After 39 days of campaigning a new premier has been elected.
The results are in and Quebec’s new premier is Coalition Avenir Québec’s (CAQ) François Legault. After four million votes were casted on Monday Oct. 1, the CAQ will be in office until 2022. Legault was also elected in L’Assomption, his riding. The Liberals have been ousted from power.
The CAQ will hold 74 seats in Quebec’s National Assembly. The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP) will hold 32 seats, while Quebec Solidaire (QS) and the Parti Quebecois (PQ) will hold 10 and 9 seats respectively, with no seats for independent parties.
The new CAQ government won more seats in the province’s National Assembly than the departing Liberal government, who was elected with 70 seats in 2014.
The CAQ has positioned itself as a centre-right party. It has promised to decrease immigration in Quebec from 50,000 to 40,000 people per year. The party also promised to raise the legal age for marijuana consumption to 21 years old rather than the current minimum of 18. A $10-billion plan is suggested by the CAQ to invest in public transit and better infrastructure in Quebec, beginning this summer. Within his first year of office, Legault will also put in place a secularism charter, among other promises.
Out of the 6 million people eligible to vote 67 per cent voted. According to Quebec’s Chief Electoral Officers, 1.1 million people voted in the advance polls between Sept. 21 and 27. Quebec’s four main parties had 125 candidates across the province.
The elections included two French debates and a debate in English, a historical first. Sovereignty wasn’t a central issue throughout the elections, although Quebec culture and identity were widely discussed.
According to CBC’s poll tracker, CAQ was in the lead followed by the Liberal party, the Parti Quebecois and Quebec Solidaire, respectively.
The party was put in the lead quickly after polls closed. While Laval is usually a Liberal island, this election’s results show Laval residents widely elected the CAQ. Montreal widely voted for the liberal party
The former PQ cabinet minister, Legault, founded the CAQ in 2011 and it’s the first new party to take power since 1976. Third time’s the charm for the winning party, as they previously ran in the 2012 and 2014 elections.
An intoxicated man was run over in Louisville—100 km from Montreal—on Friday night. He had been found 25 minutes earlier walking by the side of the road by Sûreté Québec officers, who allowed him to keep walking. Quebec’s provincial police launched an investigation into the incident, according to the Montreal Gazette.
A new bylaw will ban all domestic wood burning fireplaces or appliances that emit over 2.5 grams per hour of fine particulates, according to Global News. Fines can go up to $2,000 if the bylaw is not respected. Fireplaces that are over 10 years old are likely to emit more than the allowed limit of particulates. The new bylaw that took effect on Oct. 1 is part of the city’s plan to fight the smog problem.
On Friday night, Montreal police found a missing 80-year-old man. The man was reported missing a little over 24 hours after having left his residence in Park Extension. He left without any money and was found in the Outremont area, according to TVA.
Montreal mayor, Valérie Plante, announced on Monday that the city is looking for a new General Inspector to oversee contracting processes. The last General Inspector, Denis Gallant, left his position early in the summer and was replaced by Bridgitte Bishop. However, her interim position ends in February, according to La Presse.
Nation in brief
Revenu Québec workers were on strike this weekend for the second time this year after hitting a wall in their contract negotiations. They have been without a collective agreement since March 2015. Union members held strikes across Quebec, including in Sherbrooke, Trois-Rivières, Montreal, Rimouski, Saguenay, Gatineau and Quebec City, according to the Montreal Gazette.
A judge in Alberta sentenced a middle-man for fentanyl trafficking to 11 years in jail. Cameron O’Lynn Parranto possessed around a half-million doses of the deadly drug, according to the Calgary Sun. Fentanyl is the “most illegal drug” on the market, according to the Judge.
According to Statistics Canada, the nation’s real gross domestic product grew by 0.2 per cent in July. It is the strongest growth since November 2017.
British Columbia will only have one cannabis store open its doors on Oct. 17, according to the Toronto Star. Other cannabis retailers won’t be opening until later in the month, as well as a potential online cannabis store, so that all British Columbians will have access to recreational cannabis.
Following the release of Manitoba’s latest financial statement, the province’s auditor general, Norm Ricard, issued a qualified opinion which expresses concern, according toCBC. It is the first qualified opinion for the province since 2007. The auditor concluded the financial statement does not comply with generally accepted accounting principles, and it reveals a deficit of $695 million for 2017-18.
World in brief
Brett Kavanaugh will be investigated by the FBI following U.S. President Donald Trump’s orders in response to sexual assault allegations made against the judge. The investigation will hold up the Supreme Court nominee’s confirmation, and the Senate vote has been delayed. The FBI has one week to investigate, according to CNN.
