Wednesday, December 8, 2010

“Feminists make some damn good cupcakes”

                BRANTFORD, Ont. – Derogatory, isn’t it? These are the words stated by Timothy Jacobs, a professor who teaches Reading Fiction, a first year class at Wilfrid Laurier University. He opened his class on Nov. 18; roughly an hour after the F-Word event had ended stating “feminists make some damn good cupcakes”. What possessed Jacobs to say this? Likely he was trying to be funny and draw a laugh from the crowd, which he did. The thoughts that Jacobs shared with his students that day, as well as the students who responded with laughter, are one of many reasons we have begun to see a revival in the feminist movement as of late.

                Courtney Yole, a first year concurrent education student at Laurier, commented on Jacobs’s outburst. “I can’t believe I’m expected to learn from someone so belligerent of other people’s values,” Yole said “I’m honestly surprised that no one left or shouted at him.” Yole notes that although she doesn’t consider herself to be a feminist, she knows that what Jacobs said shouldn’t be acceptable, especially not in a classroom.

                Feminism, despite the misconceptions which exist about it, is an organizational movement with roots in advocating for equal rights for men and women. Those who identify as a feminist, or support the feminist movement, aim to end the inequality which exists between men and women and to stop the discrimination that occurs due to this inequality. Examples of this inequality can be found in religious sectors, certain cultures, unequal pay for equal labour, women being passed over for jobs based on their gender, and in the overrepresentation of women in statistics regarding single parenting and lack of financial means.

                The F-Word event, which was planned last spring by many of Laurier faculty, took place on Nov. 18th in Brantford. The event included an information fair which hosted many organizations such as the black students association, rainbow alliance, project empathy, women’s centre and aboriginal student services. Dana Gillett an employee in the Diversity and Equity Office at Wilfrid Laurier in Waterloo explained that “each of these organizations has their own perspective on feminism and how it relates to them and their oppression, but their goals are all similar and focus on ending that oppression.” Gillett noted that although many of these organizations have not been founded at the Laurier Brantford campus, she is hopeful they soon will be. The event also featured an activity allowing those who attended to create their own Barbie toy as real women are today. A panel later convened to express their views on a variety of topics such as the stereotype of what being a feminist is, the effect of the1989 Montreal Massacre, and why or why not each panellist considered themselves to be a feminist. The panel included Lyla Miklos, an award-winning broadcaster; Bryn Ossington, a Women’s Studies and Philosophy student at Laurier Waterloo; Alicia Sayers a student at Laurier Brantford; and Margaret Toye, a Women’s Studies Professor at Laurier.

                The Montreal Massacre which occurred in 1989 played heavily on the minds of Miklos and Toye during the discussion. On Dec. 6, 1989 at École Polytechnique Marc Lépine shot 28 people, killing 14 women, injuring 10 women, and killing four men before turning the gun on himself. Lépine focused his attack on women. He went so far as to divide the men and women within a classroom and shoot only the women.  After his death, a suicide note was found citing more women, –which he identified as feminists—that he had planned to kill. Francine Pelletier, now a journalist, was one of the women on Lépines’ list. At an event held in 2009 in memory of the 14 women who died during the massacre, Pelletier stated: “If [Lépine] had wanted to target women, he would have gone to a nursing school. He was targeting women who had the audacity to want to do a man’s job.” École Polytechnique’s focus is on engineering.  According to Statistics Canada, less than one-third of engineers are women.

                When reflecting on the event, Toye discussed her initial reaction. “I was really disturbed about the media coverage of the event… of how many people were screaming loudly ‘how can you call this an issue against women?’”  For Toye, this represented one of three events that year which lead her to begin labelling herself as a feminist.

                After all the struggle endured over the last century since feminism became a common belief, enormous change has occurred for women. Voting rights were established and the Canadian constitution was amended to recognize women as people rather than property. Legal documents, such as the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, have been passed demanding equal rights for men and women. Although in many cases these equal rights are still more ideal than reality, society has become more accepting of women’s rights. The stereotypes that once held women back still exist and feminists struggles are far from over.  Women still do not receive equal pay for working the same jobs as men and continue to encounter obstacles that men do not when striving for promotions within companies. Not enough change has occurred for the feminist movement to stop entirely.

