Q & A with Chelsea Seguin - UTSC hockey player

It seems girls are likely to be underestimated when it comes to a sport like hockey. Chelsea Seguin, a second year psychology and political science major has heard her fair share of chirps from guys (probably not as good as her). With a clapper of a slap shot and speed that takes her end to end, Seguin was a varsity hockey player before playing the intramural sport at UTSC.

"[Playing varsity] was a great experience and my physical fitness was pushed to the max."

Unfortunately, hockey is just as political as it is physical and Seguin was released from the team after a month and a half.

As much as a disappointment as that was for her, like any good hockey player, she picked herself back up and got back on the ice.

This being your first time on the UTSC hockey team, what were your expectations when you went to the first try-out?


When I came to tryouts, I didn't know what to expect. I was definitely intimidated because walking into a dressing room where everyone already knows each other is nerve-racking. As I got to know everyone, it didn't take long until I felt part of the team.

How has your overall university experience enhanced since being part of the team?


Overall, being part of the hockey team is a great way to meet new people that I have things in common with. It is also a good way to keep in shape and relieve stress when I need to get my mind off the books.

What's the biggest lesson you've learned while playing hockey at intramural level?


The biggest lesson I've learned (more so, been reminded of) since being on the hockey team is to never underestimate your opponents. During the Fall season, we lost in the semi-finals to a team that we were more than capable of beating. Sometimes you wrongly take a win for granted, but no matter what, you have to keep your head in the game.

What other teams have you played on at UTSC?


Last year I played intramural volleyball during the winter semester (won the championship). This year i'm playing soccer, along with interhouse volleyball and ball hockey.

FREE MONEY!

Hello readers (Read that in the Old Spice man’s voice). Once again it’s Thursday which means you get the pleasure of reading a blog post from me! 

So as you guys might have heard, the Liberal government promised Post-Secondary students a 30% discount off their tuition. The discount comes into effect THIS semester. Basically, starting next year all eligible post-secondary students are going to get 30% off their tuition. 

This means University students get back $1600 and college students get back $730. Because it came into effect starting this semester, students are able to apply for an $800 refund if they qualify. The downside to this is that there are certain conditions that need to be met in order for you to qualify for this refund so not everybody will be able to get the 30% discount. 

To sign up for this rebate, you have to go on the OSAP website and fill in all the information they ask for. I hear that signing up is a long and painful process but hey, at least you’re getting free money (kind of). If you have already applied for OSAP you will automatically be considered so don’t panic. The deadline for the refund of this semester is March 31, 2012 so make sure you guys sign up ASAP.

For those of you wondering, the qualifications for this refund are:

• You're a full-time student at a public college or university in Ontario
• It's been less than four years since you left high school
• You're in a program that you can apply to directly from high school
• Your parents' gross income is $160,000 or less

Something else you guys might have heard on campus lately is the Feb. 1 Day of Action: Drop Fees. This is the day that students from all over Toronto will be protesting for an increase in funding for students.

“On Feb. 1, join thousands of Ontario students as they march in solidarity to support the fight for an increase in funding for Ontario students. This means we want funding for all students in Ontario regardless of status.”  Instead of having a 30% rebate for a small number of people, they’re protesting that the government use the money they put aside to drop fees 13% altogether.

To find out more about the protest check out the Facebook group right over here: http://www.facebook.com/events/216072141810151/

Come out and show your support!

Until next week.

Peace and love.

To Niqab or Not To Niqab

Hey Guys! It's E.A.P again.
I know I promised an interview, it's coming! It's just being postponed.
You'll have it NEXT WEEK!

So I was at our glorious school library and I was just about to leave when this cover caught my eye. I felt compelled to discuss this article in today's post.

I like the contrast. I just had to stop and read it.

The author, Anne Kingston, opens up her article with "No item of female apparel summons more attention, animosity, debate or censure in Western society than the veil covering Muslim women." Sounds cool right? And then she brings up the recent controversy surrounding the Niqab and how it's been banned by Belgium and France. Our Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced a ban on face veils during the swearing-in of the citizenship oath. Kingston goes back and forth in the article bringing up points for and against the ban of Niqab and the various notions that surround the Niqab and covering of the face and body.

Here's a view points brought up in the article.

Supporting the ban:

-Quebec’s Bill 94, which would deny essential public services to women in niqabs in the name of “public security, communication and identification,” is wending through the legislature.

-Jason Kenney described a covered face as “un-Canadian” when announcing the new citizenship ruling: “Allowing a group to hide their faces while they are becoming members of our community is counter to Canada’s commitment to openness, equality and social cohesion,” he said.

- Last June, Muslim women were singled out by FIFA, the world soccer body, which banned players from wearing Islamic headdresses on the grounds they could cause a “choking injury.”

Against the ban:

-Turkish-born sociologist Necla Kelek dismisses the idea that the burka has anything to do with religion or religious freedoms, but rather represents an ideology whereby “women in public don’t have the right to be human.”