A 7.5 magnitude earthquake sent a tsunami onto Indonesian island Sulawesi, leaving 384 people dead and 500 people missing. The tsunami climbed to two metres high on Saturday, and destroyed homes and buildings, according to The Weather Network.
On Saturday, Egyptian human rights activist Amal Fathy was fined and sentenced to two years in prison for allegedly spreading fake news in a video, according to Al Jazeera. The video in question was posted in May and shows her calling out the Egyptian government for neglecting women’s protection against sexual harassment.
An Air Niugini plane crashed into a Pacific lagoon in Micronesia on Friday with only one passenger reported missing, according to The New York Times. Local boats rushed to the plane to help the 47 remaining passengers and crew members evacuate. The cause of the crash remains unclear.
A seal slapped a New Zealand kayaker in the face with an octopus, according to ABC News. The 23 year-old caught the incident on video, which has now started circulating around the world.
Women in Brazil gathered in the streets to express their opposition to the country’s far-right presidential candidate, Jair Bolsonaro, on Saturday, according to Le Monde. The Facebook group, Women United Against Bolsonaro, has gone viral and so has its hashtag, #EleNao, or #NotHim.
Gilmore’s mature and unique sound captivated the 50 people at Bar Le Ritz PDB, as they swayed along. Photo by Hannah Ewen.
Montreal singer-songwriter, Vikki Gilmore drops new song following her latest EP and her show last Wednesday
Two years ago, at her aunt’s house, with a basic melody of chords in mind, Vikki Gilmore wrote her song “Someone,” which later became the title of her second EP released on Sept. 7. For this new project, the singer-songwriter collaborated with a full band instead of recording an acoustic EP.
The song “Someone” begins with smooth arpeggios on guitar before her soft voice comes in. “There are songs where love and romance are very conclusive with a start, a beginning, and an end,” Gilmore explained. “Where they break up and it’s sad, but there’s no in between where somebody can come into your life [..] even if they’re not there forever, they have a lasting impact on you. I’ve yet to find a song like that, so I wanted to write it.” These musings were the inspiration behind the title track.
Opening for English band the Still Corners at Bar Le Ritz on Wednesday was a dream come true for Gilmore. Her clear, crisp voice flowed perfectly with every run she performed. Accompanied by an acoustic drum set and a lap steel or electric guitar, and flooded with burning red light, Gilmore captivated the crowd’s attention.
“I think in my head with all the accompaniment, and I hear the song with the drums and percussions and lap steels,” said Gilmore. “And now, everybody is hearing what I always hear, which is a really cool experience.”
Her beautiful, haunting notes were just as powerful live as on the record itself. Even her acoustic songs from her debut EP, Where you are from, were readapted to include the whole band.
The Montreal-based artist told The Concordian that she sees every EP she produces as a specific chapter in her life. “My first EP was my journal-entry from [when I was] 18 years old. It was representative in my music because I was still figuring out who I am as a person and as an artist,” said Gilmore.
Writing her own songs is therapeutic, the artist explained. Someone is inspired by a collection of stories she’s heard from friends, or things she’s gone through. The song “After All” is about “the idea that you give everything to somebody and they recycle it, […] and you’re wasting your time on this ride thinking it’s a hundred per cent and really it [isn’t],” Gilmore said.
“Mountains” was inspired by a huge storm while she was in Rovereto, Italy two years ago as an au pair. “It was the most beautiful storm I’ve ever seen, even though I should’ve been scared of it,” said Gilmore.
The final song on the EP is “Home.” “I wanted ‘Home’ to be the conclusive song in the EP, where you’re reminiscing on everything that you’ve been through and you kind of have that warm feeling in the end […] so we added a fireplace crackling in it, but it comes off as sounding like vinyl,” said Gilmore.
Gilmore’s new single with U.K. artist Spectrum called “If we’re this close” was released today and is available on all streaming services.
Harris Turpin left with his Center for Research-Action on Race Relations representative (right). By Mia Anhoury
The lawsuit was filed for failing to address sexual harassment complaints.
On behalf of Concordia student Harris Turpin, the Center for Research-Action on Race Relations (CRARR) has filed a complaint against the Arts and Science Federation of Association (ASFA) for failing to effectively address his complaint of sexual harassment against the federation’s former president. It is claiming major moral and punitive damages against ASFA.
“We believe this to be the first same-sex campus sexual harassment case in the province,” said Fo Niemi, the CRARR executive director.
“I want to set a precedent here. Last time with the Mei Ling incident, they said ‘there’s not going to be a next time.’ I am the next time,” said Turpin.
