C/O McMaster Rowing
The first major rowing competition after a year and a half was welcomed by many
On Nov. 6, the Canadian University Rowing Championships took place at Brock University. After over a year of the COVID-19 led recess, the best rowers from universities across Canada gathered to take part in the competition. There were a total of 21 schools competing in both mens and womens entries that had a chance to prove themselves over the two days of competition.
McMaster participated as one of the 21 teams in the rowing competition. They entered the tournament with a total of seven entries, which were: Mens Open 1x, Womens Lightweight 2x, Mens Lightweight 1x, Womens Open 1x, Mens lightweight 2x, Womens lightweight 1x and Mens lightweight 4+.
Overall, the major Canadian rowing competition did not conclude well award-wise for the Marauders, who were unable to achieve podium status in any of their entries. The first race of the day was the Mens Open 1x, which was scheduled at 9:00 a.m. The 2,000 metre rowing distance had McMaster finish in 13th place with a time of 7:57.717.
The next two races didn’t show much more success than the first, unfortunately. In the second race — Women's Lightweight 2x — the Marauders placed 11th while achieving a time of 8:18.096 for 2,000 metres. The third event for McMaster was the Mens Lightweight 1x, which resulted in a 9th place finish for the school, with a time of 7:56.410.
Arguably the biggest success that the Marauders have achieved throughout the rowing championship was the Men's Lightweight 4+ race. The team managed to qualify for the finals, where they unfortunately fell to sixth place, with a total time of 7:00.070 over 2,000 metres. The participants for McMaster’s most successful and final race were Liam McDonald, Alex Barnes, Alex Cowman and Jack Thorpe.
Although McMaster did not do very well in this competition, University of British Columbia student Niko Schramm managed to make the podium in both of his races throughout the weekend. Speaking to him, he expressed his excitement to be back to the sport that he loves after such a long time.
“I was so excited to be a part of this competition. This COVID break seemed to last forever to me and I couldn't wait to get back to rowing. As a student athlete, breaks like these in the past period affected [me] a lot and a return was much needed,” explained Schramm.
Schramm also added how the COVID break started for him and his peers.
“In 2020 there were meant to be many races for my peers and I to participate in. However, there was so much uncertainty as to what would happen, [and] eventually everything had to be cancelled until further notice. I was gutted,” said Schramm
When asked about the competition opportunities for his university compared to McMaster and other Ontario schools, Schramm said that his school did not get as many opportunities to prove themselves on the big stage leading up to the big competition last weekend.
“This was [UBC’s] first major meet in a very long time. It’s a different scenario for Ontario universities as they have had Ontario University Athletics championships beforehand so they have gained some competitive experience leading up to this major meet,” explained Schramm.
"It’s a different scenario for Ontario universities as they have had Ontario University Athletics championships beforehand so they have gained some competitive experience leading up to this major meet,”
Niko Schramm, University of British Columbia Rower
Schramm also spoke about the success he achieved during this rowing meet, coming in second and third place in his heats.
“Personally, we were a bit disappointed with what we achieved. We didn’t really expect anything other than a win in our heats, as we have worked hard to prepare in the best possible way for these races. The expectations were really high as UBC has done exceptionally well at rowing competitions in previous years. On a personal level though, I am somewhat satisfied with the way that I have done. I am just glad to be back to rowing,” said Schramm.
"I am just glad to be back to rowing,"
Niko Schramm, University of British Columbia Rower
Although the Canadian University Rowing Championship is over and won't be played again until next season, the competition couldn't come at a better time for many of the student athletes who have been hungry for competition after a year and a half of inactivity. While the Marauders season comes to an end, there is plenty of room for optimism and improvement when looking ahead to the next season.
Sauder School of Business at UBC was graffitied in response to the pro-rape chant being lead during frosh orientation week. C/O Reddit
By now, you’ve probably heard about the Saint Mary’s University and University of British Columbia frosh week rape chant debacle. And, if you’re a decent human being, you’re probably also appalled by it.
In short, frosh orientation leaders at the two universities (that is, the two universities it has surfaced at so far) have come under fire for a cheer that goes, “Y is for your sister, O is for oh-so-tight, U is for underage, N is for no consent, G is for grab that ass.” It’s inappropriate, inexcusable, and frankly, inhuman. But that we already know.
What has come under less fire is how the media, the universities, and the students involved have handled the whole situation. That’s where my beef is.
To start, this article is one of only a few newspaper pieces you’ll find that actually puts into print all the verses of the chant. Most condense it, and only include excerpts – strange to me, considering it’s a whopping 26 words long. They usually eliminate the “oh so tight” part, perhaps to avoid offending readers (and yet is that not the whole point that this is really offensive?), which becomes convenient when they then water-down their adjectives to the stuff of mere “sexist chant” instead of acknowledging the vaginal violence that phrase indicates: rape.
