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May-June 2023

Clearing Hurdles

Ottawa drag performer’s scholarship fund is an homage to her childhood

Erin Gee

Photos by Katie Zeilstra Photography When Derek Brougham was a member of the University of Ottawa’s varsity track and field team, they regularly searched for scholarships for queer athletes. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t find a single one. Brougham, who uses both he and they pronouns, is no longer on the team. […] More »
January-February 2023

You are not your own

What is learned and lost when you grow up in purity culture (and yes, it's here in Canada too)

Samantha Purchase

Illustration by Diana Nguyen We practiced saying no in class. If a boy wants to have sex with you before you are married, you must be ready to steer the ship away from troubled waters. If you loved me, you’d have sex with me. If you loved me, you’d know I was waiting. Why? We’re […] More »
September-October 2022

Diversifying Canada’s oldest journalism school

In 2020, journalism students and alumni called out systemic racism and demanded change. Is Carleton doing the work?

Meral Jamal

In the summer of 2020, against the backdrop of a global pandemic, the world had its re-reckoning with racism, and so did the place where I studied, Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication. It began when George Floyd, a Black American, died on May 25 of that year after being pinned to the ground […] More »
September-October 2022

Lecturers on the line

The post-secondary strike wave was unlike anything seen before. With many issues unresolved, what comes next?

Liam Devitt

In Lethbridge, Alberta, a college town of just over 100,000, the professors are on strike. They walk the picket line, buffeted by the harsh winter winds the city is known for. University of Lethbridge-hired private security guards are patrolling the perimeter of the university and setting up surveillance cameras, ostensibly to keep everyone safe, perhaps […] More »
September-October 2022

Counsellors, caretakers, and cops

They're barely older than the peers they support, and they’re always on the clock. Resident assistants in Canadian universities speak up about a crushing emotional toll

Carly Penrose

The phone rings. It’s the call Alanna Stewart has been waiting for. One of her residents passed out at a party across campus. Stewart saw them down six shots of absinthe earlier in the night, so she isn’t exactly surprised. She ventures out to find the student, who is dangerously drunk, and then escorts them […] More »
September-October 2022

Teaching while fat

When schools talk about inclusivity, they’re not talking about fat bodies

Dani Jansen

Illustration by Michelle Simpson I’ve been a high school teacher for 16 years now. That means I’ve spent roughly half my life in high school something I’d never have predicted as a teenager. All I wanted then was to get the hell out. I was a fat teen in the 1990s, when “heroin chic” was […] More »
September-October 2022

Teachable TV moments

Abbott Elementary shows us what solidarity looks like

Makda Mulatu

I have always found myself in close proximity to teachers, first as a student then later in my personal and professional circles. As a figure skating coach, I felt a kinship with teachers, even if I didn’t always understand the weight of what was being asked of them. This past year, I began watching Abbott […] More »
September-October 2021

Breaking tradition

PhD students call on university to pay a liveable wage

Isabel Armiento

At the University of Toronto (U of T), most PhD students are expected to spend at least four years working demanding and often thankless jobs, all while living below the poverty line. “It’s a very long tradition,” says June Li, finance commissioner at the University of Toronto Graduate Students’ Union (UTGSU). “You’re a PhD, you’re […] More »
September-October 2020

The code to success

Black boys to get involved in STEM

Kevin Philipupillai

Bryan Johnson, CEO and Founder of Black Boys Code · photo by Sean Anthony Photography   As the Black Lives Matter movement spread across different industries this year, 5,874 scientists around the world signed an online pledge in support of #ShutDownSTEM. The one-day strike in June was a call to action against anti-Black racism in […] More »
September-October 2020

A certain swanness

On Korean adoption and beauty

Jenny Heijun Wills

A quarter million Korean adoptees live (or have lived) around the world. Aren’t our black eyes so cute when they get pushed up by our cheeks as we smile for the photo displayed at the office? Don’t we garner the most likes and applause on those mommy blogs when we’re sent to show-and-tell in a […] More »
September-October 2020

Why the fight for inclusivity in fashion education is more important than ever

What schools could be doing differently to create more progress

Amanda Scriver

The fashion industry still has a lot of work to do when it comes to inclusivity. Often, when we discuss the lack of diversity—race, gender, body size, or disability—we think that the work of inclusivity has to start on the runways, in the boardrooms, or in editorial spreads. While it’s true that those changes need […] More »