Is Black History Month Being Ignored by uOttawa's Student Media?

For those who may not be aware, the month of February is designated Black History Month. Many excellent events take place throughout the country, the province, the City of Ottawa and even on our very own uOttawa campus! I for one have had the pleasure of attending many of these events in the past! As you will see below, the SFUO's VP Communications Paige Galette voiced her displeasure, via her Facebook Wall (which is reproduced in its entirety below), with the 2 uOttawa INDENPENDENT student-run newspapers, The Fulcrum and LaRotonde for their lack of coverage of some of the Black History Month events that had already taken place (she took exception to the fact that neither newspaper had covered the Black History Month Gala in particular).

If Paige would have made this same comment on February 23, 2012 (The Fulcrum publishes its last edition for the month of February on that day) or on February 27, 2012 (LaRotonde publishes its last edition of the month of February on that day), then she would definitely have raised a legitimate concern. However, it should be noted that her comment was posted to her Facebook Wall on Thursday February 9, 2012. On that day, The Fulcrum had just published its second edition out of a total of three editions that would be printed during the month of February. Likewise, LaRotonde had only published its first edition of the month on Monday February 6, 2012 with two more February editions to come. To be honest, I would also be very troubled and disappointed if neither newspaper had published one single article covering in some way, shape or form Black History Month in any of their four respective editions. However, let's remember that this year is a Leap Year which means that the month of February encompasses 29 days in stead of 28. Therefore, there were 20 days left in the month of February when this initial comment was posted.

This begs the question: Is it fair to have lashed out at the 2 uOttawa student-run newspapers for not yet having covered Black History Month only 9 days into the month of February? Is it really reasonable to make an all encompassing statement such as this only 9 days into the celebration of such an important month? We must remember that the staff members and the volunteers at our 2 INDEPENDENT student-run newspapers cannot be aware at all times of every single event that takes place on our campus. To be clear, I'm not trying to make any excuses for our student journalists. However, it should also be noted that traditionally, during the first two weeks of the month of February, our student-run newspapers focus a lot of time and energy on ensuring that the SFUO elections are covered properly. Again, this isn't my opinion... it's simply reality.

Ironically, according to Google, this list of Black History Month events was posted on CHUO website (uOttawa's THIRD student-run media organization - 89.9 FM on your dial) on Thursday February 9, 2012 (the very day this comment was posted on Facebook by Paige).

Sadly, one comment in particular was made that went unchallenged by Paige that was quite disturbing: "I'm guessing the newspaper are run by only (sheltered) white people?" It should be noted though that one particular journalist from The Fulcrum took exception with the comment and, further down, another journalist pointed out that the Arts and Culture editor at The Fulcrum is a racialised woman.

I want to know what you think! Was Ms. Galette's comment premature or am I completely offside on this one? Let me know by leaving your comments at the end of this post.

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Don't Vote!" #SFUOelxn video - Watch until the end!

Élections de la FÉUO?

Élections de la FÉUO 2011

Please note that I am currently experimenting with various translation tools; although these types of tools have made significant strives as of late, they aren't perfect! Google Translator appears on the top-right corner of the screen.

Oui, pour ceux et celles qui n'étaient pas au courant, la période de nomination pour les élections de la Fédération étudiante de l'Université d'Ottawa (FÉUO) se termine demain, le vendredi 20 janvier 2012.

Malheureusement, cette information ne semble pas s'être divulguée à temps pour certains et/ou certaines qui auraient voulu se présenter. Ce n'est qu’hier (le mercredi 18 janvier 2012) à 21 h 10 que j'ai moi-même reçu un courriel de la part de notre présente Vice-présidente aux communications, Paige Galette, concernant les élections :

Élections de la FÉUO
J’me Présente…
RAPPEL :

Présentez-vous à un des plusieurs postes disponibles au sein de la Fédération étudiante pour une expérience incroyable et enrichissante. 

En remplissant un formulaire de nomination disponible le 16 janvier 2012 au bureau de la FÉUO (UCU salle 07) .

La période de nomination sera terminée le vendredi, 20 janvier 2012 à 17h. Les formulaires doivent être remplis et remis au plus tard 20 janvier 2012 à 17h. 

Pour plus d’informations, incluant les règles des élections, contactez le bureau des élections à 613 562-5800 ext. 2625 ou www.elections.feuo.ca  

Postes disponibles ? 

