Category Archives: Campus
Excellence or Exclusion?
Excellence has been the Board of Governors’ word of choice since announcing the implementation of international tuitions increases averaging at 49% over the next three years. But what does the BOG’s vision of excellence really look like and does it foster exclusion? To date, UBC has published very few statistics on the economic and racial […]
No, UBC, I won’t be white for you
Last week I was perusing the shops in our beautiful new $107 million, horizon-obliterating, architectural giant, also know as the AMS Student Nest. In one cute, somewhat bizarrely placed boutique, I discovered something very shocking: Cake Soap. Cake Soap is what I – with a penchant for Vybz Kartel and some Jamaican ancestry – would […]
Not In Our Name: UBC’s new Progressive Jewish Alliance
The Silencing of Jewish Progressive Voices In recent years there has been an explosion of Jewish groups breaking away from the mainstream Jewish community’s discourse on Israel/Palestine, seeking to reclaim the history of radical Jewish politics. As young Jews we have witnessed a silencing of perspectives that critique Israel and its actions. Slogans such as: […]
TAs Do Real Work: A Response to Physics Professor Jenny Hoffman
This article originally appeared on the CUPE 2278 blog. Minor edits were made. Admittedly distracted by the second longest federal election cycle in Canadian history, I only today ran across a Ubyssey article, now three weeks old, containing a truly disappointing piece of bizarre commentary that decries the very existence of CUPE 2278, the UBC teaching […]
Political Cartoon submission call-out
Political cartoon participant call-out! The Talon will be publishing political cartoons! Instead of following the typical political cartoon formula, we would like to centre UBC students whose day-to-day experience is political, an act of resistance and/or brings light to important issues. By focusing on the personal as political, we hope this project will emphasize the […]
The AMS needs to answer for its complicity in tuition increases
On October 14th, The Ubyssey broke the news that the university proposes to dramatically increase tuition for international students. The proposed hikes vary by program, with an average 49% increase over the current cost, and a maximum of 60.15% (for Sauder). The increases, if passed, would send a clear message: only the rich need apply […]
Gupta and the state of transparency and democracy at UBC
If you’re anything like me, you spent August closely watching the unfolding drama at the highest echelons of UBC’s administration: a President who left unexpectedly and without explanation, the Board of Governors Chair cracking down on a professor, the AMS’s response, and now a call for transparency in the new Presidential Search process. As the […]
“Critical Muslim Voices and The Elections”: A Conversation with Hasan Alam
Hasan Alam is a lawyer, activist and a founding member of Critical Muslim Voices. A few weeks ago I got the chance to sit down with him and talk about Critical Muslim Voices, what the upcoming federal election means for Muslims, the Islamophobic rhetoric surrounding the elections, and the presence of CSIS (the Canadian Security […]
Institutional Burden Politics: A look at UBC’s disability structures
How do UBC’s bureaucratic and institutional structures perpetuate ableist assumptions such as burden discourse? Burden discourse is when disabled bodies don’t feel entitled to ask for support. This can be due to language use, interpersonal interactions, and/or structures in the institution, which is what this article will focus on. It is critical to look closely […]
Putting My Own Oxygen Mask on First: Reflections on Suicide, Support, and Being Publicly Mentally Ill
Content Warning: This piece is a personal account of depression, anxiety, and suicide in the context of contemporary student life. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide please call 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) or contact Vancouver Coastal Health’s SAFER services. In the chaotic return to campus for the fall term, September 10th, Suicide […]