In 2015, CRARR filed a complaint against ASFA and two of its executives on behalf of Mei Ling (a pseudonym), a biracial executive who was subjected to racial and sexual discrimination. The case was settled on the condition that the federation create a task force to address these issues.
In 2016, Turpin went on a date with former ASFA president Jonathan Roy, but nothing came out of it. Starting in 2017, Turpin claims he was physically and verbally harassed by the president on a regular basis.
“This included uncomfortable and unnecessary touching towards me and unsolicited sexual messages,” said Turpin. “I also received a number of rude nicknames from fellow members of my student association [Concordia’s Classics Students Association (CCSA)],” which according to Turpin, included “bitch-boy” and “butt-boy.” These instances happened on campus and at university events. At a CCSA event on Jan. 25, Turpin said Roy flicked his nipple and yelled at him.
In February, Turpin informed ASFA’s then-internal affairs and administration executive, among other executives, of his harassment. He was discouraged from going through the proper channels set out by ASFA’s sexual harassment policy.
Although a mediation session was held with Turpin, Roy, ASFA executives and a CCSA representative, the agreed-upon consensus was not abided by. Within that week, ASFA’s council put its sexual harassment policy under review, and mandated its task force to make it survival-centric in light of the sexual harassment allegations in the english department. However, according to Bakry Alsaieq, ASFA’s academic coordinator, the councillors didn’t know a complaint had been brought to the executives when they suspended the policy.
In April, Turpin shared his story with The Link and publicized it on a Tumblr page. “I decided to go public to gain the justice I deserve,” said Turpin. Additionally, Roy stepped down as president.
A week later, Turpin received a letter from ASFA’s lawyer demanding he take down the Tumblr page on the basis of defamation of Roy. According to ASFA’s current Advocacy and Executive Coordinator, Marguerite Rolland, the letter was commissioned by Roy.
ASFA has sinced changed its procedures regarding the commissioning of work to lawyers, said Rolland. Now both executives allowed to commission work to the federation’s lawyers must agree on the commission. “We are doing this to ensure that any action that is taken on behalf of ASFA represents the entirety of the organization,” said Rolland. Today, both the president and the general manager of ASFA must agree to send the work. At the time the letter was sent, Roy’s approval was enough to commission it. According to Rolland, there was a very short time frame for executive oversight between the time the letter was commissioned and then sent.
A statement was later released by ASFA apologizing for sending the cease and desist letter.
“It was a general apology issued to the public that shows a general lack of empathy not to be mentioned by name. […] I made a huge case of this and they didn’t even take the time to apologize to me,” said Turpin.
“It’s not about the president anymore, it’s about ASFA,” said Turpin. This is the second time in the last three years a complaint has been filed against the federation to the Quebec Commission of Human Rights and Youth Rights.
“What should’ve been done was to inform the individual of all the processes that were available outside of ASFA —referring him to the Sexual Assault Resource Centre, the Centre for Gender Advocacy [for example],” said Rolland.
“It certainly took a toll on my health,” said Turpin. “Last time I visited [Niemi], I was not looking so good, eating poorly, awful diet, horrible sleep schedule. Because of this incident, not only my grades suffered but my person suffered.”
Photo by Mia Anhoury.
Former ASFA president Jonathan Roy. Photo by Alex Hutchins
More than three million people in southern China were evacuated in anticipation of Typhoon Mangkhut making landfall on Sunday. The storm previously swept through Macau as well as the Philippines, where it killed dozens of people.
Brett Kavanaugh, U.S. President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, had his confirmation jeopardized by allegations of sexual assault. Christine Blasey Ford alleged that Kavanaugh and his friend sexually assaulted her at a house party when they were in high school in the early 80s.
Pyotr Verzilov, a Russian activist and member of the punk group Pussy Riot, is in critical condition after what his family allege was a poison attack. Verzilov and his bandmates made international headlines recently for storming the pitch at the World Cup final in protest of political imprisonment in their country.
A study by Japan’s Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry found that 20 per cent of the country’s population is over the age of 70. According to an article by Naoko Muramatsu in Oxford Academic, Japan has the oldest population in the world, which is “a salient factor in crucial public policies, such as pensions, health, and long-term care.”
The Scottish government has passed a new set of regulations outlawing designer breeding of animals. The rules target the breeding of animals to have certain desirable physical traits, which can cause significant long-term health problems in some species.
Nation in Brief
A Canadian surgical team performed the country’s first facial transplant. The surgery was performed four months ago after six months of planning. The patient, Maurice Desjardins, lost his nose, lips, teeth and jaw after a hunting accident.