Exécutifs

Président.e
V.-p. aux communications
V.-p. aux finances
V.-p. aux activités sociales
V.-p. aux affaires étudiantes
V.-p. aux affaires universitaires

Directeur(trice) de faculté

Représentez votre faculté au sein du Conseil d’administration de la FÉUO.
C’est une chance unique de représenter les enjeux de votre faculté et de participer à l’élaboration des décisions de votre Fédération étudiante. 

Sénat

Bureau des Gouverneurs 

LES ÉLECTIONS AURONT LIEU LE 14-15-16 FÉVRIER !!! N’OUBLIEZ DE VOTEZ !!!

Voter à distance ?

Vous ne serez pas sur le campus lors des jours des élections, et vous voulez  voter le 14-15-16 février prochain? 

Pas de problème! Il suffit d'envoyer un courriel avant le 3 février 2012 à ceo@sfuo.ca pour plus d'informations sur comment voter à distance.

Le Bureau des élections poursuit des démarches pour assurer un scrutin accessible. Si vous avez besoins d’accommodations, n`hésitez pas à nous contactez à elections@sfuo.ca 

Travailler avec le Bureau des Élections!

Si vous pensez que quelques heures de rémunération pourraient être utiles en février, travaillez dans une station de vote pendant le scrutin, afin de faciliter les élections de la FÉUO ! 

Veuillez télécharger le document, et le remettre par courriel à elections@feuo.ca ou le remettre en personne au Bureau de la FÉUO. : http://sfuo.ca/fr/section/26 

Référendum 

Il y aura une question référendaire lors des élections de la FÉUO :
« Êtes-vous en faveur d’une contribution de 180$ par étudiant.e à temps plein, par session, avec une augmentation maximum de 2,5 % par année, pour la continuation du program Laissez-passer universel (U-PASS) obligatoire? »

Pour plus d`informations veuillez visiter le site web www.elections.feuo.ca ou contactez-nous à elections@sfuo.ca  

-30-

Fédération étudiante de l’Université d’Ottawa (FÉUO)
Section 41 de la fédération canadienne des étudiantes et étudiants
Tél : 613.562.5966
www.feuo.ca

Donc, pour ceux et celles qui voulaient se présenter et qui n'étaient pas encore au courant que la période de nomination avait déjà commencé, il ne restait que seulement 2 jours pour amasser les signatures nécessaires (50 pour un poste sur l'exécutif de la FÉUO; 25 pour un poste sur le conseil d'administration de la FÉUO) pour pouvoir se présenter comme candidat.

Giving credit where credit is due

Image Source: credit.com

As those who read this blog will know, I am usually quite critical of our student representatives who sit on the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa's Board of administration (SFUO BOA) and of the SFUO executive. However, a motion that passed at the Sunday, January 15 2011 SFUO BOA meeting caught me by surprise (in a good way)! The motion, which passed its second and final reading during the meeting, tasks the SFUO executive with the preparation, through the BOA Finance Committee, of an updated budget presentation in both the fall and winter semesters (see below).

SFUO BOA Motion - Section 3.2.3.1.7


In the "Whereas" section, the following statement also shocked me:

Whereas a student union should strive to continually be more transparent and accountable to best serve its members

I would like to congratulate the SFUO BOA for having passed this thoughtful motion. For once, you have demonstrated that you are capable, responsible individuals. Could it be that you're all just beginning to understand the importance of the words "transparency" and "accountability"? I found this informative document on Industry Canada's website entitled "Primer for Directors of Not-for-profit Corporations: Rights, Duties and Practices" which outlines how any not-for-profit corporation is to be managed (aussi disponible en français) I suggest that you all sit down and review it as it contains some very important information.

I recently asked the SFUO V-P Communications, Paige Galette when the SFUO would be holding its next Annual General Meeting. She said for me to keep my eyes and ears open for the announcement. Now, I can't remember ever hearing of an AGM ever taking place since I began my studies at the University of Ottawa (and of course, I stand to be corrected!). However, I do recall a Political, International and Development Studies Student Association (PIDSSA) holding an AGM at the beginning of my first year. This meeting was held as serious allegations were brought forward against the President of the time and he was facing impeachment. The PIDSSA AGM filled an entire classroom in Morisset, which has a capacity of 200 people. As I recall, people were sitting between the tables and standing on each side of the room. In the end, the motion to impeach the PIDSSA president was unsuccessful as it required a two-thirds majority. That AGM successfully reached quorum because it had been well publicized (although the issue that was dealt with probably added to students' interest). If there has in fact been a SFUO AGM in the past 4-5 years, I can assure you that they have not been properly publicized nor have they been covered in by the student media (La Rotonde and The Fulcrum).