-.As British writer Myriam Francois-Cerrah, a Muslim, puts it: “[Governments] have a funny idea of liberation: criminalizing women in order to free them.”

-“These new WMDs (Women in Muslim dress) seem to evoke the same fear as those other WMDs (weapons of mass destruction),” she writes. Khan, who wears the hijab, sees a cultural disconnect over the female body and its display: “Muslim women value their bodies, they simply don’t believe in flashing skin.”

I like that she not only speaks about Muslim women but she also brings in the Western culture and their standards regarding women, their bodies and the tyrannical standards of beauty: "Western women may be shackled by clothing and customs—six-inch stilettos, Brazilian waxing, cosmetic surgery, the imperative to be thin—but that’s seen to be their choice, their self-expression within a culture that often conflates female empowerment with female sexuality."

I like this article because it does a nice job of summarizing this debate, bringing people up to speed and showing both sides.

Kingston talks about what other people have said, but we don't really get her take on the debate. She comes across as sympathetic but we just don't get her opinion. Was she playing it safe by not taking sides? In addition, I like the comment feed online; there's some intense discussions and blaming going on over there.

Well, In my opinion I feel like people need to take a good look at themselves and get to the source of why they feel the way they do towards the Niqab and Muslims. We also have to understand the media is often misleading and promotes only one way of thinking/perceiving towards a particular subject, so don't buy into it. It only reinforces stereotypes.

If the government bans the Niqab, can they go on to ban other articles of clothing because it's considered offensive? Where do we draw the line?

In my opinion, here are some tips the media should use whenever talking about Muslim women:

1) Don't confuse the "Niqab" with the "Hijab." The Niqab is the head piece covering the whole face versus the Hijab, which covers the hair.

2) There is a big difference between forced marriages and arranged marriages. Arranged marriage is when your parents help you pick your partner, it's consensual, the person can say no. Forced marriages are...you guessed it, is forced.

3) NEVER EVER USE THE WORDS "Honor Killing." Murder is murder don't dress it up and give it a fancy name.

Here is the link of the article, read it and let me know what you think:

http://www2.macleans.ca/2012/01/17/who-are-we-to-judge/

Epic quote of the week: "It’s a mystery and a threat," from the article.

Epic Song of the week:

For next week: I will be at the "All Out Feb 1! Day of Action" the protest happening at Queen's Park, I'll let you know how it goes.

As well I'll post my interview. Cheers. Till next week.

Ultimate frisbee at UTSC

"STALL 1, STALL 2 STALL 3!"

Know what that means?

If you're an ultimate frisbee player, you do!

"Stall is the term used when a defender is covering an opposing player with possession of the frisbee. The defender calls 'stall 1, stall 2, stall 3' until they reach 8, in which the opposing player loses possession ofthe disc if they have not already thrown it."

The game of ultimate frisbee can be a new sport for most. For a select few however, the game is more than throwing a flat disk casually across the field. At UTSC, this intense game is taken to another level. UTSC ultimate frisbee player Kyle Larkin explained the basics of the intramural sport offered at our school. The fourth year journalism student gave me a clearer understanding of the game and how it is played.

Ultimate frisbee player - Kyle Larkin.

When did you join the ultimate frisbee team?

I joined back in first year but was only able to play one game due to time constraints. This year I decided to play again because I hadn't played a sport since baseball in the summer, and I was looking to have some fun while keeping in shape.

What part of the game do you like the most?

I have always loved frisbee, but to play on a competitive level makes it that much better. I definitely love running for those hail mary passes. 

What's a hail mary pass?

End to end!

Tell us about the sport to those who are unfamiliar (rules, what you wear, where you play, etc).

During first semester the schools play traditional ultimate frisbee on a soccer field. In the winter, we play an indoor game called speedpoint, horizontally on a soccer field. Each team has 5 players, of which 2 must be girls. One team begins with a pull (kind of like a kick off). When the frisbee is caught, you have to slow to a stop, and can only pivot on one foot. From there, you have 8 seconds to throw it. You get a point if you catch the frisbee in the endzone. Once you score, you drop the disc, and the other team immediately picks it up and starts their possession!

What sort of teams do you play? 

There is an A and B level, and we play in the A level. Every year UTSC is among the upper echelon of talent.

Do you think the sport is commonly unknown to UTSC? 

I don't think it's that well known, especially because there aren't really competitive leagues at the high school level. However, the talent at UTSC seems to be pretty competent on an annual basis.

What could UTSC do to promote the sport more? 

I think the school could promote the sport by imploring students to come out and watch our games down at Varsity Stadium!

What would you say to those who are new to the game?

A lot of people laugh when they hear about UTSC having a competitive team, but to those I urge to just watch one game and see it intense it can really be. Last Saturday, one of the boy's tricampus teams were privy to one of our games for the first time, and they ended up being louder than a stadium full of fans. They were shocked at the insane throws, catches, swats and overall athleticism that the teams displayed.

What has been the most valuable lesson since being on the team? 

