Multidisciplinary artist speaks about the importance of conversation and our histories
C/O Bhavika Sharma
This article marks the beginning of the Artist Talks series. The pandemic has resulted in the closure of many galleries and limited the opportunities for artists to showcase their work. However, Hamilton artists have been far from idle this past year, continuing to create and exploring new experiences.
Bhavika Sharma is an emerging multidisciplinary artist and is currently the artist in residence at Hamilton Artists Inc.
They recently completed their undergraduate degree in architecture and visual arts at the University of Toronto. Sharma points to their time as an undergraduate student as a pivotal point for their art practice, as they gained more experience through studio courses and were also able to experiment with different mediums.
“When I was younger, like in high school I did [advanced placement] art and I did a lot of oil painting and stuff. But I feel like as I went to university, I think also it really was a lot of the professors I met who encouraged me to work in these mediums. Learning how to use video editing software and stuff that interested me and incorporating sewing and fabric, it really opened up a lot of opportunities. It was like, “Oh, yeah, this is what art can be. It can be like a whole range of things. And it can be just a drawing or a painting,”” said Sharma.
Regardless of what medium they are working with, whether it be textiles or video installations, there are two key elements at the core of all their work: conversation and space. Sharma hopes their art encourages and holds space for conversation, with particular concerns surrounding the spaces we live in.
“[It’s about] getting people to think about [these spaces] differently or thinking about how we consume these spaces. And maybe we can change our ways of thinking about these places . . . I think just for people to think more about the way we learn about places or interact with the spaces that surround us,” explained Sharma.
Sharma begins all of their projects by doing thorough and thoughtful research about the history of space they’re exploring in their art. These histories are a crucial component to both key elements of their work. These histories — particularly the non-dominant histories Sharma works to shed light on — are important aspects of the spaces they’re exploring and important topics of conversations.
“I also want people to understand personal narratives deserve a space within these conversations. Shared experiences, non-dominant histories, they are something that we need to actively look for and actively try to find. We shouldn't just take what is there as the [only] history,” added Sharma.
In January 2020, Sharma had an installation piece at Christie Pits Park in Toronto, which included soft sofa-like sculptures. Sharma wanted to explore the narratives that converged in the park and after compiling their research about the more traditional historical narratives. Sharma invited community members to join them in conversation about the space.
“I hosted an event and I had people come over and we sat on these soft sculptures. I brought people tea and people just talked and shared. I read my research to start the space, but then I opened it up and we talked. People just talked about like “Oh, I used to play ping pong here with my boyfriend.” Just people saying small things and memories that they have associated with the space and building on to the history of a space,” explained Sharma.
The pandemic has forced Sharma to rethink their art. Their current work at the Inc. has given them the opportunity to explore new ways to bring their work into the virtual environment.
Currently, Sharma is working on a project surrounding the Grand River, which is close to Hamilton and their hometown of Brantford, focusing on its connection to Indigenous communities and histories.
Looking to the future, Sharma noted that they are still an emerging artist and plan to continue exploring and experimenting with different mediums.
Sharma also offered some encouraging words for students interested in pursuing an art practice of their own.
“I would say just start making, I feel like it's the hardest thing to do. I think that for me, at least, I plan a lot and then it takes me a lot to make it but making can be thinking. You can think about your work while you make it. So just really just starting it and making it and also taking things that you're interested in outside of maybe art and bring that into it. Like if you have a nice interest, incorporate it into your artwork. Why not? People will want to learn about it or want to hear about it. If you like going on Wikipedia wormholes or like research wormholes like me, incorporate it into your art,” said Sharma.
Hair smoothie business provides an at-home hair spa experience
C/O @verte_beauty
By: Michelle Li, Contributor
When Yousra Yousif was young, her hair was damaged by its exposure to chemical straightening treatments. She searched for a product that would make her hair healthy once again without product build-up, but her efforts were to no avail.
As a result, she turned to her African-Arabian roots of using natural hair remedies and developed her own formulas. After sharing her creations with friends, they encouraged her to start her own business. In July 2020, Yousif opened her online hair smoothie shop, Verte Beauty.
