Early on Wednesday March 1, several media outlets in Montreal received a bomb threat claiming to be from the “Council of Concerned Citizens of Canada,” a white supremacist organization also known as C4. The threat, delivered via email, explained that “small […] amateur explosive devices” had been placed in two buildings at Concordia University with the intent of harming Muslim students. Later that morning, McGill’s CKUT radio station received an email from the same group, which promised to “spread [their] fight to McGill too.”

So far, only one suspect, 47 year old Hisham Saadi, has been arrested in relation to the bomb threat at Concordia: he has been charged with mischief, issuing a death threat, and inciting fear of a terrorist attack.

Islamophobic bomb threat at Concordia

On Wednesday morning, several local media outlets received a threatening email purporting to be from C4. The email stated that C4’s goal was to injure Muslim students at Concordia, and began by citing the election of U.S. President Donald Trump as inspiration for the group’s violent agenda.

“Now that President Trump is in office south of the border, things have changed,” the email read. “We will not tolerate [Muslim students’] behavior anymore.” The email went on to state that a series of explosive devices would detonate once per day between March 1 at 12 p.m., and March 3 at 2 p.m..

The email stated that C4’s goal was to injure Muslim students at Concordia, and began by citing the election of U.S. President Donald Trump as inspiration for the group’s violent agenda.

While this fact was not referenced in C4’s email, this week was Islamic Awareness Week at Concordia, and the Muslim Students’ Association had set up promotional displays in the Hall building, one of the locations targeted.

After several hours of searching the targeted buildings with canine units, the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) declared them to be clear. By 6 p.m. the buildings were once again open to the public.

On Wednesday afternoon, the Concordia Student Union (CSU) issued a public statement in which they decried Islamophobia and bigotry, and called on the university administration to cancel classes and exams for the rest of this week.

“We are deeply concerned that classes are proceeding as per usual in most buildings,” read the CSU’s statement, “considering that many Muslim students, staff and faculty will not be feeling safe anywhere near campus today. Furthermore, cancelling all classes is the only way to ensure that it is not up to individual instructors to decide whether students are penalized for being made unsafe in their own school.”

“We are deeply concerned that classes are proceeding […] considering that many Muslim students, staff and faculty will not be feeling safe anywhere near campus today.”

Christine Mota, a spokesperson from Concordia, spoke to The Daily regarding the bomb threat and subsequent evacuation:

“The threat was specific to two buildings, so we only closed two,” Mota told The Daily in a phone interview, “but then we realized that there is a third [building] attached to one of them, with a passageway connecting the two, so we thought to be safe we would evacuate the third building as well.”

“We are going to increase our security over the next few days,” continued Mota. “The community needs a sense of security, and we want to make sure everyone feels comfortable.”

Shortly after the evacuation of the targeted buildings, the Muslim Students’ Association (MSA) of Concordia released a public statement, calling the bomb threat “a disturbing effort to intimidate the campus population, and in particular, to target Concordia’s Muslim student population during ‘Islam Awareness Week’ (IAW).”

“A disturbing effort to intimidate the campus population, and in particular, to target Concordia’s Muslim student population during ‘Islam Awareness Week’ (IAW).”

“The MSA calls on law enforcement to investigate the incident as a hate crime,” read the statement. “It further welcomes the words of solidarity and support issued by the Concordia University administration and by the Concordia Student Union (CSU). A threat against one of us is indeed a threat against all of us. […] The MSA unequivocally condemns all acts of violence and discrimination against any individual or group. No faith community should have to live in fear about the safety and well-being of its community members.”

Subsequent threat against McGill

Louis Arsenault, VP Communications and External Relations at McGill, provided a statement to The Daily by email, in response to C4’s threat to “spread [their] fight to McGill too.”

“McGill is taking all measures necessary to ensure the safety of all members of its community. Our Security Services personnel are in contact with and are working with the SPVM,” wrote Arsenault. “There has been no specific threat made against McGill buildings, as there was at Concordia University, where police today found no physical evidence of a threat to members of the Concordia community.”

According to Arsenault’s statement, the University “condemns all forms of and threats of violence against any member of its diverse community.”

Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) VP University Affairs Erin Sobat emailed a statement to The Daily, speaking on behalf of the SSMU executive.

“No faith community should have to live in fear about the safety and well-being of its community members.”

“We are deeply disturbed by the events at Concordia,” wrote Sobat, “which we understand to be part of a pattern of increased hate, intimidation, and violence against marginalized communities and faith groups in Quebec and Canada. We denounce such acts of terror and stand in solidarity with our Muslim students who face islamophobia every day. We also call on our administration to do more than secure the physical safety of our campus by taking steps to actively combat intolerance and foster an environment where all of our community members feel safe.”

Sobat urged the administration to take tangible steps to establish a better relationship with the Muslim community at McGill, and commit to actively combatting Islamophobia.

“This is an opportunity for the university to collaborate with Muslim groups and allies to determine how we can better meet their needs as a community, for example by heeding repeated calls to provide accessible prayer spaces on campus,” he wrote. “The SSMU remains committed to advocating for these needs and we welcome input from our members on how best to respond to recent events.”

Who are C4?

