Students met with John Tory, provincial opposition leader, at a Conservative Party fundraiser. (Katrina Ludlow)
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Campus gears up for federal election
On Monday evening, a non-confidence motion passed in the House of Commons, officially beginning a federal election campaign. Only 17 months after the last federal election, candidates and politically-minded students alike are gearing up for the longest federal election campaign in more than two decades. The timing of this campaign, which will span the holiday season, has been criticized by some observers.
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Date rape drugs hit home
Through the darkness, the only thing Alexandra recalls is someone shouting. When Alexandra opened her eyes around 9 a.m., she felt dizzy and disoriented. Her vision was blurred, but her eyes eventually adjusted. Six thin, silver needles protruded from the tops of her hands and the soft flesh of her wrists and inner arms. Small tubes, connected to the needles, ran up and away into plastic, fluid-filled sacks. Then Alexandra realized she wasn’t wearing her own clothes.
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Race, racism and blackface
When trying to decide on a university, Kareena Elliston, ArtSci ’06, said she was warned by her high school teachers and counsellors against choosing Queen’s. Elliston said it wasn’t long before she encountered racist attitudes during her first year. “One student told me I ‘wasn’t really black,’” she said. Elliston said one student’s recent Halloween costume is another example of racism on campus.
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Culinary makeover for Vic common room
It’s for students like Catherine Payne, Comm ’09, that a new food and entertainment facility has been proposed for the lower common room in Victoria Hall. Payne, who lives on main campus, said that although she doesn’t plan on living in residence next year when the facility is scheduled to open, she thinks it’s a neat idea. The project, slated for groundbreaking on May 1 and opening next September, is currently in the design stages.
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Exemption sought from information act
A proposed amendment to a provincial government bill may mean students could be refused access to information from University meetings where decisions and deliberations are made. Administrators, however, say new legislation won’t reduce the transparency of Queen’s existing freedom of information policies.
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JComm rules on second AAA case
A student was found guilty of violating the All Ages Access (AAA) policy when she forgot to retrieve her student card from a charity event in early November. Last Thursday, the Judicial Committee (JComm) met to decide the matter of AMS vs. Kelsea Fitzpatrick, Sci ’09. Alvin Tedjo was the StuCon on duty at the exit door at the time Fitzpatrick left the bar. Tedjo said at the hearing that he was not more than two or three feet from the exit door at any time.
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Campus rallies to support Grad Club
Undergrads, graduate students, faculty and staff packed The Grad Club Nov. 24 to collectively voice their support for the popular campus hangout. Members of the Law Students’ Society hosted the “Save The Grad Club” party and fundraiser to show support for the campus bar and circulate a petition opposing current proposals by the Union Street Project, which calls for the demolition of whole or part of The Grad Club’s building.
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News In Brief
Liberal MPP for Kingston and the Islands John Gerretsen has been named one of three candidates for the Lord of the Slums award by Toronto’s Parkdale Tenants Association. In his official cabinet position as Ontario municipal affairs and housing minister, the Association says, he is responsible—along with Toronto Mayor David Miller and Toronto Community Housing Corp. President Derek Ballantyne—for the “slumification” and “ghettoization” of Toronto.