Canada’s ban on the use of trans fats in food products was put into effect on Monday. It targets the main source of industrially produced trans fats in all food sold in Canada; partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs). It is now illegal to use this additive in any food made or imported into Canada, as well as in meals prepared in restaurants.
Niagara College in southern Ontario is offering a full-year cannabis production program. As Canada is getting close to making the recreational use of pot legal, the program is in popular demand. According to the CBC, over 300 people applied for 24 spots.
Canada’s housing market was ranked the third riskiest in the world according to a new study by Oxford Economics. Since Canadian housing markets are the most overvalued in the world, it’s also associated with a significant risk of future price declines.
Vancouver and British Columbia are pushing the city’s Chinatown to be named a UNESCO World Heritage site. It exemplifies the crucial contributions of Chinese-Canadians. The pledge for the designation comes after two recent apologies for historical wrongs against Chinese-Canadians.
Amid an Amber Alert, a six-year-old girl in Saskatchewan was found alive after 13 hours, two kilometres from where she went missing on Monday morning. The girl was in the back of an SUV while it was stolen on Sunday. The focus has now shifted to determining who is responsible for stealing the vehicle.
City in Brief
A 27 year-old man was shot early Sunday morning on St-Laurent Blvd., near Pins Ave. After being rushed in critical condition to the hospital, he is currently recovering. At the time of the shooting, the boulevard was crowded as it was closed to traffic for a street festival.
Air Transat delayed three Europe-bound flights for over 40 hours in Pierre Elliott Trudeau this weekend. The flights destined to England, Spain and Portugal were postponed due to mechanical issues, which have now been resolved.
Beaudry metro station will be closed for eight months from Oct. 1, 2018 to June 2, 2019, while it undergoes major reconstruction. According to the STM, a shuttle service will provide transportation to Papineau and Berri-UQAM stations.
Robert Laramée, a 55 year-old repeat sex offender, has been ordered by the Parole Board of Canada to spend another year in a halfway house. Since Laramée has a long record of sexually abusing women and girls, the decision was taken to control the risk he poses.
The number of pedestrian deaths in Montreal is increasingly significant compared to last year, according to the CBC. So far in 2018, 14 pedestrians have been killed, three more than in 2017. In the last ten days, five pedestrians have been hit by moving vehicles.
“I’m dreaming of the stars. Every night it was like a blanket of stars would take over the entire sky, absolutely mesmerizing,” said Léna Seltzer, describing Swaziland. She visited the country with the Thirst Project for two weeks this past summer.
Seltzer, a second-year Concordia student majoring in political science and french with a minor in spanish, got the opportunity to visit Swaziland with the Thirst Project, to meet the communities and see the wells they had raised money to build.
Launched in 2008, the Thirst Project is the leading youth water-activism organization in the world. Its goal is to end the global water crisis by providing communities with safe drinking water. Over 2,200 projects have been completed in 13 countries, including India, El Salvador and Uganda.
Right now, the Thirst Project is committed to providing everyone in Africa’s second smallest country with safe drinking water by 2022. Seltzer, former president of her high school’s chapter of the Thirst Project, helped raise USD $28,000 out of the USD $50 million it’s going to cost.
“The focus is on Swaziland because it has [one of the world’s] highest rates of people with AIDS,” said Seltzer. The connection between water and HIV/AIDS is significant. If communities have access to medical treatments but are still forced to drink from contaminated water sources, the diseases in the water will kill them faster than AIDS itself, according to the Thirst Project.
Seltzer said women and children in Swaziland walk an average of 6.04 km every day to fetch water, which is contaminated. “It’s shared with animals that are defecating so they tend to get diseases like diarrhea. [Diseases] that would normally be uncomfortable become life threatening,” said Seltzer.
One water well in Swaziland costs USD $12,000, which means Seltzer helped raise money for at least two wells. Each well serves between 300 to 500 people. She travelled to Swaziland on behalf of the Thirst Project with a photographer and a videographer to document the project in twelve communities.
“A woman would come up to us and say ‘Look, I built this garden now that we have clean water! Do you want to come see my garden?’” said Seltzer. “And the sun shines differently there. We experienced our first African sunset. It was so powerful. And then you see it go down. Woah!” said Seltzer.
A critical part of building the wells is that the builders and contractors are from Swaziland. Not only does that create jobs, according to Seltzer, but because they are so simple, the pieces and materials can easily be found and replaced. Moreover, each community has a Water Project Technical Committee who make sure the well is maintained. Community involvement is crucial to keep the well functioning.