Yousif’s hair smoothies are made from a blend of her special hair mask mixtures and fresh Canadian fruits and vegetables. She uses smoothie-inspired ingredients such as carrots, arugula leaves, coconut milk, avocados, pumpkin and cinnamon.
As the product is fresh, it has to be kept in the refrigerator. This novel concept has made her business stand out from others.
“So the idea of you having a hair mask that needs to be kept in the refrigerator is a whole new thing here in Hamilton . . . I believe all of us now got used to the idea of having natural skincare products and natural, for example, face masks. But when it comes to the hair . . . the familiar idea around is just the normal home remedies that need to be done on the spot, at the same time and that's it. With our lifestyle that could be a little bit exhausting and hard to commit with. So having this combination and the whole concept is what makes us unique,” said Yousif.
At $13 for an 8 oz container, Yousif has worked to ensure that her products are affordable. However, customers have told her that it feels like they are using a more expensive product.
“[W]e wanted to ensure that having a healthy, natural product within your beauty regime should never be an expensive or complicated matter. And we made sure to . . . provide our product with a very reasonable price that's accessible and easily purchased for everyone including students, without the need of worrying [about] how will I be able to commit for a long run,” said Yousif.
Yousif’s hair smoothies can be used to treat a variety of hair concerns, from hair loss to itchy scalp and dryness.
“No matter what's your hair type, no matter what treatments you've done to your hair. No matter how old you are, especially because our product suits even toddlers. So definitely healthier hair, that's what we're looking for,” said Yousif.
As Yousif started her business in the midst of the pandemic, she decided to open an online shop. However, opening a physical shop is a possibility she is considering for the future. She also hopes to get her hair smoothies into hair spas and retail stores.
Since launching Verte Beauty, Yousif’s customers have raved about how the smell of the product reminds them of being at a lavish spa. From the product’s luxurious smell to its results, her customers have been satisfied with the product. With Verte Beauty bringing innovative ideas to the table, its future looks bright.
Hamilton-based Ojibwe and Métis beader is reconnecting to her Indigenous roots through her beadwork earrings
C/O @thirtywwolvesdesigns
Growing up in Hamilton her whole life, Oksana Legault knew very little about her Indigenous background. However, through her beaded jewelry business Thirty Wolves Designs that she started on Instagram in September 2020, Legault is slowly reconnecting and beading together her lost Indigenous identity.
Legault is of mixed Ojibwe, Métis and French ancestry. She is also a grandchild of a residential school survivor. As a result of the intergenerational impact of residential schools, she was raised disconnected from her Indigenous heritage and culture.
When people asked about her background, she was taught by her parents to say French-Canadian because they were taught to be ashamed of their Indigenous heritage and knew very little about where they came from.
“I’ve been displaced from my culture, my Ojibwe and Métis culture . . . After my [grandfather attended residential school], all of our culture was lost and my parents know nothing. Especially being in the city, not in our original area, I don’t know much about it. I started [Thirty Wolves Designs] because I found art was fun and I wanted to learn more about my culture,” explained Legault.
Legault began her journey to reclaim her Indigenous identity in 2019 when she signed up for a beading and moccasins workshop led by Justine Woods, a Métis interdisciplinary designer based in Tkaronto, at the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto.
Since then, she has continued to hone her beading skills and now creates beautifully crafted beaded earrings which she sells through Thirty Wolves Designs.
The name was inspired by her strong spiritual connection to wolves and her birth date, December 30. The fact that there can be up to 30 wolves in a pack made the name even more perfect.
Her bead designs mostly carry themes of nature as well as inspirations drawn from other art and Indigenous beaders. For example, she has recreated Pedicularis and Indian paintbrush plants, the scenery of the Meziadin Lake in Kitimat, BC and a painting called A Moment of Peace by Ryder Erickson.
Beyond serving as a tool to reconnect with her Indigenous roots, beading has also allowed Legault to liberate herself creatively. Legault has been interested in art since high school and Thirty Wolves Designs provided her with an opportunity and platform to share her creations.
Her most recent launch on March 5 was in collaboration with Wildflower Supply Co., another Hamilton-based jewelry business run by Legault’s high school classmate Jasmine Ellis. This is the second launch of their collaboration featuring wildflower-themed beaded earrings.
