The recent capitol riots, the resurgence of neo-Nazis and white supremacist sentiments are present in our own backyards
By: Ruchika Gothoskar, Contributor
CW: white supremacy
On Jan. 6, 2021, supporters of United States President Donald Trump stormed the United States Capitol, claiming that the latest federal election was stolen from them, rioting loudly and violently against Trump’s imminent defeat. As police officers responded (with little to no urgency) and rioters broke windows and came fully armed, the online maelstrom was just beginning.
Social media was awash with Canadians glued to their televisions and refreshing their feeds, only to move on from the incident days later, having learned little about the insidious nature of white supremacist organizing. The general sentiment among many Canadians tends to be relief; contentment with the idea that, well, stuff like that just doesn’t happen here.
But the stark reality is that this “stuff,” meaning violent racism, white supremacist beliefs and outrageous conspiracy theory-driven drivel not only exists in Canada, but thrives and originates here.
One well-known white supremacist group that was central to much of the action at the Capitol in Washington was the Proud Boys. Founded by Canadian Gavin McInnes, the Chilliwack Progress writes that the Proud Boys are a right-wing group that is misogynistic and increasingly connected to white supremacist ideals.
Facebook and Instagram banned the Proud Boys in October 2018 for violating their hate policies and Trump famously declined to condemn the Proud Boys during a U.S. presidential debate with Joe Biden in September 2020. Instead, he told the group to “stand back and stand by,” even after malicious hate-fuelled tirades by the group and its supporters.
But the stark reality is that this “stuff,” meaning violent racism, white supremacist beliefs and outrageous conspiracy theory-driven drivel not only exists in Canada, but thrives and originates here.
Present amongst the rioters at the capitol were many folks who identified themselves as members of the Proud Boys; a group with roots that are unequivocally Canadian.
Trumpism also isn’t something reserved for those in the US, with pro-Trump sentiment and subsequent racist and white supremacist thought and actions seeping into Canada. Alberta Minister of Forestry and Agriculture Devin Dreeshen proudly attended a Trump rally, sporting the infamous "Make America Great Again" hat and even campaigned for Trump in multiple states back in 2016.
During the storming of the Capitol, a pro-Trump convoy took up close to three city blocks in Toronto, honking and proclaiming that they were trying to “Stop the Steal,” referencing the apparently stolen election.
Pro Trump convoy (about 2 city blocks long) headed up Yonge Street in Toronto right now. Interesting times. #StopTheSteaI I presume. pic.twitter.com/jXeVLOCrNY
— D. Jared Brown (@LitigationGuy) January 6, 2021
While such violent groups with such polarizing beliefs may seem distant even still, the truth is that pro-police, anti-government, white supremacist movements are alive and well in Canadian cities.
This summer, the destruction of Sipkne'katik First Nation lobster storage sites on the east coast was proof of continued violence against racialized peoples in Canada, as commercial fishermen incited violence against Indigenous fishermen while the Royal Canadian Mounted Police reportedly did nothing to help.
During the storming of the Capitol, a pro-Trump convoy took up close to three city blocks in Toronto, honking and proclaiming that they were trying to “Stop the Steal,” referencing the apparently stolen election.
Similarly, RCMP violently raided Wet'suwet'en blockades in British Columbia, the Ontario Provincial Police tore down 1492 Land Back Lane land reclamation camps in Caledonia, and in our very own #HamOnt, 2019 Pride events were interrupted by “hateful protests” led by yellow vest protestors who were fuelled by white nationalist sentiment.
Our innocent little city of Hamilton has some reckoning to do with the part it plays in white supremacist insurgence. Paul Fromm, a self-described white nationalist, was permitted to run for mayor in Hamilton, even after losing a mayoral race in Mississauga the year earlier, due largely to his pro-white, anti-immigration rhetoric.
Executive director of the Canadian Anti-Hate Network Evan Balgord cites that the neo-Nazi movement is aligning itself with so-called free-speech events or “men’s rights” events, which are increasingly popular on university and college campuses. This is something we’ve seen attempted at McMaster University, in our own Clubs department, too.
The reality is that Canadians don’t have room to be sanctimonious in the face of violence. Rather than painting our country as the place of harmonious maple syrup dreams and socialized health care, we need to come to terms with the ways white supremacy and racial injustice has become so deeply ingrained in our daily lives.