Because the group purportedly behind the bomb threat calls itself the Council of Conservative Citizens of Canada, there has been speculation that C4 is a splinter group of the better-known Council of Conservative Citizens (CofCC), a U.S. white supremacist group. Based out of St. Louis, Missouri, the CofCC is led by Canadian Paul Fromm, a Neo-Nazi who has been linked to multiple white supremacist groups across the U.S. and Canada.

“We also call on our administration […] to actively combat intolerance and foster an environment where all of our community members feel safe.”

The CofCC was in the news in 2015, when it emerged that Dylann Roof, the terrorist who murdered nine people at a Black church in Charleston, South Carolina, had referenced the group several times in his manifesto.

The CofCC has denied any knowledge of the bomb threat at Concordia or of C4.

Rising Islamophobia in Canada

The Concordia threat was the most recent in a series of local Islamophobic incidents; indeed, Islamophobia appears to have been on the rise in Canada in recent months.

In December 2016, shortly after Trump’s election, fliers were posted around the Milton-Parc neighbourhood which contained the slogan “Make Canada Great Again,” as well as homophobic and Islamophobic symbols.

On January 29, a white supremacist walked into a Quebec City mosque during evening prayer and opened fire, killing six people. The 27 year old shooter was a student at the University of Laval, and a known supporter of Trump and the far-right. Following the attack in Quebec City, Montreal experienced a sharp spike in hate crimes committed against Muslims, with 14 hate crimes committed in the first two days following the attack. According to statistics provided by the SPVM, hate crimes against Muslims in Montreal have been steadily increasing, with 137 last year, compared to 81 in 2013.

According to statistics provided by the SPVM, hate crimes against Muslims in Montreal have been steadily increasing, with 137 last year, compared to 81 in 2013.

More recently, a pro-Islamophobia rally titled “URGENT Rally for Free Speech” was organized in Toronto by The Rebel, a far-right media outlet. In fact, a similar rally organized by the “Canadian Coalition of Concerned Citizens” will occur at noon at the Montreal City Hall on Saturday March 4. An anti-fascist counter-protest will be taking place at the same time and place.

UPDATE: It is now being reported that Hisham Saadi, the man charged in connection to the bomb threat, was a PhD student in economics at Concordia. This story will be updated further as more details emerge.

The post Bomb threat targets Muslim students at Concordia appeared first on The McGill Daily.

“The Donald Trump of Canada”

Kevin O’Leary has long occasioned comparisons to U.S. President Donald Trump. Both men are billionaires who gained mainstream fame through reality television and subsequently launched political careers despite possessing no formal political experience.

Like Trump, O’Leary’s campaign has shown him to be unabashedly populist with little emphasis on policy, while often being out of touch with Canadians. He was also recently criticized for posting a video of himself at a gun range during a funeral for the victims of the recent shooting at a Quebec City mosque, and has been ridiculed for his past refusal to participate in French-language debates, saying that instead of French, he speaks “the language of jobs.”

Heavy police presence on campus

The SSMU building was swarming with security personnel in the hour leading up to the start of the event, as organizers hoped to prevent protesters from interrupting O’Leary’s address. In the end, McGill security and the police kept all protestors outside the building.

Kevin O’Leary has long occasioned comparisons to U.S. President Donald Trump. Both men are billionaires who gained mainstream fame through reality television and subsequently launched political careers despite possessing no formal political experience.

Meanwhile, it appeared that many of the event’s attendees were not actually members of Conservative McGill, but rather undecided voters getting a first look at a potential nominee. Two attendees, who asked to remain anonymous, discussed their interest in O’Leary’s speech in an interview with The Daily.

“I think the thing about elections,” said one, “is it’s not the party that you subscribe to, rather it’s listening with a critical mind to each side and picking what best represents you as a Canadian.”

“I live in Alberta, where we are in a recession,” explained another, “so as a young Canadian I find it inspiring that he wants to focus on the economy. The one place where I am critical of Kevin O’Leary is that he seems to lack the social views, which would normally lose my vote in this case, but I guess we’ll find out what he says today.”

O’Leary speaks

O’Leary’s address painted a different picture of the Conservative Party than many may have been used to. The candidate claimed that he wished to see the party opened to people of all faiths, races, and sexualities, and called himself a “conservative expansionist.”

He made it clear that he sought to win the Canadian youth vote by declaring his support for LGBTQ rights and marijuana legalization.

“I think the thing about elections is it’s not the party that you subscribe to, rather it’s listening with a critical mind to each side and picking what best represents you as a Canadian.”

O’Leary’s primary focus, however, was the economy. He struck a critical tone with regard to the Trudeau administration’s policies, and promised to abolish the “Carbon Tax” as his first action if he were to become Prime Minister.

“My entry into this race occurred hours after I read that document by the Trudeau government that told me that for the next thirty-eight years, this country would run deficits, so by the end the people of this country will be $1.5 trillion in debt,” he claimed.

O’Leary has, in the past, shown himself to be heavily critical of government regulation and intervention, his pandering to small-government conservatives and theatrical mannerisms all the more reminiscent of Trump.

Q&A

O’Leary opted to host a question and answer period, accepting a number of attendees’ questions. Some asked him how he would differentiate himself from Donald Trump, others asked him about the environment, others still asked about his positions on relevant issues facing Canadians.