The anticipation for the launch and the general support from her audience has been overwhelming. Legault also appreciates the Indigenous beading community who has been continuously sharing knowledge and teaching her more about beading and her culture.
“The Indigenous beading community is a really small, niche community, but at the same time it feels so big because I haven’t had access to my culture personally through my family,” said Legault.
As with all new businesses in the COVID-19 era, starting Thirty Wolves Designs was challenging. It was difficult to find the right time, right supplies and right designs and to encourage herself to make the first post. Legault emphasizes that new business owners should start small and slowly grow their brand.
Behind the scenes, Legault is excited for more collaboration projects and the launch of the Thirty Wolves Designs website to make her business more accessible to customers. She is also looking forward to discovering more about her Indigenous identity.
“Thirty Wolves Designs means a start to learning about my culture. It’s a beginning, a stepping stone for me to learn more about my family’s history and what it means to be Ojibwe and Métis . . . It’s a fresh start to finding out the part of me that I was never able to explore when I was younger,” said Legault.
Every pair of earrings she creates marks a rekindled connection to the knowledge of the past that was stolen from her.
There are benefits of taking humanities courses for students in any program
C/O Madeline Neumann
By: Ardena Bašić, Contributor
McMaster University’s integrated business and humanities program is a complete game-changer for commerce education in Canada. Combining practical business elements with ethics and other humanity-based courses teaches students to learn the value of making a sustainable and effective difference as opposed to focusing on the bottom line.
However, it is not just business programs that could benefit from integration with the humanities. While the argument has been made for mandatory ethics courses, I believe that every program should contain at least a few humanities courses for a variety of purposes.
For one, the humanities help us think and reflect, as opposed to simply memorizing. In most science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects, answers, concepts and theories can be memorized. Most are logical, require technical skills and have definite “yes” or “no” answers.
The humanities, on the other hand, are at the other end of that continuum. When we consider major topics like philosophy, linguistics and ethics, there often is no “correct” answer for significant research questions.
We must think about our positionality in society, our previous biases and our own opinions to formulate our answers. This is invaluable in fostering the next generation of critical thinkers.
The IBH program specifically mixes core business courses like leadership, accounting and marketing, with humanities courses like ethics, linguistics and community outreach. Through this, we know that we have to consider and be tolerant of all perspectives on business-resulted issues.
We also have more awareness about what problems affecting our society may look like and how they are affected by language, ethics and the world as a whole. When we lack this mindset, we are limited to our own personal perspective and that of the traditional business focus: profit.
Rather, the IBH program is creating a future where business leaders consider the people and planet of the business world first and then the profit.
Sciences and technology programs could also benefit from the abstract nature of the humanities. Besides being able to think more critically considering the logical nature of most scientific concepts, the humanities can foster curiosity, creativity and empathy. We can then discover new or covert problems that need to be solved through new engineering methods or pharmaceutical research.
The creativity that comes from looking beyond the answer, questioning why and how it has come to be, alongside the understanding and tolerance for everyone else’s opinions and how they can congregate can construct a more enriching STEM community.
Moreover, enrollment in liberal arts programs is steadily dropping, suggesting that many people are not considering the humanities as much when choosing their educational programs. If students are to experience these different subjects, they could find that they truly enjoy them and want to pursue something different than traditional science and medical-related degrees.
Even if they do choose to stay in their current program, any participation in any humanities courses has been proven to foster critical, clear and creative thinking: an asset for a workforce in any industry or sector.
Overall, we need to move away from the narrative that arts and humanities-related degrees are just not as profitable or worthy as STEM-related degrees. Our brain is one of our most powerful and complex assets; the humanities stretch and challenge it in a way that is incomparable to other programs.
When considering the next steps in your educational journey, consider expanding your course or program selection to include the extensive humanities offerings. A linguistics, ethics or gender studies course might just completely change the way you think and how you live your life for the better.