Indeed, the National Post ran the shockingly forgiving headline “Saint Mary’s University student president apologizes for ‘sexist’ frosh chant that critics say ‘reinforces rape culture’”. So we’re relying on critics to confirm that that disgusting string of words is, in fact, offensive? And what is with those scare-quotes? Is the National Post so insecure in its values that it has to only tentatively identify that the chant ‘reinforces rape culture’? Grow up, NP, and tell it like it is.
The Globe and Mail, too, published, “Frosh video cheering on non-consensual sex is ‘sexist and offensive,’ Saint Mary’s University says.” Let me make something clear right now: sexism is stuff like believing women are worse drivers than men by the mere fact of their gender. Sexism is by no means harmless, but it’s not on the violent level of this rape promotion. This frosh chant goes way beyond sexism, and to reduce it to that is to belittle the severity of the situation.
Enough with the “non-consensual sex” language, too. Rape is rape. Let’s not dilute the violence of that word by smothering it with “non-consensual” euphemisms. Doing so decreases the urgent sense of violence and pain that the term “rape” appropriately connotes, and disrespects the countless victims of this horrible crime whose experiences are downgraded by such rhetoric.
Enough, too, with all this talk of sensitivity training. The people who chanted the rape cheer were fully aware that it was wildly inappropriate – it’s common sense. No amount of university-administered sensitivity training or bringing in bullying professionals (the actual response at SMU) will awaken them to something they already know, or solve the deep-seated indifferent misogyny that perpetuated the chant’s continuing presence at so many years’ frosh events.
What does need to happen is to hold students more accountable for their actions – upper-year coordinators and first years alike. It shouldn’t have taken days for the Saint Mary’s student’s union president – who led the cheer, among others – to step down. He should have been fired - immediately. The schools shouldn’t be promising to “investigate the incidents”; the frosh leaders involved should be suspended, and maybe even expelled.
Consequences need to apply to the youngest people involved, too. First year students are, on average, 18 years old. They are legal adults who can vote, can drive, and have achieved secondary school grades high enough for admission into a university-level institution. So I don’t care about group mentalities, or how impressionable these young adults are. They are autonomous, intelligent individuals who have no excuse for singing along, for not blowing the whistle sooner on this chant, and who then grow up to become frosh leaders who propagate this whole cycle.
I’ve never heard anything like that cheer at McMaster, and I hope I never will. But I won’t be surprised to hear about more students criticizing and publicizing similarly violent and vulgar experiences at other universities after this coast-to-coast reveal. For in a country where our media sugarcoats, our administration band-aids, and our students deny responsibility, where's the pressure for this culture to change?
View the full video that kickstarted this whole discussion, here:
[youtube id="SMY9Tqxz-Ec" width="620" height="360"]
Ronald Leung / Silhouette Staff
CFS-BC moves to expel University of Victoria Students’ Society
The Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) British Columbia chapter has voted to expel the University of Victoria Students’ Society (UVSS), citing unpaid fees and UVSS’s departure from national CFS as reasons for expulsion. UVSS students are still considered members of the CFS-BC until the winter session is over. The fees in question total to approximately $160,000, and according to the CFS-BC, are part of an alleged underpayment from over a decade ago.
UBC futures market facilitates student bets on provincial elections
UBC business professor Werner Antweiler has been running an elections futures market since 1993, hoping to teach students about long- and short-selling – and how to predict election outcomes. The real-world elections futures market is currently trading heavily on this spring’s upcoming provincial election. Students participating in Antweiler’s market are able to buy and sell commodities as they please, resulting in reasonably accurate results in the past. In the 2008 federal election, the Conservative seat prediction traded steadily at just above 40 per cent, and on Election Day they picked up 36 per cent of the seats.
Introduction of scholarship benefits students with ADD/ADHD
Shire Canada, a biopharmaceutical company that focuses on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is creating a scholarship program for Canadian adults suffering from the disorder. It will be introduced this upcoming September and will not only include financial support for tuition, but also one year of ADHD coaching. Consideration for the scholarship is open to students that have been diagnosed by a physician and are actively seeking treatment for the disorder. The scholarship is available to students in Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec. A minimum of one student per province will be selected and a total of five spots are available.
Laurier professor addresses shaky job market for young Canadians
Communications professor Greig de Peuter at Wilfrid Laurier University is readying students for careers that could be far more precarious than in his “Work and Cultural Industries” class. Bringing in guest speakers such as Nicole Cohen, founder of Shameless Magazine, is part of Peuter’s plan to illustrate short-term contract and non-permanent working conditions. Cohen speaks with personal experience, referencing her own shaky unemployment after completing her undergraduate degree when she worked freelance for some time. Students praise this pessimistic, yet realistic view of the job market.
New Ryerson Student’s Union policy passes without challenge
The Ryerson Students’ Union (RSU) quickly adopted a new policy which will ensure the empowerment of women’s voices on campus: rejecting the concept of misandry – the hatred or fear of men. This came right on the tail of the attempts of a new group trying to start up the creation of a men’s issues group. Students involved in this group object to the new policy, saying that the group is not anti-feminist, but rather seeks to discuss men’s issues on campus, including misandry.
