Remembrance Day, Christmas dropped from Concordia students' handbook
Concordia's student union spent a reported $30,000 in student fees on a handbook that calls Canada "so-called Canada," drops Remembrance Day and Christmas, and marks Palestinian Prisoner Day, so a new free-speech group is handing out a patriotic alternative.
Article by Rebel News staff.
How are some students on Canadian campuses becoming so radicalized? Rebel News' Alexa Lavoie went to McGill University to look at one answer: the student handbook.
Often funded through mandatory student fees and handed out to thousands, these handbooks can carry a political agenda. The latest example comes from the Concordia Student Union. Rebel News interns Anastasia Zorchinsky and Drew Sylver joined Lavoie to discuss it.
Zorchinsky said the handbook refers to "so-called Canada," encourages students to write letters to prisoners convicted of terrorist attacks and killings, and drops Canadian holidays entirely.
"They don't even have Remembrance Day to remember the soldiers that gave their lives to our nation," she said.
Instead, it marks days like Palestinian Prisoner Day and Cuban Revolution Day. When she challenged the student union about a poem by Walid Daqqa, a former PFLP member convicted over the kidnapping and killing of a soldier, she said it was defended.
Sylver said the handbook cost students $30,000 in fees.
Canadian Students for Free Speech has produced an alternative, featuring Canadian and Christian holidays, a map of Canada, profiles of every province, a list of prime ministers, and practical guidance on free speech and debate.
Students offered mixed views. One said she had no problem with a Palestinian flag in a handbook, but felt one about Canada should include more Canadian flags. Others objected to paying for a publication they felt didn't represent them.
William Diaz-Berthiaume, national coordinator of Canadian Students for Free Speech, said the student union had every right to publish its handbook. "We just thought that it wasn't representative of the Canadian population, of our values as Canadians," he said.
Each handbook costs about $15 to produce, and donors can request a free copy. To help, visit StudentsForFreeSpeech.ca.
Alexandra Lavoie
Quebec based Journalist
Alexa graduated with a degree in biology from Laval University. Throughout her many travels, she has seen political instability as well as corruption. While she witnessed social disorder on a daily basis, she has always been a defender of society’s most vulnerable. She’s been around the world several times, and now joins Rebel News to shed light on today’s biggest stories.
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