One attendee, Sophia, a law student at McGill, asked O’Leary “If you become Prime Minister, will you divest yourself from your businesses to [….] reassure Canadians [about potential conflicts of interest?]”

O’Leary alleged that if he become Prime Minister, he would put part of his investments into a blind trust, and that any remaining portion of his assets would be liquified.

The post Kevin O’Leary comes to McGill appeared first on The McGill Daily.

The meeting aimed to “provide folks with an opportunity to engage themselves in our various subgroups, including an action/demo committee, mobilizing to disrupt Trump’s eventual visit to Ottawa, a a popular education group to organize workshops and events, as well as a network building and communication committee,” according to the event’s Facebook page.

“Let’s turn our collective anger into action by working together to build short and long term plans to resist the racism, sexism and far-right politics that Donald Trump represents,” it concluded.

“Resist Trump” brands itself as a grassroots organization that seeks to organize activities to resist and disrupt the Trump administration’s agenda, whether by protesting in solidarity with Americans or disrupting a Trump visit to Ottawa.

“Let’s turn our collective anger into action by working together to build short and long term plans to resist the racism, sexism and far-right politics that Donald Trump represents.”

The group is loosely organized, with sections dedicated to organizing action, online activism, and education. They have organized several anti-Trump protests, including one of the larger protests in Montreal on inauguration day, and were part of the reason that President Trump’s planned trip to Ottawa was canceled due to fear of disruptive protests.

In an interview with The Daily, Anas Bouslikhane, who joined Resist Trump shortly after the election, said, “We must view how autonomously, collectively we can respond to the structures that have been against us for so long; so that is the political parties, the big businesses, the big corporations, the oil industry that have been attacking Indigenous people […], and the legal system. […] How do we collectively confront this enormous global far-right that is slowly becoming a reality?”

“We can tangibly do these things, we can […] start conversation, we can tangibly get together like we are doing today […] and we can […] go ahead and go to the borders and we can challenge those.” he said.

“You can say no to a wall, you can take down a wall, because nobody gets hurt with that,” Bouslikhane continued. “[Walls] block lives and kill because those mean death sentences to people, whether it’s a physical wall or it’s a signature, so an abstract wall […]. Those are all borders that we can collectively challenge, resist, and hopefully take down.”

“We must view how autonomously, collectively we can respond to the structures that have been against us for so long; so that is the political parties, the big businesses, the big corporations, the oil industry that have been attacking Indigenous people […], and the legal system. […] How do we collectively confront this enormous global far-right that is slowly becoming a reality?”

There was a general sense of urgency in the room, as all in attendance voiced both concern and an eagerness to fight back.

“I am incredibly concerned about the […] global rise of the far right. I think that not enough people talk about far-right extremism; it is an incredibly significant issue, increasingly because of people of people like Donald Trump getting elected to positions of power,” member of “Resist Trump” and event organizer Nicole LeBlanc told The Daily.

“[Donald Trump] is explicitly racist, misogynist, he advocates anti-LGBT policies, he advocates anti-immigrant policies, and has actually enforced many of those, so it is very, very scary.”

Although Trump’s jurisdiction ends at the Canadian border, LeBlanc told The Daily that she believes organizing against Trump in Montreal is still of the utmost importance.

“When a far-right extremist gets elected into a position of power and given a huge national platform, and in Trump’s case, a global platform […] this agenda and this rhetoric is being increasingly normalized.”

It has only been a little more than two weeks since Donald Trump’s inauguration, but what the Trump administration has done during that time and the resulting impact has been overwhelming to many.

On Friday January 27, Trump signed an executive order that banned U.S. entry for citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries: Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen. The order also suspended the U.S. refugee program for four months, as well as indefinitely suspended the admission of Syrian refugees.

“You can say no to a wall, you can take down a wall, because nobody gets hurt with that. [Walls] block lives and kill because those mean death sentences to people, whether it’s a physical wall or it’s a signature, so an abstract wall […]. Those are all borders that we can collectively challenge, resist, and hopefully take down.”

Since the signing of the executive order, 60,000 visas have been revoked according to The Independent. This move has sparked outrage, both in the U.S. and abroad.

“We have all been saying for a very long time that the far-right is a problem, and now I believe this is an opportunity to take that discussion into the mainstream. This is not just about Trump, this is about a rhetoric and policies that are intrinsically violent and oppressive, that are being normalized and that are being sort of state-sanctioned, and even our government isn’t taken a firm stance [against that],” LeBlanc continued.

LeBlanc noted that the systemic racism and rhetoric against marginalized people has existed for a long time, but Trump and other far-right leaders’ rhetoric is normalizing it. “Members of marginalized communities would say that this stuff has been normalized for a long time, but it is being normalized to a […] different degree now.”

When asked what she would like to see happen with regards to Resist Trump, she said she’d like to see “this become a popular mobilization in opposition of the far right, and what I probably hope even more so is to sort of bring some of the ideas of the network in opposition to the far right and critical of capitalism and stuff like that I hope that we can bring more of those ideas into the mainstream.”

The post “Resist Trump” fears normalizing far right appeared first on The McGill Daily.

Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign has received international coverage, with many denouncing his proposed policies, which include building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, a temporary ban on Muslims immigrating to the United States, and derogatory comments against women, people of colour, people with disabilities, Mexicans, Muslims, and others. His election as U.S. president was shocking to many, and has resulted in a number of domestic and global protests against growing nationalism, xenophobia, and protectionism.

The event, which marked the highest turnout for Socialist Fightback at McGill and Concordia, consisted of a talk given by Joel Bergman, an organizer and member of Socialist Fightback for over ten years, that was accompanied by a concurrent French translation. An open floor discussion amongst the attendees followed.

“How did Donald Trump win the election? How did this racist, sexist, misogynist, lying billionaire become the President of the most powerful country in the history of the world? And how were all of the analysts so wrong?” Bergman asked the crowd. “Everyone said ‘this is impossible, it will never happen, he’s a joke’ […] It wasn’t just one or two stupid analysts; this was across the board. This was not an ordinary election, and we are not living in ordinary times.”

“Obviously, everyone was surprised, even I was somewhat surprised by the Trump victory” Bergman said in an interview with The Daily. “If you look at what happened in Britain, with this vote to leave the E.U. [European Union], [it’s] a very similar phenomenon, and if you look at what’s happening all over Europe, […] we are seeing a rise in political polarization to the right and to the left.”

“This was not an ordinary election, and we are not living in ordinary times.”

Bergman has previously spoke to The Daily about the “crisis of capitalism,” but following the results of this election, he seemed even more convinced that now is the time for a fundamental change in the system.

“This is the least popular president in the history of the country, and he hasn’t even been inaugurated yet,” he said.

“I think that the only way to fight this sort of division that [Trump] uses, his language that he uses [which] is very similar to scapegoating, […] is with solidarity,” Kian Kenyon-Dean, a member of Socialist Fightback, told The Daily. “You can’t fight capitalism with capitalism, you can’t fight fire with fire; you fight fire with water. You fight division with solidarity, [and] you fight capitalism with socialism.”

Kenyon-Dean went on to explain that in many ways, Trump’s election seems to have been a wake-up call for people.

“This is the least popular president in the history of the country, and he hasn’t even been inaugurated yet.”

“The fact is that Trump getting elected has radicalized people to the left and to the right, and we can’t just sit around and mope,” he explained. “It may be a cliche, [but] it’s a good one: it’s a famous quote, ‘don’t mourn, organize,’ and that’s what we need to do now. We need to present an actual alternative.”

Speaking to The Daily, Julien Arseneau, a member of Fightback and one of the event’s organizers, said: “We can’t ignore the background of economic collapse in the U.S.. In 2008 the big banks were saved when hundreds of billions of dollars were pumped into the banking system […] but interestingly when the poor Americans lose their houses, lose their jobs, nobody is there to help them and they [the government] say ‘we don’t have money,’ but then [they] have $700 billion for the banks.”

“You fight division with solidarity, [and] you fight capitalism with socialism.”

“I think Americans were desperately seeking an alternative to the status quo, and unfortunately in this election, the only seemingly different thing from the status quo was Donald Trump,” Arseneau added.

This was a common theme amongst the attendees, as the consensus seemed to be that it was Americans’ frustration with the system that led to their new president-elect. Many attendees also felt the opposition to Trump needed to stop labeling his supporters as racist or misogynist, and rather call them what they are: people who feel frustrated and disenfranchised.

However, discussion showed that there was no unanimous agreement on how to approach resisting president-elect Trump.
One attendee, who did not identify himself, spoke on the issue of systemic change: “We are a system, and a system cannot change if there is resistance.”

“Resistance is what we are doing, in our efforts to dismantle Trump and his claim to the presidency and not accepting it, is resistance on our part. Therefore, instead of fighting to bring him down, why don’t we try to come up with solutions? Why don’t we force legislation to be passed?” he asked the crowd.

“I think Americans were desperately seeking an alternative to the status quo, and unfortunately in this election, the only seemingly different thing from the status quo was Donald Trump.”

“Just protesting, talking, and complaining doesn’t offer a solution, and in fact it might appear to make him seem the better person. It makes him become the victim of something that is considered negative in society,” he continued.

“I am not saying it is wrong to protest, I am just saying we need to have a smart approach,” he added.

Though his idea was not shared by all in the room, as the general opinion called for the complete removal of the capitalist system, the point that he made seemed to hit home.

“Therefore, instead of fighting to bring him down, why don’t we try to come up with solutions? Why don’t we force legislation to be passed?”

“We need more than just protests, we need to actually put forward something positive that we do want,” Bergman told The Daily. “Eventually, with no direction, people get tired and go home, so there needs to be a real movement.”

The post Socialist Fightback against Trump appeared first on The McGill Daily.

These questions were at the forefront of a panel called “L’Affaire Lagacé: A Free Press in The Surveillance State,” on Thursday, November 10, in response to the recent revelations that the Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) had been using wiretaps on journalists.

These revelations came about after La Presse broke the story that the SPVM had been spying on one of their reporters, Patrick Lagacé. This quickly became a much larger scandal when it was revealed that warrants for journalists from other media outlets had also been issued.

Panelists at the event included former BBC reporter and executive director of the Fédération professionnelle des journalistes du Québec (FPJQ) Caroline Locher, Mark Bantey, a partner at the Gowling WLG law firm, Fabien Gélinas, a professor of Law at McGill, and Yann Pineau, the senior director of Continuous Improvement at La Presse.