Rather than ignoring the signs of growing tensions, police brutality and the role that policing plays in encouraging and fostering anti-Black, anti-Indigenous and white supremacist sentiment, Canadians need to start taking an active role in advocating for anti-racism and anti-fascist policies and movements.
It is not enough to just claim that we are better without doing any of the hard work. It is high time that we come face to face with the extremism in our own backyards and address the ways white supremacist organizing has, and will continue to hurt Black, Indigenous and racialized Canadians if not dealt with headfirst in the coming months and years.
Despite not having a head coach anymore, third-year player Payton Shank takes us through what the women’s rugby team has been coping through this season.
As we enter the first couple weeks of 2021, many individuals continue to live their lives from inside their homes, just as they have been for most of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes countless student-athletes who have been sitting idle in their homes during the 2020-2021 season.
In October 2020, McMaster Sports announced the cancellation of winter sports for the 2021 year, ultimately closing any sort of hope for athletes to compete at a collegiate level. With that being said, many McMaster sports teams have found alternative measures in place of in-person activities, including the women’s rugby team.
Prior to the pandemic, the typical season of the women’s rugby team would begin with training camp in late August, where training would last from morning till night. Payton Shank, a third-year student in the human behaviour program commented on the summer training.
“You’re going non-stop every single day. You’re training in the heat, you’re tackling, hitting people and running around till you almost throw up, every day per week,” said Shank.
“You’re going non-stop every single day. You’re training in the heat, you’re tackling, hitting people and running around till you almost throw up, every day per week,” said Shank.
From training outside during the fall season to indoors in the High Performance Area during the winter season, there would not be enough words to highlight the intensity of these workouts.
As the first wave of the pandemic heightened in March, the university announced they would be shutting down all in-person classes and activities, including all sports matches and practices.
“I remember being in the HPA the day before everything closed down. We were trying to get the last workout in. We had to move to Zoom workouts at home. We [went] from using dumbbells and squat racks to putting cans or textbooks in your backpack,” said Shank.
Maintaining a workout routine is important so athletes do not revert into muscular atrophy and hence, do not spend as much conditioning time required once the new season begins.
When considering the topic of mental health, Shank identified that the loss of practices and in-person workouts has taken a toll.
“For me personally, it was very hard to be motivated. In fact, I was missing a vast majority of the workouts. [I thought:] “I can’t put myself through this, I have nobody to push me through this. I don’t have the HPA. I’m not blaring music like usual. I don’t have my team cheering me on”,” said Shank.
“For me personally, it was very hard to be motivated. In fact, I was missing a vast majority of the workouts. [I thought:] “I can’t put myself through this, I have nobody to push me through this. I don’t have the HPA. I’m not blaring music like usual. I don’t have my team cheering me on,” said Shank.
The weekly Zoom workout sessions have been a place of comfort for the rugby team, even if they just wanted to pop by and say “hi”. With that being said, the head coach of the rugby team quit this past season.
While many other McMaster sports teams were able to resume in-person training, women’s rugby was not able to do so. Shank emphasized that other universities’ women’s rugby teams have been able to train in-person, which puts McMaster at a disadvantage for the 2021-2022 season.
As the province is in lockdown with a stay-at-home order in place, there is still uncertainty about the future of the team’s season.
“We thought that we might get back into Sports Hall in [the David Braley Athletic Centre], that was our hope. Now, we’re still going to have to do Zoom calls unfortunately,” said Shank.
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“We thought that we might get back into Sports Hall in [the David Braley Athletic Centre], that was our hope. Now, we’re still going to have to do Zoom calls unfortunately,” said Shank.
Although the team is still currently without a head coach, Shank stated that there has been vast support for the women’s rugby athletes from Shawn Burt and Claire Arsenault, the director of athletics and recreation and the coordinator of athlete services, respectively.
Looking ahead to next season, there are many unanswered questions as to whether or not students will return to campus in fall 2021.
“I can’t see a season happening next year . . . but I do see us being able to train at least and getting into some facilities,” said Shank.
“I can’t see a season happening next year . . . but I do see us being able to train at least and getting into some facilities,” said Shank.
Alexandra Kitty’s new books encourage students to explore new perspectives and experiences
Many have taken advantage of the past year to start new businesses and tackle new projects, including McMaster University alumna Alexandra Kitty, who penned a number of books. This past year she published four: The Art of Kintsugi: Learning the Japanese Craft of Beautiful Repair, The Dramatic Moment of Fate: The Life of Sherlock Holmes in Theatre, The Mind Under Siege: Mechanisms of War Propaganda and A New Approach to Journalism.
