Thursday, March 1, 1990

..continued from page 12

The Gem |

Veterinary'Undergraduate Student Awards

Page 13

Veterinary Medicine

Gold

Amount Name of Fund Of Award Terms of Reference $500 Syntex Award — Fourth-year Veterinary medical student — Proficiency in bovine medicine and theriogenology $500 ’ Tuco Products Co. (Division ~— Fourth-year Veterinary medical student eee eee menes Corp) — Proficiency in clinical studies $500 Women’s Auxiliary of New — $200.00 for book to library Brunswick Veterinary. Medical — $300.00 to second-year veterinary medical student from New Association ; Brunswick — “Deserving”, not necessarily the highest marks $1000 — Fourth-year Veterinary medical student

Gay an

by Pat Johnson

In December 1985, John Crosbie, then Justice Minister, pledged that the federal Govern- ment would take “whatever meas- ures are necessary to ensure that sexual orientation is a prohibited ground of discrimination in rela- tion to all areas of federal jurisdic- tion.”

Crosbie’s statement followed the release of the ‘Equality for All’ report, handed down by a tri-partite Parliamentary committee, which cited numerousareas where the gov- ernmentcouldend institutionalized prejudice against lesbians and gays.

Four years later, these proposals have yet to be implemented.

Primarily, the 1985 reportcalled for an end to discriminatory hiring practices in federal jurisdiction, and called for the inclusion of sexual orientation protection in the Cana- dian Human Rights Act.

Today, Canadians in seven prov- inces and the Northwest Territories still have no explicit protection in any legislation against heterosex-

Hey, You.....

What do you mean you’re not going to the Co-ed!? You thought

it was only for students living

in residence? Well, you thought wrong. It has been a widely-

accepted myth that off-campus -

students were unwelcome at res- idence semi-formals. Another popular myth conceived states that Co-eds are boring. Well, it’s

Medal

ism and homophobia.

Impiementation of the report’s recommendations would be an important step in ending discrimi- nation which permits loss of em- ployment, loss of child custody, eviction and refusal of accomoda- tion, non-recognition of long-stand- ing.same-sex relationships and the. resultant loss of economic bene- fits, not to mention the unquantifi- able psychological effects of dis- crimination on individuals.

The ‘Equality’ report marked the Canadian government’s first attempt to address the issue of homophobia..in :a comprehensive way. In-addition, the members of the.committee were made aware - many for the first time - of the nature of bigotry experienced by gays and lesbians in Canada.

“We were shocked by a number of experiences of urfair treatment

» related to us by homosexuals in «« different parts of the country,” the

members wrote. “We heard about the harassment of and violence committed against homosexuals. Wewere told in graphic detail about

and find out where you can pick up tickets. The Big Event is this Saturday (March 3rd),and the House Committees of the respec-

tive Halls would gladly welcome a large turnout, so find yourself

a date, rent some decent threads, buy a ticket'(they’re about $12.00 per couple), and get yourselves down to the Charlottetown Hotel,

— Highest aggregate in four years of Veterinary medicine

physical abuse and psychological oppression suffered by homosexuals...(and) of severe employment and housing prob- lems.”

Notonly should the federal Gov- emment implement the fundamen- tal protections proposed by the committee, but it must appear to do so for the right reasons. This would send a message to Canadians that anti-gay bigotry is unacceptable.

The failure to act on the report sends a different, worrisome mes- sage.

‘Recently, some politicians have sent out the message that gays and lesbians are less deserving of equal-

__ ity than other Canadians. One MP has spoken in the House of Com-

mons against equality in the hiring practices of the RCMP, referring to his homosexual constituents as “fairies”. British Columbia Premier Bill Vander Zalm condemned Svend Robinson as a poor role

to the Business Society in the fe- cent Tournament attests. Due

to the added pressures of other losses, the task has fallen to The

Slinkster, the coach-GM of the

Pit Bulls, to produce a winner. He and co-coach Don Won are

currently giving the squad a ma-

jor shuffling job, the results of

which hope to be seen soon after

model for young Canadans, and Saskatchewan Premier Grant Devine equated gays with bank rob- bers. During the 1988 election cam- paign, the Prime Minister of Can- ada also played on the stereotypical portrayal of homosexuals as cow- ards in his “Svend as Defense Minister” address.

Even former New Democratic Party leader Ed Broadbent did a disservice to the struggle for sexual orientation equality when he de- clared it a personal matter. The Alberta cabinet minister respon- sible for human rights stated in April 1988 that his province would not introduce human rights legisla- tion because “‘people’s sexual ori- entation is their own business.” These laissez-faire positions ignore reality.

The dismissal of this injustice as an issue of individual privacy under- mines the ability of Canada’s esti- mated two and one half million

ee

{ 4 Opinii gy

d lesbian rights fragile in Canada

lesbian and gay citizens to function equally in society. It may also en- courage violent attacks against +Aomosexuals, such as the murder in 1989 of Joe Rose in Montéal, and a series of bombings of gay in- stitutions in Vancouver, including a bookstore, a restaurant and a nightclub.

We must continue to demand these basic reforms to ensure legal equality for lesbians and gays, and our heterosexual friends must be convinced to support the struggle as well, not only for principles of human dignity and equality, but also because many gays and lesbi- ans cannot defend their own inter- ests without jeopardizing their jobs, housing, and personal security, or risking alienation from family and friends. Perhaps the Government could take John Crosbie’s most recentadvice, “get off (their) duffs”, and act on the recommendations of the “Equality for All’ report.

University of Prince Edward Island

presents

Meijane Quong

Paul Bernard . Classical Guitarist

Pianist

music by: Chopin, Scarlatti, org

Castelnuovo - Tedesco,

the Break. Don and Slink, how- ever, deciding that discretion is the better part of valour, declined to comment on specific lineup changes. In other words, O Ye

of Lesser Teams, keep your heads up, both now and in the playoffs;

The Big Dogs still plan on feast- ing!

Boccherini

FRIDAY, MARCH 2nd at 8 pm STEEL RECITAL HALL, ADMISSION IS FREE

Presented by the Department of Music

because the Co-ed will be a good time, especially if YOU want it to

time that myths were replaced by facts. Anything can be bor- ing if you don’t try to make it fun; you can rest assured that this semester’s Co-ed will be a good time. Additionally, ANYONE CAN GO, even you. Read the notices (they’re all over campus),

Pere the reader thinks that the Pit Bulls are washed up, think again. The Dogs have been go- ing through some lean times of late, to which a 2nd-round loss