“My big thing that I started [during my year as president] was a gala where people dressed up and people paid for their food and entertainment,” said Seltzer. “We had raffles and donations.” The gala is now annual, and as she volunteers with the project from a distance, she is now training the new president and team at West Islip High School, her former school. “Since it started at our school in 2012, we raised USD $100,000. Now that it’s the top school [for collecting donations], there’s a lot of pressure on them,” said Seltzer.
Seltzer and her team also raised money by going dumpster diving. “We were literally in garbage cans, grabbing all the recyclable items we could find—mostly water bottles, but a mix. We would go to the supermarket and recycle everything for the 5 cents and we would leave […] with over 100 dollars often,” said Seltzer.
They also sold Pop-Tarts at school, organized yard sales and test drove cars. “Lincoln Mercury would give you $40 every time you would test drive a car,” said Seltzer.
According to the project’s website, “663 million people lack access to clean, safe drinking water.” When the project started, 1.1 billion people didn’t have access to clean drinking water, and thanks to many organizations and lots of community work, that number has gone down. Seltzer believes she is part of something bigger. “Seth Maxwell, [founder of the project], always likes to say that we are going to see the end of the water crisis in our lifetime, not in the next 80 years but when we are still here,” she said.
New active-learning classrooms a renewed Student Success Centre to be done in 2019.
While summers in Montreal are synonymous with construction, Concordia University won’t be missing it this fall as the Hall Building continues to undergo major renovations on the sixth and seventh floors.
In recent years, the university has been undergoing major construction and introducing new infrastructures, such as in the Webster library and the Faubourg building. The Hall building renovations began in Fall 2017, and they’re expected to end in 2019.
The goal of the renovations is to provide the “Concordia community with next-generation facilities that foster intellectual mixing, internal collaboration and education that’s connected, transformative and fit for the times,” according to Mary-Jo Barr, Concordia University’s spokesperson.
Construction will be going on throughout the semester on both floors. However, Barr said the work will be conducted outside of the building’s normal hours of operation.
Three new active-learning classrooms will be built on the sixth floor. Active-learning classrooms are designed to motivate students to actively engage in their own learning. Its layout consists of several round tables to encourage interaction.
Two of the classrooms will be nearly identical with a capacity of 65 each, and two display systems at opposite ends of each room, according to the construction notice. It also says the third classroom will have a capacity of 96 with 12 display systems, which will allow for smaller groups to work together. According to Barr, “the active classrooms will be available to all faculties and will provide faculty members with a teaching space that allows for flexible setups and new innovative integrated technology.”
Instead of building new classrooms on the seventh floor, the renovations will contribute to the development of a new centralized space for the Student Success Centre (SSC) on one floor, replacing the currently scattered locations. The renovations will respond to the needs of the centre, with new meeting rooms and training rooms. According to Barr, the new SSC will have office suites for students to meet with learning specialists, career advisors, and counselors one-on-one.
This part of the project comprises seven rooms in total, including a writing room and mathematics laboratory. The aim is “to support student success within Concordia and to provide cutting edge resources and facilities to support those activities for both undergraduate and graduate students,” said Barr.
The seventh floor was strategically chosen, according to Barr, as there are already many students who frequent the area because of the Concordia Student Union and People’s Potato. “The new space will have greater visibility to the students it serves,” said Barr.
A new request for proposal for audio-visual equipment in the new spaces will be released in the coming months, which will outline the updated specifications for the project.
Concordia University released the report of its task force on sexual misconduct and sexual violence on June 26. Training sessions, a step-by-step guide for filing complaints, an online hub and the implementation of a standing committee on sexual misconduct and sexual violence were recommended as key steps to moving forward.
Alan Shepard, Concordia University’s president launched the task force in January 2018, in the wake of allegations of sexual misconduct and sexual violence in the creative writing department. Its mandate is to consult the Concordia community about problems with the university’s policies and procedures concerning sexual misconduct and violence. To do so, the task force collected information and data through community conversations, surveys, and community members’ feedback.
A survey issued by the task force at the end of April was completed by over 1,500 community members, which was comprised of over 900 students and almost 600 faculty and staff members. Their level of familiarity with the current policies and resources available at Concordia was significantly weak, with an average rating of 2.1 out of 5. To address this lack of knowledge, the task force recommended that the university write a step-by-step guide for filing complaints. Lisa Ostiguy, the deputy provost and chairperson of the task force said they are “creating a mapping [of the processes]. If you experience this, here’s where you could go, here’s what they do, here’s what will happen when you get there, and here are your options when you get there.”