Kitty graduated in 1994 with an honours bachelor of arts in psychology, after which she went on to pursue a career in journalism and education. She has described her time at McMaster as having been hugely influential on her writing because it taught her about perspective and the ways in which our perspectives inform our reality.
“I think it was the biggest influence in my writing because I realized how much of our perceptions were not reality. Psychology is the study of how not just the brain works, but how the mind works and how we can be deceived . . . I think that was probably one of the greatest helps for me. I think it totally set my trajectory with what I studied and what my career was afterwards. Just not in the traditional way,” said Kitty.
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Though her books explore a vast variety of subjects, the idea of perspective is one of the linking threads across all of them. The Art of Kintsugi explores how broken bits can be repaired, restored and even embraced, while The Dramatic Moment of Fate discusses Sherlock Holmes' different incarnations on the stage over time. The Mind Under and A New Approach to Journalism both explore the journalistic importance of perspective and asking questions.
“[T]he unifying theme is that there's multiple perspectives, even within us. There isn't a single one right answer . . . So if we're a little more understanding, and we understand plurality and diversity, we can see we get more information. The more perspectives and filters we use, the more different information we can see,” explained Kitty.
“[T]he unifying theme is that there's multiple perspectives, even within us. There isn't a single one right answer . . . So if we're a little more understanding, and we understand plurality and diversity, we can see we get more information. The more perspectives and filters we use, the more different information we can see,” explained Kitty.
This awareness of perspective and its importance is something she hopes individuals will take away from her books. For students especially, she hopes it will help them understand and connect different perspectives, particularly the analytical and emotional.
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“A lot of times when we're doing academia, we think that we are not supposed to put emotion in it. We just need to build up our emotional literacy. Sometimes you're feeling uncomfortable, and you don't know why and [my] books show you to trust your instinct, to trust your judgment, to trust your feelings and to be able to trust your perceptions of reality to be able to see the truth because basically that's what we need to do — see the reality in order to find the truth,” said Kitty.
Another thread that connects Kitty’s books is the benefit and influence of first-hand experience on one’s perspective. Kitty felt it was essential for her to have experience with the subjects she wrote about. She began all her books by exploring the subjects personally and gaining experience with them.
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“If I was writing about Sherlock Holmes in the theatre, I would go watch the plays. If I was writing about kintsugi, I was doing the actual kintsugi. I went into journalism to study journalism. You can't know about something unless you've walked through it and had skin in the game and you've done it yourself,” explained Kitty.
"...You can't know about something unless you've walked through it and had skin in the game and you've done it yourself,” explained Kitty.
She also hopes her work will inspire students to do the same.
“So if you're interested about a problem in something, go to the eye of the storm, I think that's the main message. If you want to know the truth, you absolutely have to go and look at what's the mechanics, where are the failings?” encouraged Kitty.
Understanding other perspectives and seeking out new experiences are important to students not just in their academic lives, but also in relationships and personal interests. Kitty’s work shows that no matter what students go on to do after their time at McMaster, there are certain ideas and skills that will always be important.
Hamilton photographer demonstrates the importance of exploration through photos
On Jan. 1, 2020, lifestyle and boudoir photographer Iryna Kostichin posted her first photo of Hamilton to her then-new Instagram page, 365 Days Of Hamont. The photo of the residential street was the first step in a project intended to showcase all that Hamilton has to offer.
Although Kostichin was born and raised in Hamilton, she didn’t truly start exploring the city until after she graduated from McMaster University in 2017 with a degree in social psychology. She moved out for the first time and was figuring out what she wanted to do with her life. It was in the period of self-discovery after graduation that she began exploring the city.
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During this time, she also returned to photography, a passion of hers from childhood that she had put aside as a viable career choice.
“A few years ago, I was in a really rough spot. I was graduated and I had a degree and I was in a job that I really didn't like . . . and I was like “I really don't want to do this for the rest of my life. I need to find something where I work for myself and I'm responsible for everything, job-wise”. So I ended up getting a social media coordinator job and then that year I was exploring portrait photography," said Kostichin.