Let's hope that Ms. Galette will follow through, along with the rest of the SFUO executive, and ensure that an annual general meeting of the corporation is held before the exam period in April 2012.

Joyeuses Fêtes! / Happy Holidays

Image source: Web Design Hot
 http://www.webdesignhot.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/SantaClausVectorClipart.jpg

J'aimerais remercier ceux et celles qui continuent à lire mon blogue! Joyeux Noël/Joyeuse Hanoukka et bonne et heureuse année à tous et à toutes!

*********

I would like to thank all those who continue to read my blog! Merry Christmas/Happy Hanukkah and all the best in 2012!

Student Presentation to City Transit Commission: U-Pass

Photo by Mico Mazza - © The Fulcrum

For those who are interested, I'm posting a link to the presentations made by the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO), the Carleton University Students' Association (CUSA), the Carleton Graduate Students' Association (GSA) and the Graduate Students' Association of the University of Ottawa (GSAÉD) to the City of Ottawa Transit Commission public meeting that took place on Wednesday, November 16 2011.

Part 1 (Student submissions begins at 42:22)

A recent uOLeaks post suggested that during this meeting, the Transit Commission was informed that the SFUO provided a cheque to the City of Ottawa at the beginning of Fall 2011 and that it was returned due to NON-SUFFICIENT FUNDS. Skip to 1:17.38 of Part 1 to listen to this interesting exchange. After claiming that she was not aware of the NSF cheque referred to in Councillor Desroches' question, Elizabeth Kessler admits that "I think there was a late cheque." Councillor Desroches then goes on to ask the City Treasurer who confirms that a cheque was in fact returned due to NSF. This is extremely embarrassing and absolutely unacceptable. It is thus not surprising that City Councillors couldn't be bothered to work with the student unions on this or any other issue.

Such grave mistakes should not be expected from an incumbent V.P. finance who should know very well how to manage the SFUO's bank accounts.

Also, I have provided links below to various documents referenced during the submission and also other pertinent documents:

Letter from Alain Mercier to Student Representatives U-Pass Program

Re: U-Pass Program Information Update and Outline of Next Steps - Letter to Alain Mercier

CUSA-SFUO Lobby Document - Evaluating the Costs and Benefits of the U-Pass Program

Reality Check: An Examination of the Factual Errors, Specious Reasoning, And Omissions in SFUO-CUSAs U-Pass Lobby Document

Budget 2012 - City of Ottawa - Transit Commission Draft Operating and Capital Budget

Response to Inquiry CC-20-11 - Desroches - U-Pass Oct 3 2011

The Fulcrum has also published an article in regards to the U-Pass.

U-Pass: SFUO, CUSA, GSAÉD, GSA failing students

Image credit: Drives in Circles - http://drivesincircles.blogspot.com/2011/10/count-on-us.html

Wow, it's been over a month since my last post!? It's been busy as I'm sure all of you starving students can attest to! Anyways, I finally got my hands on a copy of this document, entitled Evaluating the Costs and Benefits of the U-Pass Program: An Analysis, (credit to people @ uOleaks.com) produced by the University of Ottawa Graduate Students' Association (GSAÉD), the Carleton University Graduate Students' Association (GSA), the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO) and the Carlteton University Students' Association (CUSA) which was presented to Mayor Jim Watson and Transit Commission Chair Diane Deans at an October 7, 2011 meeting. Unfortunately, I only became aware this afternoon that representatives from all four student unions were appearing before the City of Ottawa's Transit Commission this morning (and no, not thanks to any communication from Paige Galette).

From the article in the last link which appeared in the Ottawa Citizen, it looks as though our student representatives were literally laughed at during the Transit Commission meeting:

Gloucester-South Nepean Councillor Steve Desroches asked why he should take the word of two graduate-student statisticians who did the student unions’ calculations over that of the city’s own treasurer. Cumberland Councillor Stephen Blais pointedly laughed at the idea that students in farther-flung suburbs might walk or bike to downtown campuses. Knoxdale-Merivale Councillor Keith Egli questioned the idea that a typical trip to Carleton from his ward could take 30 minutes longer than it used to when the whole voyage is only supposed to be 31 minutes according to OC Transpo’s online trip planner.

Sounds like it was a pretty pathetic performance by our student "leaders". Although, in principle, I support the idea of having a U-Pass that is affordable for students, I will never support a U-Pass which is FORCED upon students regardless of where you reside. Personally, I barely have to walk 5 minutes to get to campus. Yes, I do pay more for this convenience. However, I also am forced to pay nearly $300 extra for a U-Pass that I would otherwise not purchase in the first place. 