The step-by-step guide is expected to be complete by the fall semester. It will be a collaborative effort between all parties involved, such as the Sexual Assault Resource Centre (SARC), the Office of Rights and Responsibilities (ORR) and campus wellness and support services, among others. For instance, Jennifer Drummond, SARC’s coordinator, is responsible for outlining the centre’s processes and services in the guide.
A significant take away from the survey is that members of the Concordia community don’t know where to find help or how the processes used to file complaints work. The task force suggested an online hub, which will likely be linked to the Concordia website, to serve as a potential solution to this issue. According to Ostiguy, it will create a place where any relevant information can be found. The hub will also be constantly updated by the task force and the soon-to-be-established standing committee on sexual misconduct and sexual violence.
The task force has also placed training and education of the Concordia community as its top priority. Due to Bill 151, training will be continuous and mandatory, as is required in all post-secondary institutions. According to the report, the training will take multiple formats, including online and in person, and will be “sensitive to intersectional concerns” as well.
In the next two months, the task force will put together a standing committee mandated by Bill 151 to revise and implement the relevant policies and keep track of the university’s progress.
After being denied a US conference visa, Arabpour Roghabadi sent an email to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to thank him for Canada’s diversity. Photo by Mackenzie Lad.
After a year of research comparing construction modules in Canada and the US, Concordia PhD student, Mohammadgavad Arabpour Roghabadi won’t be able to present his findings at a conference in California this June. Why? Because of where he was born.
Arabpour Roghabadi applied for a United States conference visa, after his building engineering paper was accepted for presentation during the American Association of Cost Engineers’ international conference happening from June 24 to 27. Cost engineers oversee the management and costs of building projects he explained.
After completing his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in construction engineering in Iran, Arabpour Roghabadi began his PhD at Concordia in January 2017, under the supervision of professor Osama Moselhi. “I wanted to work with Moselhi because he is well known in the world of engineering and has had a lot of contributions to the field,” said Arabpour Roghabadi .
After he applied for a visa as an Iranian citizen with a Canadian student visa, Arabpour Roghabadi received a letter from the United States consulate explaining he was not eligible for a visa under the Presidential Proclamation 9645, also known as the “travel ban.”
Arabpour Roghabadi felt frustrated and sad he couldn’t take part in a scientific conference simply due to his place of birth.
Per this executive order, citizens from Iran, Libya, Syria, Sudan, Iraq, Yemen, and Somalia, can no longer obtain a visa to the United States, with some exceptions. According to the proclamation, Iranian citizens may obtain a student visa or an exchange visitor visa on a case by case evaluation. The letter also informed Arabpour Roghabadi that his case was to be further reviewed by the consular office.
The letter explained he would only be granted a waiver if “denying [his] entry would cause undue hardship, that [his] entry would not pose a threat to the national security or public safety of the United States and that [his] entry be in the national interest of the United States.”
“I was asked to give the consular office all of the usernames I have on social media, all of the phone numbers I have ever had, all of the addresses I’ve had, even my family’s information,” said Arabpour Roghabadi in an interview with The Concordian. He was even asked to provide the consulate a list of all his travels in the last 15 years, as well as a certified police check. The PhD student also provided a CV and information regarding his financial standing.
Finally, he was not granted a waiver. “I was sad when I was refused [a visa] because of where I was born. In my perspective it’s a kind of racism, which should be condemned. I’m proud to be Iranian,” said Arabpour Roghabadi.
He added, “It doesn’t matter where I’m from or what my [religion is]. What’s important is how I can make contributions to the world.” With that in mind, he wrote a heartfelt letter to Justin Trudeau to thank him for being the leader of such an open and diverse country. “I wish to send a message to all students about how racism can affect the future of young people who want to make contributions, but also how Canada has the perfect platform for young people to make contributions. I’m thankful for that,” said Arabpour Roghabadi.
Moselhi will be attending conference to present his and Arabpour Roghabadi’s findings of the comparative study in building engineering, which would help give a more accurate estimation of the cost of construction.
The state of Hawaii is leading an effort to overturn the travel ban. The Supreme Court of the United States is looking into the constitutionality of the proclamation versus the question of national security, and will rule on the case by the end of the month.
Ultimately the travel ban bars over 150 million people from entering the United States. Arabpour Roghabadi ended his interview with The Concordian by reading a verse by Iranian poet, Saadi Shirazi: “Human beings are members of a whole in creation of one essence […]. If you have no sympathy for human pain then the name of human you cannot retain.”
Drivers should be more interested in keeping passengers safe and comfortable
There’s a reason why Montrealers have been using more Ubers than taxis in recent years. The Uber app makes it easier for users and drivers to find each other, because their locations are shared through the app.