Kostichin wanted to put her social media skills towards a project that showcases her hometown’s beauty and combats its bad reputation, leading to 365 Days of Hamont. To gather the photos for the page, she goes on a few weekly adventure walks, taking pictures of places and objects she passes. Her goal is to show various representations of Hamilton, from the buildings to nature to food.
Kostichin wanted to put her social media skills towards a project that showcases her hometown’s beauty and combats its bad reputation, leading to 365 Days of Hamont.
The project began as a commitment to posting daily in 2020, but over the year, this plan changed as Kostichin found the daily commitment challenging. Now over a year after the project began, Kostichin is a little over halfway through her original 365 days.
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The pandemic also limited how much she was able to explore the city because she doesn’t have a car. It has also been difficult to explore new destinations when lockdowns have closed many places in Hamilton. However, despite these challenges, Kostichin is looking forward to diving back into the project this year.
“So definitely next steps are continuing on this journey and not putting so much pressure on myself to do it every single day . . . I started out thinking I was going to post every day and get all this engagement and get to the end of 365 days, right? But realistically I haven't reached that and exploring Hamilton really isn't only a 365-day project. So I can live a whole lifetime and still not see the whole city, which is exciting I guess. So I'm just excited to continue to carry the torch and help others explore the city,” said Kostichin.
"So I can live a whole lifetime and still not see the whole city, which is exciting I guess. So I'm just excited to continue to carry the torch and help others explore the city."
For students in Hamilton that are looking to explore, Kostichin suggests taking it one neighbourhood at a time. Especially during COVID, she suggests picking a neighbourhood and just walking around it.
As her exploration of the city is tied to her self-exploration, the latter is also very important to Kostichin. Through her boudoir photography business, she is encouraging individuals to explore new parts of themselves. Her own journey from social psychology major to full-time photographer and business owner is proof of the importance of self-discovery.
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“I use psychology in my day-to-day life. Even in a social media job, a lot of it is psychology. Then being in a social media job also using photography and really discovering that aspect of myself and bringing it back and now I'm actually going to be like a full-time photographer this year and start my own business. So just because people tell you [that you] can't do it really doesn't mean you can't do it, because here I am with a university degree and I'm making money from something that I taught myself,” said Kostichin.
"So just because people tell you [that you] can't do it really doesn't mean you can't do it, because here I am with a university degree and I'm making money from something that I taught myself."
Kostichin’s story shows that with hard work and a little exploration, students might be able to turn their time at McMaster into the life of their dreams.
Postcards from Anywhere provides a plethora of opportunities for the new year
As most of us are homebound for the foreseeable future, there is hardly any place we may visit that could be considered picturesque or something that would be featured on a traditional postcard.
A postcard typically features a photo of impossibly breathtaking coasts or colourful, lively skylines that one would send family or friends from their vacation. However, thanks to projects such as Trisha Lavoie’s Postcards from Anywhere, new opportunities abound, including the chance to rediscover our local communities.
Growing up, photography and mail were important pieces of Lavoie’s life. Her father also enjoyed photography, always encouraging Lavoie to take photos. As a teenager, she was drawn to what she described as boring postcards, depicting scenes such as empty restaurants or turnpikes and started collecting them.
“I've always had a small divergent interest in photography, even though it's not the primary artistic medium that I participate in. But I've also had a wide interest in different forms of visual representation art and mail art and things like that. And correspondence has always been a really big part of my life. I'm someone who grew up with pen pals, some of whom I'm still friends with to this day. So I guess that all boils down to how this project started to germinate in my mind,” said Lavoie.
"I've always had a small divergent interest in photography, even though it's not the primary artistic medium that I participate in. But I've also had a wide interest in different forms of visual representation art and mail art and things like that. And correspondence has always been a really big part of my life."
When the pandemic started, many artist-run centres and galleries where Lavoie showcased her art were closed. The artist started to search for something different that she could do. This desire to do something new, combined with her love of boring postcards, seemed especially fitting during this time when we’re not only unable to travel but are also missing our loved ones dearly.
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“It's basically a subscription service where for the next 12 months of the year you will receive boring photographic images or boring postcards, however you want to describe them, done by different artists from different parts of Canada,” explained Lavoie.
There is a small fee associated with the service to help offset the costs of printing but also because it was important to Lavoie to be able to compensate the contributing artists for their work.