Most students in paid MSU positions have volunteered for the MSU in the past
C/O Adeolu Eletu on Unsplash
Every year around February and March, the McMaster Students Union begins hiring for paid student positions. Whether it’s being a part-time director for an MSU service, a research assistant for MSU Advocacy or working for the Silhouette, there are many ways to get involved and actually be paid for your work.
In addition, the MSU highlights that prior employment or volunteer experience within the MSU is not required to apply for these positions. While that may be true, the odds of actually landing a position in the MSU without prior volunteer experience are very unlikely.
But if they’re saying you can apply without prior experience in the MSU, why would they not also hire students who don’t have prior experience? I’m not saying it’s impossible to be hired for a paid role, I’m just saying it’s not likely you will be hired for a paid role.
Why is that? Because in the four years I’ve been at McMaster University, most people I know who have been hired for paid roles had previous volunteer experience within the MSU.
Let’s highlight the part-time director positions first, shall we? Director positions are student positions that manage an MSU service. For example, services such as the Women and Gender Equity Network, Spark, the Student Health Education Centre, Diversity Services and Maccess all have a director.
Currently, all of these directors used to be volunteer executives for their respective services. Volunteer executives have to commit a large amount of time to the service — around 5-10 hours a week — typically for a whole year. If we open it up even further, most part-time directors have at least been a general volunteer for their service or the MSU as a whole.
Evidently, most directors have volunteered for the MSU in the past. This can make sense in many ways, as they are managing a whole service and obviously need to be qualified to do this — so volunteering is an asset, right? But what about paid positions that don’t involve directing a whole service?
Even for non-managerial roles, students who are hired for paid roles often have volunteer experience beforehand. I can speak on behalf of the Sil — as the Opinions Editor for the past two years, I volunteered for the Sil the year before I got hired.
At the Sil, previous experience is considered an asset. You don’t need to have previous experience to be hired, of course, but you’re much more likely to have a step-up in being hired if you can say you’ve written an article or two for the Sil in the past.
I can’t speak on behalf of the other paid roles in the MSU, but I can tell you that almost all my friends that have been hired for a paid role in the MSU have volunteered for the MSU at some point in their undergraduate career.
So what’s the problem? The problem is: what about the people who can’t afford to volunteer? Students may find themselves in a financially unstable situation where the only option they have is to find a job — volunteering simply doesn’t make sense because it won’t help them pay for their groceries or rent.
As a result, because they are not volunteering for the MSU, they are less likely to land a paid role in the MSU. This makes a lot of paid roles in the MSU financially inaccessible for students if they are unable to volunteer. They may be spectacular at the role they’re applying for, but they may not be hired because they don’t have previous experience with the MSU.
The fact that “you can apply regardless of MSU experience” is misleading — you can apply, but if you do have volunteer experience, you are more likely to be hired. It’s okay if volunteering helps you get a step up in being hired, but the MSU should start making that more clear.
The success story of Ron Foxcroft and the way he changed sports forever
C/O Ted Brellisford
The year was 1984. Brazil and Uruguay were playing in a pre-Olympic basketball game in an attempt to qualify for the Olympics. With over 20,000 fans in the stands, referee Ron Foxcroft attempted to call a potentially game-changing foul down the stretch, but there was one problem.
“The score was tied, nine seconds left on the clock,” recalls Foxcroft. “I emptied my lungs into my whistle to call a foul on Brazil. The pea in the whistle stuck. Nothing, not even a peep”.
In some versions of the story, this key moment occurred at the 1976 Summer Olympics gold medal game in Montreal. Regardless, it was through this experience, a new Hamiltonian success story was born.
At age 19, Foxcroft would referee his first game at McMaster University, entering the game as an emergency replacement after one of the original referees fell ill. After an impressive debut from Foxcroft, he would land a permanent job as a new referee.
Over the years, Foxcroft made substantial progress in his career. He started as an Ontario University Athletics official, quickly moving onto bigger opportunities, including the Olympics and the National Collegiate Athletic Association. He would officiate Michael Jordan’s first-ever college game with the University of North Carolina, facing off against the Yugoslavian national team.
He was involved in several significant games throughout his career, but none were of as much importance as that Olympic match, as a single failed whistle blow would change his life forever.