According to documents obtained by LeJournal de Montréal on March 23, the number of cab drivers filing for bankruptcy in Quebec has tripled since the arrival of Uber in 2014. I believe it’s due to taxis’ lack of accessibility. In the city, people can catch a cab driving down a street or hop into one in a designated waiting area. However, once you’re in a residential area, you have to call a cab company, because the odds of seeing a free cab passing by are unlikely. So, people turn to Ubers.
Waiting for an empty cab to drive down a busy street is something people want to avoid nowadays. Think about it—we have reached a point where we are used to finding the things we need in almost no time, thanks to our smartphones. I believe cab companies should hop on the technology train—or should I say Uber train—to stay accessible. The fact that people can split the fare of their ride is an added plus for Ubers. Although some taxi companies, such as Diamond Taxi, have location and prepaid services, I believe all taxi companies should advertise for it more.
All these technological advances in Ubers, like the location access, the direct payment and the option to split fares, make it an efficient application. However, Uber drivers can be and are often less experienced compared to taxi drivers. Both types of drivers go through a similar vetting process. Both are required to hold a Class C4 driver’s license, speak and read French and have no criminal record. However, Uber drivers only have eight online modules of training compared to the 150 hours of mandatory training Montreal taxi drivers have to go through. Taxi drivers’ training covers 53 hours of taxi transport regulations, 50 hours of geography and topography training and seven hours of training for transportation of a disabled person.
While I take Ubers due to their easy access, almost every Uber driver I ride with has harshly swerved on turns or ran red lights. Sometimes, they’ve made illegal turns. In other words, their “driving etiquette” isn’t perfect. I believe these drivers need a lot more training. On multiple occasions, I have had to change my destination to a closer one and get out of an Uber earlier because of reckless driving. This lack of professionalism has made me feel unsafe in Ubers.
To be fair, many Uber drivers have the “entertainment” aspect down in their cars. Some offer water bottles, phone chargers, and many have an AUX cord at their disposal for their passengers to blast their own music during the ride. In other cases, they are more interested in starting conversations and playing music than focusing on the road. While these additions are nice perks, I don’t believe they are a priority.
When an Uber ride begins, the GPS automatically creates a route, which often seems to take detours that make the ride longer than it should be. According to an Uber customer service agent, “If you have a specific route in mind, you can always request that your driver follow those directions.” Yet, when I ask the driver to follow my directions, I am either ignored or even told, “No, you don’t know how to get there.” Most of the times my destination is my own home, and these detours result in a more expensive ride.
Ultimately, neither taxis nor Ubers are perfect, but taxi companies should take advantage of the technology available in today’s world to make their service accessible to more people. As for Uber, their drivers need to have more extensive training to make sure their passengers are more comfortable during the ride.
Debra Arbec is an alumna of the Concordia journalism department. Photo by Mackenzie Lad
Journalism department alumna talks about the importance of local news
CBC Montreal anchor Debra Arbec’s lecture on Wednesday, April 4 in the Communication Studies and Journalism building wasn’t simply about discussing why local news matters. It was also about the changing responsibilities of journalists reporting on multiple platforms, specifically at the CBC.
Though an alumna of Concordia University’s journalism department, Arbec didn’t always know she wanted to become a journalist. In fact, she wanted to become a doctor, but said calculus got in the way of that dream.
“Working in a nursing home, I became really good at listening. It made me who I am, and I became a bit of a wallflower,” she said. Arbec said this wallflower characteristic is important to have as a journalist, because she’d hear people’s stories without feeling the need to talk about herself. “Taking a documentary film class changed my life. It was an epiphany for me to learn that I can listen to people, tell their stories and do it visually,” she added.
When people think of journalists, Arbec explained, their minds often wander to foreign correspondents in war zones or politically charged cities, rather than local news. Even though journalism students may not consider the latter as an option, she said “the stories in this city are fascinating.”
“We tell the stories about politicians, the police, corruption, city councils, school boards,” Arbec explained. According to her, the decisions of these community players affect Montreal directly, and local news reporters are the ones who keep them in check. “It’s really our job to keep people on the straight path, whether it’s with a foreign bureau or here in Montreal,” she added.
Arbec emphasized that local reporters often bring those authority figures to justice. For instance, in January 2017, former Montreal mayor Michael Applebaum was found guilty of eight corruption-related charges because of a reporter’s work.
Examples like election nights, the rail disaster in Lac Mégantic, and shootings, according to Arbec, are enough evidence to prove local news as anything but boring.
Arbec explained that local newsrooms are changing as much as national and international newsrooms. “Think about local news as an option,” she insisted. “It’s not easy work; the demands on reporters now are tough.” According to Arbec, Facebook Live interviews, such as the one she did with Montreal mayor Valérie Plante about the city’s budget, are a way to adapt to the digital and multimedia world.