Like Lavoie, many of the artists who have contributed work to the project are not traditionally photographers either. Lavoie wanted to encourage others — artists and postcard recipients alike — to try new things but also to take another look at their world. To that end, she hopes that this will be an opportunity for individuals to discover new artists in a time when it’s not possible to do so in the typical fashion.
Lavoie wanted to encourage others — artists and postcard recipients alike — to try new things but also to take another look at their world. To that end, she hopes that this will be an opportunity for individuals to discover new artists in a time when it’s not possible to do so in the typical fashion.
“I hope it just brings a little bit of delight to their day . . . I hope that somebody might take a look at [the images] and kind of have a bit of a laugh. [A]lso in the case of people who are being sent cards by other people, it gives them a little moment of joy to get a piece of mail from someone they love,” said Lavoie.
For Lavoie, writing postcards has also been a bit of a therapeutic practice, helping her to stay connected with friends and family during the past few months.
“There's something kind of weirdly therapeutic for me to just sit down and force myself to just write a letter or write a postcard to someone. You're thinking about that person and you're thinking about what you're going to write to them, even if it's just for a small period of time and you're not distracted by other things. [F]or me, you want to try to make it witty, you want to try to make it a little funny, you want it to be entertaining . . . it forces you to just step back, I think and do that,” explained Lavoie.
"There's something kind of weirdly therapeutic for me to just sit down and force myself to just write a letter or write a postcard to someone."
Many appear to feel the same as her, with a number of individuals purchasing the postcards as a gift to loved ones, near and far. Lavoie has found the positive reception a very uplifting part of the project.
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Initially, Lavoie had planned for Postcards from Anywhere to span only the year, but she did also mention that depending on if she continues to receive artist contributions and if there is still interest, she might consider continuing it.
Either way, as we move forward into this new year, projects like Postcards from Anywhere provide us with much-needed opportunities to reconnect with our local communities, learn about new artists and connect with loved ones.
Changing our approach to these goals can help us be more successful at New Year’s resolutions
With a new year comes a set of new and often entirely unrealistic expectations we set for ourselves: New Year’s resolutions. Approximately three-quarters of Canadians resolve to accomplish their goals at the beginning of each year, with the failure rate a dismal 80 per cent.
Year after year, people around the world look to the changing of the calendar as a sign of hopeful, positive transformation for their lifestyles and circumstances. How did such seemingly useless and quite frankly disappointing, ritualistic behaviour become entrenched in our daily lives? How can we make resolutions that actually work?
Apparently, human beings have practiced this particular brand of masochism since nearly the dawn of civilization. 4,000 years ago, the ancient Babylonians would make promises to the gods to repay debts and favours during their mid-March New Year’s celebration, Akitu. Keeping these promises would guarantee good luck and health while breaking them was sure to invite divine displeasure. If only we had such incentives today!
How did such seemingly useless and quite frankly disappointing, ritualistic behaviour become entrenched in our daily lives? How can we make resolutions that actually work?
Similarly, though a couple of millennia later, ancient Romans offered sacrifices and promises of virtuous conduct to the god, Janus — January’s namesake — in exchange for good fortune in the upcoming year. The practice continued with “peacock vows” in the middle ages, which were resolutions made by knights to uphold their chivalric values. By the 17th century, the habit of annual resolution-making had permeated the common social consciousness and was declared by yearly rituals such as New Year’s Eve spiritual services.
Despite their early religious origins, today’s practice of New Year’s resolution-making is a mostly secular and individualistic activity — concerned more with our ability to commit and achieve rather than chance or divine intervention.
The most common resolutions are decidedly unsurprising: in 2020, 51 per cent of Canadians wanted to exercise more, 49 per cent planned to save money, 48 per cent strived to eat healthier and 42 per cent hoped to lose weight. These goals have been topping lists for at least the last decade and their resilience speaks not only to our recidivism but also to the very nature of our desires themselves.
Making a resolution is important for mental health: having a goal to strive for helps overcome daily fatigue and is motivational. However, failing to live up to your goals — New Year’s or otherwise — can invite self-deprecation and psychological stress.
You can fall short of achieving your resolutions for any number of reasons beyond lack of sufficient commitment. The four main reasons why New Year’s resolutions fail are that they are too vague, they are framed negatively, they reflect societal expectations rather than your own desires or they are incompatible with your routine or lifestyle.