Definitely the most valuable lesson is to not take the sport lightly. Our coach, Hussain Masoom, likes to run us pretty hard in practice, and it's not so easy after sitting on your butt for four months! I enter each game with as much intensity as I would when I play rugby. We want to outmatch our opponents in every way possible, and coming away with a victory is as satisfying as any other sport I have played.

Team huddle! 

Thoughts on ultimate frisbee? Would you ever play? Remember to tweet me a @Jessica_Moy! If you're interested in going to a game, the team plays every Saturday afternoon at Varsity Stadium! 

It's That Time of Year Again...

Hello fellow readers & followers,

We have come to that time of the year again; no I'm not talking about Chinese New Year (even though I should be because it is awesome). Before you start looking at your calendar trying to figure out what I'm talking about - I'm going to save you the trouble and tell you and while doing so warn you about the impending chaos that's about to permeate through the halls of UTSC. It is the time of the year that all the SCSU Executive hopefuls battle it out on campus trying to win your votes.

I attribute election time to chaos because of the amount of energy that each person's campaign brings to the floors of UTSC. With the constant asking - I mean begging to the point of harassment (in some cases) for votes, speeches and general vying for your attention by each and every campaigner and their campaign assistants, our quiet little campus turns into a tornado of election chaos. The students who lived through at least one of these elections before knows exactly what I'm talking about.

You may be asking how does one survive the SCSU executive election time? The best way is VOTE. Take the 30 seconds it takes to write an X next to your 4 favourite candidates and submit it. Even though you probably will be asked to vote again and again you can simply just inform them that you voted already and you're on your way. Another way to survive election season is to AVOID the student centre for a few weeks - even though that's hard it is possible - however may not entirely save you; so do yourself a favour and just vote.

In the case that one of the campaigners is reading this - please be campaign respectfully and try not to harass students or annoy them. It will make me and many other students a lot happier :)

Are you running for an executive position in the SCSU? If not would you? I'd love to hear some feedback and comments from the readers about what they think of the way elections are run and about the SCSU in general! Don't forget to follow me on twitter @malcolmwong1 and subscribe to this blog! Til next time!

Che-Che-Check it Out!

Hey Guys, It's E.A.P!

This is a very quick update. Yours truly is checking out some TRES awesome events.

This Friday, I'm going to a lecture at the downtown campus called "Gender, Sexuality and Islam under the Shadow of Empire" http://www.wgsi.utoronto.ca/news-events/gender-sexuality-and-islam-under-the-shadow-of-empire

It sounds realllyyy interesting. I also decided to take a course at the downtown campus called "Women in Western Religion (Christianity, Judaism, and Islam)" although the lecture was cool, I felt like it was lacking discussion around Islam and sexuality. I'm interested in this lecture because it brings dialogue and discussion around this topic which is rarely discussed.

The second event is: http://www.facebook.com/#!/events/360345163979837/
"On the eve of the first anniversary of the Arab Spring, as general strikes and occupy movements have spread across the globe, A Space Gallery is pleased to present A REFUSAL OF IMAGES. The works in this exhibition urge us to consider a central determinant of unfolding history—the use of mobile devices to record and transmit political events. With an immediacy that our visual culture has only recently begun to grasp, these recordings often contain moments of abstraction: for example, the shaking camera aimed at the backs of others while the videographer flees from a tear gas attack...These kinds of abstract images communicate something that might circumvent a system of images that are often trapped in meaning and over-determined by our viewing habits..."

Both events are happening this Friday and they are both FREE!

I'll keep you posted and let you know how it went down. I'm also hoping to get an interview or two, hopefully all goes according to plan!

Breezin' Song of the Week:

Guest Blogger: Little Fish in a Big Pond

Guest Blogger is Ashley Dhandhari

I remember my first year at Scarborough Campus as being really confusing and stressful.  I had been super involved in so many clubs in high school (i.e. student leadership, multicultural club, Model Un, volleyball, semi-formal committee, etc.) but being new to campus made me too nervous to get involved.  As a result, I felt so disconnected from the UTSC student body when I got here. 

The good news is that I found my fit here at UTSC.  I signed up for a few clubs during clubs week and went to club meetings; now I’m part of Model UN @ UTSC, the Women’s Centre and a volunteer for the DSL (Department of Student Life).  While working in the office I recently visited the DSL website, browsed their leadership program and noticed the different ways to get involved. I've joined the iLead program, and I am now working towards my leadership certificate! 

All the opportunities can be overwhelming but it's really easy to get involved here at UTSC, it just takes a few quick sign-ups and events to become part of the vibe of Scarborough’s student body.  For example, one event coming up is the First Year Caucus (wish it was around during my first year!) Apparently it's a leadership development day for first year students.  It's all of the things I wanted to know about leadership, combined in one jam packed day of learning and socializing.

So come out, join us and start Getting Involved! Make your time here at UTSC as memorable and engaging as it was back in high school. You might be swimming with the ‘big fish’ now, but we really don’t bite.