The panel was moderated by Andrew Potter, former journalist and director of The McGill Institute for the Study of Canada (MISC).

“I clued in when Lucinda Chodan, editor of the Montreal Gazette, along with Eric Trottier of La Presse and a couple other journalists, published an open letter basically calling this an outrage,” Potter told The Daily. “That was when I realized this was a problem I needed to pay attention to and I thought ‘somebody needs to do something’ and then I thought ‘hey wait, I have an institute whose job it is to convene these sort of things.’”

During the event, Locher said, “I have reported on many countries that do not have freedom of the press, countries you would call a police state, and what we saw here is in many ways close to a police state.”

“I clued in when Lucinda Chodan, editor of the Montreal Gazette, along with Eric Trottier of La Presse and a couple other journalists, published an open letter basically calling this an outrage.”

In response to the wiretapping, the province of Quebec has launched a public inquiry, headed by a commission of experts on law and journalism. The panelists believe this will bring to light many of the answers needed to proceed.

“It is hard for us to make a judgement of the investigations without all of the facts,” Gélinas said to the room. “We don’t know what the police had put forward to the judges, and [the] provisions of the law under which the warrants were issued. There were multiple warrants issued by different judges, meaning there is reason to believe the judges did not know the depth of the situation.”

“I have reported on many countries that do not have freedom of the press, countries you would call a police state, and what we saw here is in many ways close to a police state.”

However, some attendees of the event were skeptical that the commission would bring about substantial change. Sharon Polsky, an attendee and president of the AMINA Corporation – which specializes in privacy and data protection, offered a more “realistic outlook,” in her words.

“Having grown up in Montreal, it is the current issue with police surveillance under questionable circumstances that leads me to believe that things have not changed much [since I moved to Toronto],” she said. “It has always been, in my experience, […] a vibrant city, but one where corruption exists and is deeply entrenched in every aspect of life here. I must wonder what positive outcome – what real change – might happen from a commission. They ask questions, there are inquiries, but nothing comes of it.”

Panel members also shared concerns about the future of journalism, and the potential negative ramifications of the 2016 U.S. presidential election on the profession.

“We don’t know what the police had put forward to the judges, and [the] provisions of the law under which the warrants were issued. There were multiple warrants issued by different judges, meaning there is reason to believe the judges did not know the depth of the situation.”

“In the past year, we’ve seen a presidential candidate that has attacked directly journalism, journalists, and media, and this is something that has never been seen before in the history of presidential elections,” said Locher. “He has threatened to sue journalists, put into question whether the laws that protect free press are even founded and good, and this person today [will be] the president of the United States.”

“It’s problematic because Donald Trump is the first presidential candidate to outright declare war on the media,” Potter added. “Going to war against the media rhetorically is a long standing political practice, John Diefenbaker who was Prime Minister back in the 1950s and 60s famously said ‘everyone is against me except for the people.’”

“However, it’s one thing to believe that the media has a bias against you, versus inciting violence against reporters,” he said.

The panelists found that the threat of police surveillance and infringement on freedom of the press continue to be important issues today, although many thought those days were over.

“We are in this business because we believe that somehow there is right and wrong, and somehow we can make things right by reporting on things that matter to society,” Pineau told the crowd. “We may be a bit naive, but we like to believe people do the best they can no matter what job they have, and we never would have thought that the police would be doing this to us.”

The post Panel discusses surveillance of the press appeared first on The McGill Daily.

Initial reactions to the DPSV

Between September 23 and October 3, SSMU and PGSS hosted a total of eight focus group sessions during which students gave detailed feedback on the DPSV, including two closed sessions for survivors of sexual assault. All sessions were facilitated by trained volunteers from the Sexual Assault Centre of the McGill Students Society (SACOMSS).

On October 12, SSMU and PGSS released a Consultation Report on the DPSV, which contains 28 recommendations for improvement. These recommendations were divided into seven different categories: language and framing, scope, empowering survivors, education and awareness, support resources, accountability, and comprehensive review.

In an interview with The Daily, SSMU VP University Affairs Erin Sobat explained the process that led up to writing the consultation report: “McGill first circulated a draft policy in May, over the summer […] and at the time we were really emphasizing the need for wider consultation, particularly with those who would be most affected by a policy like this,” said Sobat. “Now in the most recent revisions we see a centralized office that has been identified with a name, but there are other policies and procedures at the University that aren’t explicitly named or aren’t very clear on how they play in.”

With regards to the focus group sessions, he said, “I think it was very useful and important to get the perspective of just students at large on how they would access or navigate this policy. […] I think for students who were just reading through this, it really wasn’t very clear what it was intending to do.”

In an email to The Daily, PGSS Equity Commissioner Angela Yu, who was also involved in the drafting of the report, said, “our report emphasizes that the policy must be explicit about the expectations, resources and procedures that exist on our campus to address sexual violence to best serve all members of our community.”

“I think for students who were just reading through this, it really wasn’t very clear what it was intending to do.”

“A pro-survivor policy needs to clearly outline centralized reporting procedures and the rights of respondents just as much as it should ensure the university-wide provision of accessible and intersectional support resources,” she went on to write.