                Feminism may not seem to be on the forefront of many modern issues, but it certainly is. It’s the ever changing definition of feminism that makes this true. Feminism isn’t just advocating for equal rights between men and women, but between races, ethnicities, and sexual orientations, along with a variety of other topics. As Gillett stated, feminism is about finding the oppressive forces in any group and working to stop them.

Laurier Brantford welcomes acclaimed author Lawrence Hill

                BRANTFORD, Ont. – Acclaimed Canadian author Lawrence Hill visited Laurier Brantford on Sept. 29, 2010 to promote his third novel The Book of Negroes. Hill was invited by Laurier professor Carol B. Duncan, who in the past collaborated with Hill on a documentary film project Seeking Salvation: A History of the Black Church in Canada.  According to Duncan, Hill was brought on as a writer-in-residence by Wilfrid Laurier University in an effort to “allow student, faculty, staff and visitors to the university the opportunity to hear an acclaimed author discuss his works.”  In his weeklong connection to Laurier University, Hill visited both the Waterloo and Brantford campuses for readings of his novels The Book of Negroes and Any Known Blood as well as to teach lectures to undergraduate students at both campuses and participate in a round-table discussion, fundraising dinner, and a luncheon with students.

                 The reading which took place at Laurier Brantford was filled with various members of the surrounding community as well as university students.  The public reading held in the Research and Academic Centre of the Laurier Brantford Campus sparked much conversation between audience members and involved a lively question segment with the author where he discussed his novel and future aspirations as well as his ongoing works. Hill sold and signed copies of his novels afterwards. Students from the Laurier main campus rounded out their time with Hill with more involved sessions such as a student luncheon. A fundraiser was also held to create the Lawrence Hill Graduate Award in Arts and Humanities at Laurier.

                Hill engaged his audience during the reading by telling jokes and anecdotes while explaining his opinion and motivations for writing his past and most recent novels. As well he answered audience questions about his novel and stylistic attempts regarding use or lack of use of humour in relation to how his stories were told. The room was filled with chatter and enthusiasm for his work. “I didn’t know just how detailed and thorough the book was historically,” audience member and first year journalism student at Laurier Brantford, Gregory Mattice said, “the emotion of the book was incredibly forceful when he read his own words aloud. I plan to purchase the book in the future.”

                Hill’s novel The Book of Negroes has a special connection to Laurier University. Part of the novel was written during a short stay at Laurier’s Waterloo campus in the Lucinda House guest residence.

                The Book of Negroes (2007) has won many awards such as the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best Book, Ontario Library Association’s Evergreen Award and CBC Radio’s Canada Reads. It was also a finalist for the Hurston/Wright LEGACY Award. As of September 2010 The Book of Negroes has sold more than 500,000 copies in Canada.

Monday, December 6, 2010

Author and former professor criticizes post-secondary education system

                BRANTFORD, Ont. –Author J. Edward Chamberlin travelled to Laurier Brantford for the Grand River Forum which took place on Oct. 19-20 of this year. Chamberlin gave a lecture and a discussed his book “If this is your land, where are your stories?” with students, faculty and the general public. Chamberlin’s book is used in many contemporary studies courses at Laurier Brantford and is mandatory reading for many students. His book has been released in three editions since it was first published in 2003. Since then, Chamberlin has produced two more books.
               
Chamberlin holds an impressive resume. He is a former professor of English for the University of Toronto, has helped to write recommendations for governments, travelled through various countries such as South Africa, Australia and Alaska, and even been a hunting guide. Chamberlin holds a wide area of interest, perhaps that is why he’s so dedicated to encouraging those around him to share the stories of their lives.
               