Since 2016, I’ve kept aside all my New Year’s resolutions lists and they are the spitting image of vagueness, negativity, social pressures and impracticality. From a whopping 37 resolutions in 2017 to assertions I would maintain a 12.0 GPA, to plans of learning four different languages in the span of a year, it’s no wonder I have persistently failed to achieve my goals — and thus felt thoroughly dejected every time.
But I haven’t given up just yet. Achieving your New Year’s resolutions is about more than just unwavering commitment, it’s about proper goal setting; a skill whose benefits extend beyond our infamous Dec. 31/Jan. 1 ritual.
The best resolutions are specific: they elaborate on the steps one needs to take to succeed. Unbeknownst to my 2019 self, I wouldn’t suddenly develop the ability to speak fluent Russian when the clock struck midnight. So unfair, am I right?
The best resolutions are specific: they elaborate on the steps one needs to take to succeed. Unbeknownst to my 2019 self, I wouldn’t suddenly develop the ability to speak fluent Russian when the clock struck midnight. So unfair, am I right?
Furthermore, New Year’s resolutions need to be realistic. No, 2018-self, you won’t be able to exercise four hours a day. It’s just not possible. Don’t set yourself up for failure — create ambitious but achievable goals that will make you feel successful while still making a difference in your life.
Lastly, making a good resolution is all about self-awareness. Achieving any long-term goal is directly concerned with the process of habit-forming. Creating a habit requires repetition — anywhere from 18 to 254 days of it, to be exact — and engenders a feeling of “automaticity,” which is the feeling of ease experienced when doing a familiar task.
When behaviours become automatic, they will become routine, undisruptive and habitual. However, forming a good habit requires the self-awareness to notice the environmental cues that facilitate the accompanying bad habit. If a certain place, activity, person or time prompts you to engage in the habit you want to break, recognize the signs and distance yourself or actively work to stay on track. Remember, it’s a process.
Though I haven’t managed to eliminate all traces of wishful thinking from my 2021 resolutions list, I’ve tried to introduce a bit more realism — a half marathon instead of a full marathon sounds about right, don’t you think? In truth, though, our goals matter less than our ability to forgive ourselves for not achieving them. It’s wonderful to aim for self-improvement; just don’t self-destruct along the way. Happy 2021!
By: Esther Liu, Contributor
The Silhouette: Would you have a conversation with a stranger?
David Kim: My friend once shared with me that “strangers are friends you just haven't met yet.” So, yes, I definitely would and I definitely have! Most of my friends know I’m from a small rural town in the middle of absolutely nowhere. We’re talking more cows and crops than there are people . . . It’s small, so people are friendly, right?
If you saw someone walking towards you, the normal thing to do is to ask: "Hey, how's it going?" [It’s] the whole rural hospitality thing . . . But coming to university, I’ve found that these interactions don’t happen a lot in the city. People are busy and live their lives with that trendy belief that they are the main characters of their life. People have very little time for those that are not in their immediate circle of friends – let alone strangers.
Do you have a story about a time you connected with a stranger?
I remember when I was volunteering, I was paired with this stranger. We just sat down in the cold talking for hours about our lives. I never got to see her again, I forgot her name, but I remember us just talking about what we were doing and why we do it — our stories. I think that everyone has a story that contributes to who they are.
I think we're very quick to make assumptions, but when you unfold that story, you learn more about why we do the things we do, more about their thought processes and beliefs. So, we started talking about our belief systems and our values. I remember that we even talked about the meaning of life and what we're heading to – what's the end goal, right? We were talking about our different beliefs and how she believes in a different kind of afterlife. Things like that make me think about the fact that, yeah, people are very complicated.
There’s a word I learned recently that comes to mind: sonder. [It’s] “the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own, with their own ambitions, worries, routines, wounds and victories.”
Every person I pass by on the street, every random commenter on a Facebook post, every face within the inch by inch rectangle on my Zoom call lives a unique life of their own. Basically, everyone's living their own complex lives. I think that when we think of strangers, we think of them as non-player characters. You only see a slice of their lives and that's about it. But, when you slow down, you start to appreciate others more. It’s really allowed me to learn more about empathy and the value of being quick to listen and slow to speak.
How else do you think being from a small town has changed or influenced you?
[I] remember that one lesson on the allegory of Plato’s cave: they're always like looking at a world of shadows. I don’t remember what purpose it’s actually meant to serve, but I felt like one of those people in the cave in my town: they only look at a wall of shadows and think that this is all there is, that this is the world.