The Daily also reached out to a representative from the McGill chapter of Silence is Violence to discuss the DPSV. “I believe that survivors’ recommendations should have been specifically highlighted and given extra weight too. Survivors know what’s best for them,” the representative said, adding that, “I’m concerned that there was no specific effort to reach out to those who have reported sexual assault at McGill to provide feedback.”

“A pro-survivor policy needs to clearly outline centralized reporting procedures and the rights of respondents just as much as it should ensure the university-wide provision of accessible and intersectional support resources.”

The Consultation report

As for the consultation report itself, the first category, language and framing, revealed “many participants, and particularly survivors, indicated that the policy’s preamble does not sufficiently recognize the devastating impact of sexual violence for those who experience it.”

It further notes the context of sexual violence is not explicitly defined, nor are the barriers that prevent reporting incidents of sexual violence, and that certain phrases are ambiguous.

The report calls for “contextualizing the disproportionate occurrence of sexual violence on university campus” and recognizing the impact of systemic oppression, among other recommendations.

The section on empowering survivors places much emphasis on creating a “pro-survivor framework,” revealing that participants voiced concerns about survivors’ autonomy.

Regarding this, the report notes that many participants believed the emphasis on “procedural equity,” took away from the policy’s other commitments. They recommended that the rights of both survivors and perpetrators be clearly outlined to clarify “procedural expectations” for both parties.

It also recommends that the policy specify a “centralized disclosure and reporting process,” and introduce timelines for the provision of “support and recourse measures for both disclosures and reports.”

With regards to education and awareness, the report calls for the development of a university-wide education plan that will address sexual violence awareness and response measures, as well as provide basic educational materials to staff.

The report also recommends that “detailed training sessions,” be provided for front line service staff and those involved with responding to disclosures and reports.

Section five of the DPSV, which focuses on support resources, recommends that McGill “identify the specific resources responsible for enacting policy commitments, including employee titles and a centralized awareness and response office.”

With regards to education and awareness, the report calls for the development of a university-wide education plan that will address sexual violence awareness and response measures, as well as provide basic educational materials to staff.

It also recommends the implementation of “new intersectional and culturally-specific support resources,” and the development of direct lines of referral to all support resources.

The section on accountability concluded that McGill must acknowledge the history of sexual violence, as well as the administration and community’s shared responsibility of addressing it and recognizing perpetrators’ role in enacting sexual violence. It also called upon McGill to commit to enforcing consequences “via existing disciplinary procedures.”

The final section, “comprehensive review,” focuses on Article 21 of the DPSV, which provides for a review of the “phenomenon” of sexual violence on campus.

The report calls for a review of the policy to be conducted by a committee at “arms-length” from the administration with “qualified students, staff, faculty, and external experts.” It asks that the committee be mandated to review McGill’s existing policies and procedures, and that they develop a detailed consultation plan for reaching people who understand university reporting structures.

The report’s final request was that the committee mandate, consultation plan, progress reports, and final recommendations be shared with the university community.

It concluded that a policy against sexual violence at McGill is the first step towards combating rape culture on campus. This current draft “provides a valuable framework for educating the community and enhancing support for survivors.”

The report’s final request was that the committee mandate, consultation plan, progress reports, and final recommendations be shared with the university community.

More than just a policy

However, Silence is Violence expressed concerns regarding the impact of the policy on sexual violence.

“I don’t think that a policy could have much effect if its enactment isn’t being actively overseen by another body,” the spokesperson said. “While I think the recommendations are trying to achieve the best they can in this system, I seriously doubt there would be much difference in the prevalence of sexual violence on campus or support offered to survivors.”

Meanwhile, Yu added that “we believe that the campus review of sexual violence slated for next year will allow us to continue these much-needed conversations on a university-wide level and productively direct the implementation of the policy.”

Sobat also believes there is still much to do in regards to McGill’s work against sexual violence. “I believe it’s important for us to recognize that we need more than just a policy. [The University should go] beyond the policy at the procedures and [consider] the longer term educational strategy on campus,” he said.

“While I think the recommendations are trying to achieve the best they can in this system, I seriously doubt there would be much difference in the prevalence of sexual violence on campus or support offered to survivors.”

He added that “we would like to see a recognition from the administration that sexual violence not only does occur, but has occurred in the past and people have been failed by the system in place. A campus wide plan on campus for implementation and education is definitely needed.”

The post Consultation Report emphasizes specificity in Sexual Violence Policy appeared first on The McGill Daily.

The press conference called into question a statement by the Canadian government on the current situation in Syria, and Turkish-Canadian diplomatic relations – it was issued to The McGill Daily by the office of Foreign Minister Stéphane Dion

“We are here today two weeks after a demonstration which we organized outside of the office of Canadian Foreign Minister Stéphane Dion,” said Nathan McDonnell, a representative of Rojava Solidarity Montreal. “We were 80 people there, both Kurdish and non-Kurdish, and the response that we got from Stéphane Dion was very disappointing, full of holes, and contradictions.”

“[The Foreign Minister’s statement] did not talk about Turkey’s attacks on the Kurds, both within Turkey and within Syria,” McDonnell stated.