After missing an important foul call, Foxcroft became determined to find a better version of the whistle for referees who struggle with the same issues as he had experienced many times throughout his career. With the help of an Oakville design consultant and a Stoney Creek plastics moulding company, Foxcroft would create the Fox 40 whistle that is commonly found today.
Upon building his team, Foxcroft went to work attempting to design the perfect whistle. The first was too big. The next wasn’t loud enough. Then it wasn’t consistent enough.
The problems went on and on, but he wasn’t prepared to back down from the challenge. After 14 prototypes, he would find the perfect design which would become the standard Fox 40 whistle. The pealess whistle was born.
After its debut at the 1987 Pan-Am games, the new whistle became extremely popular across sports. By the end of his first game, over 20,000 orders had been placed.
Since, the whistle has become the standard for the National Hockey League, the National Basketball Association, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the National Football League, the Arena Football League and the Canadian Football League. It is also commonly found in international tournaments such as the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup.
Since the rapid growth and success of his company, Foxcroft has taken on numerous other successful endeavors. He remains the chairman and chief executive officer of Fox 40 and holds the same positions with Fluke Transport, a Hamilton-based transportation company.
In 2019, Foxcroft would be awarded the Order of Canada, likely the highest of his many achievements which include the 1997 Hamilton Citizen of the Year, 2011 Burlington Entrepreneur of the Year and an Honorary Doctor of Law from McMaster University.
Ron FoxCroft, aka "Mr. Hamilton," is a long-time supporter of @mcmastersports and chaired the campaign for #DBAC and Ron Joyce Stadium. He also invented the Fox 40 pea-less whistle. Today he is being invested into the #OrderOfCanada. pic.twitter.com/xMQwhB8sIs
— McMaster University (@McMasterU) September 5, 2019
Foxcroft is one of many success stories to have come out of Hamilton. He created a great product that had a lasting impact across sports and created a successful international company from his idea. The idea that began its course at McMaster University, where a 19-year-old Foxcroft would make his debut.
As Foxcroft said himself, “this all started because of McMaster University."
A team at McMaster University is working on a second-generation vaccine, which are designed to protect against viral variants
C/O Brian Lichty
By: Natalie Chen, Contributor
As of March 6, 2021, approximately six out of every 100 Canadians have received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, compared to 26 out of every 100 Americans.
While Canada has approved vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson, researchers have also been hard at work at McMaster University’s Robert E. Fitzhenry Vector Laboratory to develop two second-generation COVID-19 vaccines.
Brian Lichty, a principal investigator of the vaccine development project and an associate professor at McMaster’s Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, explained the novelty behind these vaccines.
The first-generation of COVID-19 vaccines contain a spike protein, which will teach our immune system to recognize and protect us from COVID-19. The second-generation vaccines will also use the spike protein but are trivalent, indicating that it is composed of three structures found on the COVID-19 virus SARS-CoV-2.
The two additional components that the second-generation vaccines contain are called the nucleoprotein and the polymerase. As they are less likely to mutate, the second-generation vaccines with these two components of the coronavirus may provide increased immunity against variants of SARS-CoV-2.
“We’re hoping that the broader immunity that our vaccine[s] can generate will help control even the variants. We’ve actually designed [the vaccines] to potentially give some protection against related coronaviruses,” said Lichty.
Another novel aspect of the second-generation vaccines is the provision of the booster dose via inhalation. Similar to using a puffer, the vaccines can be aerosolized and inhaled by the recipient.
The idea and the technology used to create these COVID-19 vaccines stemmed from previous vaccine trials for tuberculosis conducted by Dr. Zhou Xing and Dr. Fiona Smaill, who are principal investigators on the vaccine development project alongside Lichty and Matthew Miller.
There are two main benefits to this approach. Since memory in our immune system tends to remain in the area where the pathogen is last found, targeting the upper airways and the lungs — the primary points of contact for SARS-CoV-2 — would provide greater and longer-lasting protection.
“The other benefit to [this] route is, we actually can get away with a much lower dose than injecting [the vaccine] into the arm. If you think about it, that would allow for more people to be vaccinated with the same starting amount of material, which is important nowadays because we’re struggling to vaccinate all the people that need it,” explained Lichty.