Living in a small town, I kind of figured everything around me was all there was, that this is my reality for now. But moving to Hamilton, it felt like turning my head around and actually realizing there’s a whole other world that’s casting those shadows.
Entering university in the city was an absolute culture shock, even within the same province. I would say that everyone that I met in university is from the Greater Toronto Area. They have a set list of shared experiences that I don't think I normally had. I didn't realize how multicultural Hamilton could be in terms of people, places and food.
I had some amazing friends whose regular form of entertainment was introducing me to new things that were commonplace for them and seeing my reaction: noraebang, dim sum, bubble tea. I remember choking on what I thought were small rubber balls accidentally added into my drink . . . I never had a lot of different foods, never had a lot of those experiences. Even my conversations were different. My conversations about religion, about values, about ambitions. I feel like there are new colours in my life.
Would you say that you prefer the small-town life or a more urban life?
If you asked me three years ago, I would say I definitely prefer the city life even though I never fully experienced it . . . But now that I've actually experienced somewhat of a city like Hamilton — I don't know if people consider that a big city — I realize that there are great experiences but that I've just gotten used to the people back home. Right? Your hometown is a hometown for a reason: there's something about it that draws you. But, as a student right now, I'd say that I prefer the city.
I mean, this is my fourth year, it was supposed to be my year on campus. But with the unpredictability of what’s happening around us, there’s a certain sense of serenity and familiarity walking the streets I know well.
We need to continue using cash as a form of payment in order to include low-income folks in our society
As we go about our lives, you may have noticed that we are going increasingly paperless. Whether it’s spending money on your morning coffee, buying groceries or making a purchase online, many people opt for their debit or credit card as opposed to cash. In the world of Apple and Google Pay, it’s as easy as pressing a few buttons on your phone and holding it over the card machine.
However, going cashless isn’t easy for everyone as it excludes a large number of low-income folks and especially, houseless people.
To own a debit or credit card, you need to own a bank account. To do this, though, many Canadian banks, if not all, ask you for an address. It’s clear how this can be an issue for houseless folks or people who do not have stable housing — what address are they supposed to put?
In light of the Defund HPS protest that occurred this past November, it’s evident that lack of permanent housing is an issue that hits close to home. Additionally, banks often require you to deposit up to $100 in order to start a bank account, which can be a huge cost for some.
However, going cashless isn’t easy for everyone as it excludes a large number of low-income folks and especially, houseless people.
So although it may be convenient for many people to use their cards, not everyone is able to have a debit or credit card. Then, this leaves us with the problem of a society that is growing increasingly cashless: what do low-income folks do when they are unable to pay for groceries and other necessities because they do not have access to an electronic payment method?
Although many places still accept cash payments, there are many notable changes that have occurred that suggest that one day, we may no longer be able to use cash as a form of payment.
Even bus fares have become electronic. The Hamilton Street Railway stopped selling paper tickets and passes and all paper tickets expired by the end of 2020 in order to promote the use of Presto. While the HSR still accepts cash fares, they are $0.75 more expensive than a one-time Presto fare and your fare must be exact as no change will be provided.
Although you can refill a Presto card using cash, you can face issues loading your card. In addition, a Presto card costs $6, which is an additional financial barrier.
During the pandemic, the desire to rely on our debit and credit cards is even higher, as many people do not want to risk catching COVID by handling cash. Some stores even refuse to accept cash as a precaution. Even if you are able to use cash, many stores prefer electronic payment methods.
Even though I understand why this precaution is in place, the Centers for Disease Control and Contamination have highlighted that it is unlikely that COVID spreads often from touching surfaces, such as money. Thus, it should be safe to accept money, especially if that is the only form of payment someone has. If you want to take extra precautions, you can sanitize the money to make sure that you minimize the risk of COVID.
Even though I understand why this precaution is in place, the Centers for Disease Control and Contamination have highlighted that it is unlikely that COVID spreads often from touching surfaces, such as money.
Despite our movement towards a cashless society and despite the pandemic, we should still be accepting cash. Low-income folks already have so many barriers they have to face. At the very least, they shouldn’t have to worry about whether a store will accept their money.
It’s caring about more than just convenience. It’s caring about low-income folks and houseless folks that have no other option to pay with but cash.