The demonstration, held roughly a month ago outside the Foreign Minister’s Montreal office, sought a response from the Canadian government regarding the recent military offensive by Turkey in Syria; while theoretically targeting Daesh (also known as ISIS), it has also been used to attack Kurdish communities. The Kurdish People’s Protection (YPG) units have been at the front lines of the fight against Daesh since the Syrian government withdrew from the self-declared autonomous region of Rojava in 2012, and currently receive military support from the United States.

“There was little in the news of Turkey’s simultaneous assault on the region known as Rojava,” asserted McDonnell. “The area is in large part populated by the Kurds, the largest stateless ethnic group in the world.”

Turkey began a military offensive in Syria in late August. Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has repeatedly made his stance clear, stating that he would oppose the creation of any autonomous Kurdish state, and has put his words into action with this new military offensive.

“The Kurdish movement, led by the YPG government, has helped to establish a free and democratic government in the area,” continued McDonnell. “They encourage the full participation of women in decision making and uphold their rights. They do not persecute anyone for their ethnicity or religion, and diversity is celebrated. This movement has been the strongest defense against ISIS and have freed many towns and cities previously held by ISIS. The group has received air support from the U.S., and has become the coalition’s strongest ally in the region.”

There have been new accusations against the Turkish military in recent weeks, with reports coming out of Syria claiming that chemical weapons have been used against Kurdish forces in the region – the use of which is a war crime under international law, as established under the Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993, which has been in force since 1997.

“Western leaders, despite stating that they aim to create a free and democratic Syria, have remained totally silent with regard to Turkey’s attacks on Rojava,” McDonnell continued. “Turkey has claimed that the Kurdish movement is a terrorist organization. However, we hear very little of Turkey’s constant assaults on the Kurdish population inside Turkey itself.”

Pierre Jasmin, a member of the Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, was also present at the press conference. He expressed concerns regarding the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation’s (NATO) nuclear weapons that are currently being kept in Turkey, and the implications of the Erdoğan government having a nuclear arsenal.

“The general that was in charge of the [nuclear weapons] was arrested in the aftermath of the coup,” Jasmin explained. “This is a sign to us that Turkey is completely irresponsible with their nuclear weapons. These are facts, and they are very worrisome.”

Gurkan Ormangoren, co-president of the Toronto Kurdish Community Center, also present at the press conference, expressed his frustration with Turkey’s military endeavors in Rojava.

“Turkey is not fighting against ISIS; it went into Rojava to take Kurdish lives,” Ormangoren asserted. “In northern Kurdistan, in Turkey, [the Turkish government] have used the [failed] coup as an excuse to take over 24 municipalities of Kurdish regions and have put Kurdish politicians in jail, such as mayors and elected leaders.”

“As we stand [outside] Justin Trudeau’s office,” he continued, “we are asking the Canadian government to see the real picture behind this. We understand that Turkey has been a member of NATO since [1952] and is an important ally to Canada. However, if the Canadian government is supporting the creation of [a] democratic government, they should support the Kurdish movements.”

Overall, the tone of the conference was one of frustration and concern, not only for the lives of Kurdish people, but also the lack of a meaningful Canadian response to the issue.

“Canada is in an important position,” McDonnell told those assembled. “As a NATO ally of Turkey’s, and as a government that claims a commitment to human rights, Canada has a responsibility to call out Turkey for its ethnic cleansing of the Kurdish people […] Silence on this matter means complicity.”

The post Press conference held in solidarity with Kurds of Rojava appeared first on The McGill Daily.

The event was organized by Socialist Fightback at Concordia and McGill, a student association that aims “to promote a Marxist analysis and program for today’s workers and youth.” The group is a chapter of the larger Canadian Socialist Fightback collective, which describes itself as “the Marxist voice of the working class and revolutionary youth in today’s labour movement.”

The event began with a talk by Joel Bergman, one of the event organizers and a member of Fightback for over ten years. He discussed the decline of capitalism over the past several decades, and focused on the reasons why Fightback believes socialism is essential for building an equitable and sustainable society.

“‘It’s going to take at least twenty years to solve the problems of the Euro, twenty years of cuts and falling living standards,’” Bergman said, quoting a Financial Times article to the room.

“This isn’t some Marxist paper saying this, this is the bourgeois saying it themselves, saying this is what will have to happen in order to rectify the situation,” he continued.

Valentina Garcia, an organizer of the discussion and a studio art student at Concordia, told The Daily in an interview that “after [WWII] the market was expanding. But now we see that the capitalist crisis is happening – and it’s not really a crisis, it’s more like this is the normal state of capitalism […] It is normal for capitalism to be this bad, and it’s only going to get worse.”

Speaking to the crowd, Bergman discussed how socialism is far from a universally accepted system. There is a growing generational gap between those who support socialism and those who support capitalism, he explained.

“Now we see that the capitalist crisis is happening.”

“Young people don’t remember the ‘Golden Ages,’” Bergman elaborated in an interview with The Daily. “My parents talk about it […] In the sixties, seventies, there was free health care, they created the EI [Employment Insurance] system, so you know, even if you lost your job you’d be taken care of. There were all of these great things, education was cheaper, and [you could find a job] just like that. My dad, he didn’t go to university, he just did some stuff in college and then bam – he started working in the CBC.”