And to make things more interesting, Charlie Taylor prepared this document that purportedly points to many problems with the document produced by the student unions. What is quite amazing here is the fact that Mr. Taylor is a former provincial Green Party candidate. However, he reportedly is very much against the U-Pass program. As a former City of Ottawa mayoral candidate in the last municipal elections, Taylor staged a protest against "an unethical $290/year tax on walkers and cyclists." He was also interviewed by the Public Transit in Ottawa blog back in July 2010.

The Transit Commission voted in favour of increasing the price of the U-Pass to $180/semester or $360/academic year. All 4 student unions have committed to holding a referendum on the future of the U-Pass in the spring. If students cannot opt out of this expensive venture, then it should not continue.

UPDATE

Boy, somebody looks pretty pissed!

Request to observe CFS AGM denied yet again

Image source: http://www.charlatan.ca/content/cfs-o-grades-ontario-parties-0; Graphic by Adriel Yu

During the most recent provincial elections, the Canadian Federation of Students - Ontario (CFS-O) evaluated all four of the political parties' platforms and gave each a mark according to their pledges pertaining to post-secondary education funding. Albeit having been called out by the Ontario Liberal Party's campaign chair, Greg Sorbara in this letter, the CFS's response from Sandy Hudson fell far short of what students should expect from an organization that is supposed to defend their best interests. It would seem that the CFS based their "grades" on statements rather than basing them on any hard numbers provided by the parties. Did the CFS-O fail to provide non-partisan information to students when it comes to each political party's post-secondary education policies?

All this to say that, once again, I must give a failing grade to the CFS. I feel it important to denounce the CFS when it comes  its policy on who can and who cannot attend its bi-yearly general assemblies. The CFS is holding its annual general meeting in Gatineau, Québec from 22 to 25 November 2011. Interested in attending? Interested in giving your input on how the organization plans to spend your hard-earned money? Interested in seeing what kind of debate actually occurs and the positions that your SFUO delegation takes during these debates? Well, I answered yes to all three of these questions. The SFUO BOA selects one "student-at-large" who then joins the SFUO delegation at the AGM. But, we shall see if someone like me, who voices opinions opposite to those who sit around the board table, will in fact stand a chance against whoever the SFUO executive has already hand-picked as their delegate of choice (N.B. Although this is pure speculation, it should be noted that our current VP Social, Marie-Claude Noël (who had never, ever attended a BOA meeting in her life) was accompanied by the current SFUO president, Amalia Savva during the BOA meeting last fall at which the "student-at-large" was to be selected. Marie-Claude had submitted her name to be the "student-at-large" and was chosen as they needed someone who wouldn't voice their opinion too loud (or at all). She was chosen by the BOA of course which in theory should be considered to be a fair process. Anyways, we shall see this Sunday if the Pro-CFS camp decided to hand-pick somebody or not. Anyways, back to the point of this post. If you didn't want to submit your name to the SFUO BOA for consideration but simply wanted to attend to learn more about the CFS and see how its decision-making process works, well, apparently, you're quite out of luck. On Wednesday, October 5 2011, I sent an email to the brass of the Canadian Federation of Students regarding the organization's upcoming Annual General Assembly to be held in Gatineau, Québec from November 22 to 25 2011:

To: CFS Chair chair@cfs-fcee.ca; CFS Deputy Chair dchair@cfs-fcee.ca; CFS Treasurer treasurer@cfs-fcee.ca; CFS Web web@cfs-fcee.ca 

CC: Amalia Savva president@sfuo.ca; Elizabeth Kessler vp.university@sfuo.ca; Paige Galette vp.communications@sfuo.ca; Amy Hammett vp.student@sfuo.ca; Marie-Claude Noël vp.social@sfuo.ca; Sarah Jayne King vp.finance@sfuo.ca

Date: Wed, Oct 5, 2011 at 11:13

Subject: Request to observe the upcoming CFS AGM

Hello,

I am writing to you today in order to request that I be provided with an observer's pass for the upcoming CFS AGM that is taking place from 22 to 25 November 2011 in Gatineau, Quebec. This would give me the opportunity to learn more about and to better understand the CFS. It would also allow me to witness, in person, the democratic decision-making process of the organization in action. 

Could you please forward me the AGM's itinerary and any other relevant documentation so I can have the chance to familiarize myself with the motions that are to be presented by various member locals.  