At the CBC, it’s not unusual for a reporter to adapt the same story for two platforms; either web and radio or web and television. According to Arbec, some reporters may even adapt their stories for three platforms.
In an interview with The Concordian, Arbec said sharing a story with another reporter to have it told on multiple platforms doesn’t create tension in the newsroom because there usually isn’t enough time for a reporter to cover all platforms. “Usually, the reporter will do the story in their preferred medium, so there are no tensions there,” Arbec said. It also isn’t a struggle to determine who the story in question belongs to, she added, because the story belongs to the person it’s about.
Arbec made it clear that not only is local news a challenging job for journalists, it also provides the local community with essential information about what goes on in the city. “We’re not chasing cats up trees,” said Arbec, referring to local news. “We are the keepers of democracy.”
The Pop-up Against Procrastination invited Concordia students to enjoy a study break with coffee, food and pet therapy. Photo by Kirubel Mehari.
The Pop-up Against Procrastination invited Concordia students to enjoy a study break with coffee, food and pet therapy. Photo by Kirubel Mehari.
Concordia Student Success Centre pop-up offers tips and support for students during finals
Every student is likely guilty of procrastination. Despite having too much work and not enough time, it’s not uncommon for students to find themselves putting off assignments and studying, particularly at this point in the semester. With that in mind, Concordia’s Student Success Centre organized a “Pop-up Against Procrastination” on March 28.
Strategically set up in the LB atrium, students on their way to the library could swing by for free sandwiches, popcorn and coffee. The event also provided students with support, tips and services to help them avoid procrastinating. The pop-up was divided into three types of stations designed to tackle different factors of procrastination. Several stations were geared toward learning support services, such as the writing assistant and math tutoring services offered year-round by the Student Success Centre, as well as the various research tools and services provided by the university libraries.
“We help students develop the skills they need to edit their own papers,” said writing assistant Kelly Routly, who specified that “one thing we don’t do is edit and proofread.” Essay writing can be a long, complicated process that requires time. Writing assistants at the Student Success Centre help students with this process by teaching them how to spot mistakes on their own. “You’ll spot mistakes by reading your essay out loud,” advised writing assistant Cindy Hanna. “It’s very helpful.”
Students gathered at the pet therapy station to embrace the dog and relieve some stress. Photo by Kirubel Mehari.
Writing assistants like Hanna can assist students with the brainstorming process and teach them how to structure and organize their essays. The centre also offers group conversation sessions in English and French to help students improve their language skills. Routly suggested students take the time to write two drafts of their essay. “A lot of students will try to make their first attempt be the final draft, but it helps to go over it to produce a final draft from that first, initial draft,” she said.
Other learning support stations at the pop-up offered smart study strategies and a time management checkup. Free monthly and daily planners, as well as blank checklists, were available for students to help them prepare for final exams. Stationed at the time management booth, Charles Procee, a liaison for the Student Success Centre, said the trick to following a study schedule is to treat it like a guideline rather than a “shackle.”
“Life happens,” Procee said. “Let the study schedule guide your day, not dominate it.” A study schedule is not effective, he added, if students are being too strict about it and stressing themselves out. It’s all about being realistic when planning a study day; Procee advises students aim to complete 80 per cent of their study goal.
The pop-up also featured stations to help students lower their stress levels. Counsellors were available to speak with students about their mental wellbeing, and a table was set up with mandalas and coloured pencils to encourage therapeutic colouring. At his own station, a Bernese mountain therapy dog named Café was surrounded by smiling students eager to pet him and take photos.
Students could have their questions answered by academic advisors, career counsellors and librarian staff at the planning assistance stations. According to business librarian Melissa Rivosecchi, knowing how to use the research tools available on the library’s website or on-site allows students to be much more efficient and successful in their research. This can also encourage students to avoid procrastinating.
Rivosecchi said some students don’t know that the university library databases are divided by subject, or that they can widen their research using Boolean operators. “Students may not know that the library website also has many citation guides that have detailed explanations,” she added.
The “sharing wall” invited students to write tips and motivational notes for their peers. Photo by Kirubel Mehari.
Here are a few tips from the Student Success Centre to avoid procrastination:
Start with the smaller tasks that don’t require too much effort
Treat your study blocks like a game; try to finish each task within a set time limit
Tell others about the specific tasks you’re working on; this will motivate you to complete them
Schedule time to relax and breathe; and remember, you can do it!
The “sharing wall” invited students to write tips and motivational notes for their peers.