It should be noted, however, that during this period marginalized communities faced widespread systemic discrimination which often prevented them from benefitting from the societal prosperity of the post-war era.

During the discussion, Bergman addressed the significance of Bernie Sanders’ candidacy in the United States presidential primaries, citing it as evidence that more people are starting to accept the idea of socialism.

Many people present at the event blamed capitalism for far more than just recent economic troubles. “When you have capitalism you [have] racism and sexism to oppress people, to pay them less.”

While many of the attendees believed that capitalism fueled oppression, they also believed that socialism could bring people together.

Speaking to The Daily, Julien Arseneau, a member of Fightback and a Université du Quebec à Montréal (UQAM) graduate who attended the event, said: “homophobia, sexism, misogyny, transphobia, and all the like have absolutely no place in our movement. They are really divisive. They’re unacceptable for revolutionaries, unacceptable attitudes, and we have to fight against those all the time.”

“Homophobia, sexism, misogyny, transphobia, […] have absolutely no place in our movement.”

“What unites us in the struggle against capitalism is our class position in society,” he continued. “The socialist revolution needs to be inclusive, to include all the oppressed people and unite them to transform society towards socialism.”

Bergman hopes to unite people toward the socialist cause through education. “We aim to study everything that’s happened day in and day out – the past movements, the current movements, and revolutionary theory – in order to educate youth and new revolutionaries today,” he said to the crowd. “And with this I really think there will be amazing possibilities.”

The post Socialists seek to engage youth appeared first on The McGill Daily.

The protest’s organizers, members of Rojava Solidarity Montreal, affirmed Rojava as being a “free society, which seeks to create a democratic, ethnically harmonious, feminist, and ecological confederate” in the event’s Facebook page. The protesters sought to gain the attention of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Stéphane Dion.

“We want Canada to end their silence against the Turkish regime.”

Recently, Turkey has begun taking military action against two groups in the region, the Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK) and the People’s Protection Units (YPG). According to the BBC, Turkey considers the PKK to be a terrorist organization, but the YPG is internationally seen as legitimate and has received military support from the U. S..

“We want Canada to end their silence against the Turkish regime,” said Maksuni Oerde, one of the organizers of the protest and a member of the Kurdish Foundation of Quebec, in an interview with the Daily. “What Turkey is doing is a human rights violation, and it’s a violation of international law.”

Before moving to Montreal, Oerde lived in the Kurdish region of Turkey, where, he said, the government has been trying to eliminate the Kurdish language for decades. He told The Daily that Turkey discriminates against both the Kurds and other ethnic groups, and that the subject of the protest is a “very personal issue” to him, as President Erdogan of Turkey recently stated that he would oppose any creation of an autonomous Kurdish state, such as the de facto state of Rojava.

As a member of NATO, Turkey currently receives aid from both Canada and the U.S..
“We want to see Canada stop sending arms to the Middle East. We see on the news that many of the weapons that we send end up in the hands of ISIS and other terrorist organizations,” said Armin Morattab, a Kurdish-Iranian human rights activist who attended the protest. “Our biggest concern, though, is Rojava—as we have seen, they are the most effective tool against ISIS.”

The protest also attracted attendees from outside of Rojava Solidarity Montréal, like Nancy Brown, an active feminist and member of Amnesty International.

“We want to see Canada stop sending arms to the Middle East. We see on the news that many of the weapons that we send end up in the hands of ISIS and other terrorist organizations,”

In an interview with The Daily, Brown said, “I think that many of us had hope that with the change in government from the terrible Mr. Harper to the less terrible Mr. Trudeau, there would be more courage and more speaking out. But when it comes down to it, the Liberals have certain restrictions in terms of what they can say.”

“It’s a shame, really,” she continued. “There are certain economic restrictions, and as long as Canada is going to be dealing with countries that are more interested in selling us oil, and that we are interested in selling Dubai oil from, this will continue to be an issue.”

Brown has no illusions about resolving the situation in Syria, but does believe that support for Rojava could make a difference.

“What would be wonderful and significant would be for Mr. Dion, on behalf of Canada, after getting the permission of Mr. Trudeau or even making it a parliamentary resolution, to come out in support of this particular Kurdish movement where people care about democracy and gender equality.”

At the time of the protest, Dion was overseas in Vietnam, but a spokesperson from the Minister of Foreign Affairs office told The Daily in an email that, “Turkey is a NATO ally and a valuable partner for Canada in the Global Coalition to Counter Daesh. At the same time, we encourage Turkey to take all measures within its power to minimize the impact of its operations in the region on civilians and civilian infrastructure.”

“What Turkey is doing is a human rights violation, and it’s a violation of international law.”

But according to Aaron Vansintjan, a member of Rojava Solidarity Montreal, whatever encouragement Canada is offering Turkey in this regard is nowhere near adequate.

“Canada is actively supporting the Turkish government and the Turkish military by selling arms, and also implicitly supporting them by being silent on the topic of Turkey’s invasion of [Kurdistan],” he told The Daily.

“In the Kurdish part of Turkey, in the last six months, there’s been a constant assault on Kurdish communities,” Vansintjan continued, “even those [communities] that weren’t resisting the assault, and there have been cases of chemical warfare.”

The post Protesters support Rojava appeared first on The McGill Daily.