Finally, I kindly ask that you acknowledge this message upon receipt. 

I look forward to hearing back from you in the very near future. 

Thank you very much!

Cheers,

Brandon Clim
L'École d'études politiques
L'Université d'Ottawa 

Yesterday, Wednesday, October 12 2011, I received the following response from Toby Whitfield, the CFS's National Treasurer:

From: Toby Whitfield t.whitfield@cfs-fcee.ca

To: climbrandon@gmail.com

CC: Amalia Savva president@sfuo.ca

Date: Wed, Oct 12, 2011 at 18:14

Subject: Re: Request to observe the upcoming CFS AGM 

Hi Brandon,

Thank you for your email. 

In the past, observer status has been granted on a case by case basis to student organisations that, at the time, do not represent members of the Federation. At general meetings, students are represented by a delegation from their local students' union, as the logistics of holding a general membership meeting would be unmanageable and inequitable. Member locals are responsible for selecting delegates to attend national      general meetings.  

I have copied Amalia Savva on this email. Amalia is the president of the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa and will be able to advise you on the process to follow to express your interest in attending the meeting. 

Regards,  

Toby

--
Toby Whitfield
National Treasurer
Canadian Federation of Students     

p: 613.232.7394
c: 613.868.9266
f: 613.232.0276 

So, albeit being a bit further ahead than last time, the answer provided above by Mr. Whitfield is troublesome to say the least and, if we are to consider this national student organization as a democratic one, absolutely unacceptable. It once again demonstrates the fact that, unless you are "selected" to be a part of your student association's delegation, the rest of the "membership" is not allowed to observe, let alone participate in the decision-making process of so-called democratic organization. On numerous occasions, I have argued that the CFS should make documents such as its annual general meeting's itinerary and all motions being proposed easily accessible on its website for all to consult. In response, I have been told numerous times that I can access such documents by visiting the SFUO office and requesting them. Sure, but I don't want to have to go to the SFUO office every couple of months in order to view these documents. I should be able to access them online, in the comfort of my house, at any time. Therefore, in a subsequent email, I again requested that Toby forward me the AGM's itinerary and other relevant documents since these are not available anywhere on the CFS website. This is problematic as students are not able to consult the motions that are to be presented by various member locals and are therefore unaware about what policies are being debated and inevitably passed during the AGM.

I have also argued that the CFS should welcome any and all media (local, regional, national, student) who wish to cover the proceedings (and let's be honest in saying that there is nothing glamorous about it). However, instead, the CFS allows two student journalists (one English-speaking and one French-speaking journalist) who write for student newspapers that are members of the Canadian University Press (CUP). If the task of covering such a large-scaled conference wasn't already difficult enough for two journalists, it gets better. In the past, before these journalists have been allowed to enter the conference room, they have been forced to sign a document which imposes a variety of terms and conditions that they must observe throughout the time that they are present: speaking to any of the delegates was prohibited until the conclusion the closing plenary, publishing articles about the AGM was prohibited until the conclusion of the closing plenary, the times during which the journalists could be present was extremely limited (they could not be present during the regional caucuses or the Budget sub-committee for example), etc. Now, this is not to say that the CFS is attempting to hide something from its membership. However, it certainly doesn't look very good and inevitably people begin to become suspicious (and justly so) and ask questions. 

 

In closing, I wanted to remind everyone that this Sunday, October 16 2011, the SFUO BOA is meeting at 1:00 pm in Tabaret Hall (uOttawa Senate Chambers) Room 083. It is during this meeting that the motion to eliminate the Student Arbitration Committee (SAC) will proceed to second reading and will likely pass with one or two board members voting against. I encourage you to read the absolutely ridiculous raison-d'être given by Sarah Jayne King (SJK) in regards to the motion (which she presented at the last BOA meeting).

 

Notable SJK quotes from the article

 

"The Student Arbitration Committee is something over the past three years we haven’t seen properly filled" 

"SAC is an undemocratic body that is not actually accountable to the SFUO in any legal sense and can literally overturn the elections or a referendum process with two people" 

I hope to be able to write a piece before Sunday's BOA meeting in order to demonstrate how such pathetic arguments put forward in defence of this motion will inevitably harm the legitimacy of an already badly beaten SFUO.

 

What are your thoughts about the SAC? Do you believe it should be eliminated and replaced by a Constitutional committee made up of 5 board members? Or, do you believe that the SAC plays an important role as an impartial body, which is made up of students-at-large, that oversees the decisions of the BOA and, for example, can rule on appeals which inevitably surface during SFUO elections?