Meeting to discuss prison overcrowding

Community members will have the chance to voice their opinions on prison overcrowding at a town hall meeting this weekend.

The discussion will be held this Sunday at 1:30 p.m. in City Hall. It’s being hosted by the Kingston and the Islands Federal Liberal Association, but is non-partisan, and free to all attendees.

A press release from KIFLA states that Kingston, more than any other Canadian city, “will sooner or later bear the consequences of the current government’s policy of cramming more inmates into prisons than our already full correctional facilities were designed to hold.” The area is home to nine federal correctional facilities, seven of which are within Kingston’s municipal boundaries.

In addition to discussing this overcrowding, the meeting will also look at just treatment of Aboriginal people, and how overcrowding affects those who are employed by the corrections system.

The discussion will be moderated by Craig Jones, former executive director of the John Howard Society, and among the speakers will be Catherine Latimer, the Society’s current executive director, University of Ottawa Criminology Professor Justin Piche and Jason Godin, Ontario regional president of the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers.

— Holly Tousignant

SlutWalk storms through Kingston

The second annual Kingston SlutWalk took place on last Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in City Park, drawing a crowd of a few hundred people marching against victim-blaming and slut-shaming.

“This is not a ‘women’s only’ movement, but rather, a human movement. Sexual violence affects everyone in a society or community,” Jessica Sinclair, ArtSci ’13, involved in the organization SlutWalk Kingston, told the Journal via email.

The march included posters and voices were heard speaking up against sexual violence and freeing themselves from oppression.

Some signs read: “My little black dress does not mean yes,” “Girls just wanna have fundamental rights” or “If she was ‘asking for it’ why couldn’t you?”

The event was originally started two years ago in Toronto. Last year, Sinclair was inspired to bring the event to Kingston, where it was well received.

“The event is important for giving the silenced a voice, and taking back the word “slut” which has too often been used as a weapon to shame and silence people, and take away their sexual freedom,” Sinclair added.

— Rachel Herscovici

Omnibus rejected at ASUS AGM

A group of controversial motions were voted down at the ASUS Annual General Meeting (AGM) last night, while others were withdrawn by the members who proposed them.

ASUS Representative Jesse Waslowski, ArtSci ’13, put forward motions 7 to 39, which members in attendance at the AGM voted to combine into an omnibus.

The motions dealt with a number of changes to constitution, relating to groups and issues including Community Outreach policy, departmental student councils and ASUS executive, commissioner and director honoraria, among others.

Prior to the omnibus being voted on, a number of the motions — including those relating to Community Outreach and academic changes were withdrawn. Ellis Hall auditorium hosted a packed house for the over five-hour AGM, of which a large portion was devoted to debating the omnibus.

Debate ensued among ASUS council and representatives, students-at-large and those from other faculties.

For a full list of the motions, see http://queensasus.com/index.php/resources/assembly.

— Holly Tousignant and Julia Vriend

Strategic Enrolment Management Group seeks feedback

Students are encouraged to share their thoughts on the University’s Strategic Enrolment Management Group’s (SEMG) first report to be consulted on with Senate and the Senate Committee on Academic Development (SCAD).

The report will include both internal and external factors that would influence an enrolment plan including the demand for programs, institutional capacity, government funding and policy, and the capacity of student support services.

The report by SEMG will recommend enrollment targets for faculties between 2013 and 2015.

These proposals are based on proposals provided by each faculty and will be presented to SCAD and Senate in April.

Projections for enrolment plans for 2015 to 2016 will also be included.

It’s reported that recommended increases in first year undergraduate faculties are quite modest due, similar to previous years, to limited growth possibility because of first year residence room constraints.

­­— Rachel Herscovici