Chamberlin began his keynote lecture to conclude the Grand River Forum by sincerely thanking those who had attended for “taking his book seriously” and inviting him to be a part of the first of what he hoped would be many Grand River Forums. To students who have taken the time to read Chamberlin’s book, his modesty is clear. “Chamberlin’s stories are some of the most eye-opening I’ve read,” said first year concurrent education student Michael Lynn, “it’s incredible to see how the stories around us truly do shape the country we live in. He makes me proud to have the diverse heritage I do.”

Chamberlin spent much of his keynote lecture criticizing the university educational system for its constant overworking of students’ minds comparing them to the working hours of those in John Lubbock’s time. In the late 1800s to early 1900s when Lubbock was alive, many people were working well over 80 hours a week, some more depending on their profession. Lubbock was a banker, merchant, advocate of education and member of British parliament.

Chamberlin proceeded to explain that the word scholar in Latin means leisure; something university students aren’t getting to experience and which is greatly hurting their ability to experience life in all of its many aspects. While discussing John Lubbock and his effect on the political, social and educational realms in Britain, Chamberlin explained Lubbock’s belief “that doing nothing was as important as doing something.”  Chamberlin expressed that leisure liberates our minds and allows us to broaden our horizons of thinking, knowledge and understanding, as well as drives us to do those activities we love and to change the world while doing them, much like Lubbock. He encouraged those who had attended the conference to make time for leisure in their lives and see where it would take them. Considering Chamberlin’s wide array of occupations and interests over the years, it is easy to infer that he has taken his own advice.

The Grand River Forum included stories told by audience members and staff at Laurier Brantford as well as discussions of the stories included in Chamberlin’s book. After all, as Chamberlin has expressed many times: if this is our land, it’s time we told our stories.

University students struggle to pay mounting costs

BRANTFORD, Ont. – On Sept. 24, 2009 students, faculty and employees of the University of California staged a system wide walkout protesting an ongoing issue in North America and around the world: the significant increase in the cost of post secondary education. Nearly a year later, the trend continues as institutions raise their tuition fees yet again.
                Students have been feeling an increasing financial instability for decades as they enter post secondary education. Suddenly their education which had once been virtually free costs them thousands of dollars. Fees for textbooks and other resources pile on top and should they attend a school out of their hometown thousands more dollars are added in residence fees. Why are students feeling this pinch? Simply because those that strongly supported the funding of universities in the past are not anymore.
                After the Second World War the Canadian government briefly considered removing university fees entirely. Although this never occurred, costs were substantially lower than present day. During the late 1970s and 1980s the government provided nearly 85 per cent of university revenue while tuition covered 13.7 per cent, according to Statistics Canada. In 2007, the government only provided 57.1 per cent of revenue and 34.2 percent of universities revenue came directly from tuition fees charged to students.  Over the course of three decades government support of university revenue has decreased by nearly 28 per cent, and the cost paid by the average student has increased by 20 per cent. This change in provider of revenue has directly attributed to the increase in tuition. Universities, like any institution, are a business. They must make enough to pay their employees and provide the services they offer.
                It is clear how students feel about the high costs of education fees. In the 2008/09 school year, more than 226,000 students took advantage of government run programs such as the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP). Others sought out independently funded scholarships and bursaries, applied for loans from financial institutions or relied on the kindness of their families. According to the Ontario Student Assistance Program, university students completing their degree in 2007/08 had debt totalling $25,000 or more. Others were not able to finish their education because they could no longer afford the tuition. Ashley Fazekas, a first year Journalism student at Wilfrid Laurier University in Brantford says she feels her “parents need to contribute to university funding, only because they have always told me that they would pay for it, and I wasn't financially prepared to pay for it myself.” Fazekas however points out that the cost of university although cumbersome can provide motivation for students to attend classes and complete the assigned work as repeating a course would cost extra money.
                The enthusiastic attempts of UC Berkeley students to gain media attention about the struggles of being a post-secondary student could be leading to similar protests at many other universities in North America. Fazekas says, “to support others who feel strongly about university costs, I would participate in a protest.”  The demonstration at UC Berkeley and the meagre results they received may become the inspiration for other protests against post-secondary costs. If there’s something a university student knows it’s that every penny counts.