Sam Afkhami, a co-lead researcher working under the principal investigators and a recent Ph.D. graduate from McMaster’s medical sciences program, expressed his hopes regarding the impact of the novel project.
“We’re hoping to show essentially the community and the world that thinking outside the box of traditional vaccine strategies can provide us with avenues of developing vaccines with broader immunity,” said Afkhami.
The Robert E. Fitzhenry Vector Laboratory, the vaccine manufacturer, was created in 2004 and was the first of its kind in Canada. The research conducted within the laboratory is part of Canada’s Global Nexus for Pandemic and Biological Threats, a McMaster initiative of interdisciplinary teams of global experts to prepare for future outbreaks.
As one of Canada’s only institutions equipped to isolate SARS-CoV-2, Canada’s Global Nexus has partnered with the University of Saskatchewan’s Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization to spearhead vaccine development, the creation of new diagnostic tools and to produce clinical trials.
Afkhami and Ph.D. student Michael D’Agostino, another co-lead researcher of vaccine development and a member of the Miller Laboratory at McMaster, have also emphasized the importance of internal collaboration at McMaster that has led to the creation of the vaccines.
“The collaborative environment that we have here is next to none, and I really want to highlight how important the collaboration has been to the rapidity of the work we’ve done so far and getting these vaccines from theory to pre-clinical testing to eventual clinical application,” expressed Afkhami.
“There are so many people that are involved behind the scenes, and none of this would be possible without them for sure,” added D’Agostino.
For undergraduate students interested in scientific research, D’Agostino and Afkhami also shared advice on how to gain hands-on experience.
“Don’t be afraid to contact the professors that teach your courses. If they give a lesson that’s something you can see yourself interested in or you want to learn more about, I’d suggest reaching out to them,” D’Agostino explained. “Send an email seeing if you could even just hang around the lab [and] help out where you can.”
To those passionate about virology, Afkhami also recommended the McMaster Immunology Research Centre.
“Overall, it’s a great centre if you’re very interested in research and things like virology, vaccine development or just basic immunology,” Afkhami said. “MIRC is one of the most fantastic places, I think, [where] you can get that type of experience in Ontario.”
Addressing student concerns to reinstate grade change option from Winter 2020
C/O Engin Akyurt
As we head into the last half of the 2021 winter semester, McMaster University students are beginning to call for an option to make this semester’s grades on a pass/fail basis. One such student is Rozhan Estaki, a second-year sociology student minoring in mental health and addictions.
Estaki started a petition on March 1 to have McMaster bring back the pass/fail option for winter 2021. This option was given in winter 2020 after the COVID-19 pandemic led to an abrupt and complete shift from in-person to online learning.
“We got the opportunity last year to take the pass or fail option,” explained Estaki. “Although the situation is not as new [as winter 2020], it doesn't mean that online learning has gotten any easier.”
She started the petition after talking to many of her friends and peers, who were all still struggling with online classes, especially this semester.
“It seems [like] we're covering [more in] what feels like a less amount of time,” emphasized Estaki.
As of March 7, the petition has 171 signatures, a number that has continued to grow each day.
Estaki expressed surprise over the amount of signatures. “I didn't think it would have such a positive turnover,” said Estaki.
In terms of the petition’s impact, Estaki hoped that it is something that will allow for professors and students to come to a common ground of understanding.
“It would be [important] to have Mac recognize that we as students are trying so hard. We appreciate the efforts that McMaster [and their] staff are putting in, but it just might feel like too much for some of us, [especially in terms of] mental health . . . we want people to see that, to recognize that, and to be comfortable with what we're producing,” said Estaki.
To evaluate the online learning environment, McMaster launched a virtual learning task force in fall 2020. The task force consisted of over 30 faculty, staff and students that collected feedback from the McMaster community about the virtual learning experience. This included the MacPherson Institute’s Fall 2020 Experience Survey in October that got over 3,000 responses from students and instructors.
The final report, released in November 2020, provided 21 recommendations for the university for winter 2021, especially highlighting the need for stronger mental health and support for well-being.
