded a large-scale conference from occurring this semester. She reiterated that in addition to faculty-based funding, the GCC team will be looking to apply for external funding and community grants for the September conference.
In the past, the GCC promoted to other universities and high school students, which attracted more conference attendees.
Baheerathan wants to try to attract more students in a new way by leveraging the already large network of student clubs on campus.
“We want to establish GCC as a hub for social justice clubs on campus. Mac has a lot of different groups, and the GCC wants to create a more cohesive movement where the GCC supports clubs,” said Baheerathan.
But in order to do this, the planners recognize they will need to rebuild the GCC’s brand on campus.
Fariha Husain, Co-Chair of Networking, described how there has been diminished support for and knowledge of the GCC. Husain also emphasized how the current group is working hard to expand the GCC base and recruit students for the conference team.
“We will be looking for conference team planners around mid- to late-March for the September conference. We want to promote heavily through social media to make it a staple event. This is something that requires student interest and a robust discussion amongst student members.”
Chantal Godin, the McMaster student alleging that Niagara Police assaulted her at a protest on Oct. 7 at Marineland, is continuing to share her story and is considering legal action.
Godin was first removed off the property's fence after she had been trying to encourage more protesters to enter the park. By jumping the fence she was officially trespassing on the property and consequently she was later fined. A female officer tugged her off the fence. Godin took pictures of bruising on her arm which she alleges were a result of her fall off the fence.
"I began arguing with her as to why she used such excessive force to bring me down and why she was targeting me when I was outside of the park at the time this happened. Why [did] she decide to target me when I was outside of the park at the time this happened," said Godin.
While she was still being handled by the female officer, a male officer who had previously been speaking with Godin's partner, then came over to Godin.
" He walked away from the male and came towards me. He gave me a small push while I was still being dealt with by the female officer...He pushed me a second time which I deflected [as shown] in the video."
Godin asserts that the male officer made attempts to intimidate her and acted in an unprofessional manner. She also noted that his intervention was unnecessary, given the presence of the female officer.
She was handcuffed and led to the cruiser by the female officer who stated that she believed in the protester's cause but urged Godin to protest off the property.
Godin did not go back onto the property, but continued protesting outside the property.
Godin has stated that she plans to pursue action soley against the male officer.
"He didn't actually give me his badge number [which he is supposed to when asked]. I want to hold him accountable...the fact that he left my partner and came after me [given] that I'm much smaller [than the other protesters]. It was a bit sexist. I feel as though because I'm a woman he felt he could intimidate me or make an example of me to other protesters. I guess I ended up being the scapegoat for that. I felt violated because he has no right to put his hands on me."
Godin has contacted a civil rights lawyer and is exploring the option of filing a civil suit, specifically aimed at addressing the issue of the alleged assault and illegal arrest. She also plans to lodge an official police complaint.