Estaki hoped that the petition will be an opportunity to raise awareness on student concerns and at the very least, start a conversation among McMaster faculty and administration about the pass/fail option.
“Mac is working hard towards inclusivity and especially in recognizing students with mental health concerns. I just think there's always room for improvement, and this is one of those things that should at least be considered,” said Estaki.
The MacPherson Institute has launched a new zine exploring barriers of access on campus
C/O LQ from This Insane Life: MadStudents Zine, 2014
The MacPherson Institute, McMaster’s teaching and learning centre, has launched a new zine on disability, accessibility and teaching and learning at McMaster University.
Current and former McMaster students with lived experiences of disability, disablement, inaccessibility and ableism are invited to contribute to the zine to share and voice their experiences. This could include any barriers to access they might have experienced at McMaster or other post-secondary institutions.
The zine project is being led by disabled students and alumni.
“[The zine] seeks to uncover and document the labour and legacy of these disabled student initiatives and others (individual and collective; formal and informal) we haven’t heard from yet,” as stated on the website.
“The zine takes an arts-based approach to educational pedagogy and seeks to inform educators and faculty about the struggles of students who are or identify as a disabled, neurodivergent or are service users of mental health,” explains Evonne Syed, a third-year undergraduate MacPherson student partner and educational research assistant on the zine team.
The project will hope to acknowledge the need for greater accessibility and disability inclusion in the classroom, within curricula and on-campus. The project also builds on the work of a similar 2014 McMaster zine on Mad student experiences. It will also contribute to commemorations for the 50th anniversary of the MacPherson Institute.
Both individual and group submissions are being accepted in multiple formats, including but not limited to: creative arts such as collage, comics, graphic design, drawing, painting, photography; literary arts like dialogues/interviews, essays, poetry, lyrics, reflections, satire, short fiction, theatre scripts; or other ideas such as lists, recipes, games, etc.
The submission deadline is March 31 and can be submitted through a Google Form. Contributors will be notified about the status of their piece on May 1, with the publication date set for summer 2021.
“Art is [one of the] the most successful modes for expression… there aren't really many guidelines and you have a lot of freedom with what you do and how you express yourself. In that way we can appeal to a wider audience when it comes to talking about disability and accessibility,” emphasized Tanisha Warrier, a second-year biology student on the zine team.
Up to 30 current students and alumni from 2011-2020 are eligible to receive a $125 honorarium for any pieces chosen for publication in the zine. Other contributors whose pieces are chosen for publication will be eligible to request an honorarium.
The amount will depend on the project budget and the overall number of accepted submissions. These honoraria are funded by grants from the Arts Research Board at McMaster University as well as the Student Success Centre’s Career Access Professional Services Program.
“Something that I really love about this project is that we are asking the people who are [directly] impacted by these [accessibility] barriers what their experiences are and compensating them for their contributions,“ said Emunah Woolf, a social work placement student on the zine team.
“A lot of times, we either don't ask the people who are impacted and, therefore, don't solve it in a way that actually fixes the issues. We're asking folks from equity-seeking groups how they want equity and then not actually compensating them for that knowledge or that labour,” said Woolf.
The zine will be an open-access publication that will be distributed to students, staff, faculty and campus partners. After the publication, the zine team plans on conducting research to evaluate the engagement and impact of the zine, such as through focus groups and surveys of contributors and readers.
The zine team emphasized the importance of this project in creating a more inclusive space for those with disabilities.
“We need to start having more conversations. Not only within our own friend circles and things like that, but also conversations with higher-ups in academics and larger, more influential people in our faculties to ensure that voices are being heard, and are being taken to a place where change can actually take place,” said Vikita Mehta, a second-year arts and science student on the zine team.
The team also highlighted tangible action that must follow through with the contributions of the zine, especially to make the learning environment more accessible for disabled folks.
“With the release of [the zine to] really set the scene, it might also be helpful to educators and [professors] in incorporating a more inclusive educational framework and improve their teaching methods in terms of how they structure their classes, so that it's more accessible for different students [of] different abilities,” said Syed.
“We need to ensure that the playing field level when it comes to school, work and academics [is made so] that everyone has equal opportunity to succeed,” added Warrier.