Trudeau's march in Pride parade (¥ No money for elaborate Carnival ( The grief of giving (¥ Can hypocrites save the world? And more! Image via www. liberal.ca essential for national LGBTQ+ support > Support of gay rights is essential in society Cazzy Lewchuk Staff Writer I was recently announced that Justin Trudeau will be marching in the Toronto Pride Parade, making him the first prime minister to participate in one. Trudeau has marched in these parades before, making the announcement characteristic and unsurprising. Nevertheless, support of the LGBTQ+ community is essential in our Canadian (and any progressive) society, and it is important that national leaders reflect that. A lot of progress has been made for LGBTQ+ rights in the past decade, but there is still plenty of work to do. The LGBTQ+ represent roughly four per cent of the population—1.5 million Canadians— who continue to be ostracized and discriminated against by a large portion of society. Thousands, if not more, of LGBTQ+ students across the country continue to be harassed, bullied, and rejected daily for their orientations. They are ostracized by peers, schools, friends, businesses, politicians, churches, and even families for being honest about their feelings and identities. They are bullied, harassed, and stereotyped across the larger media and by many authoritative figures. The LGBTQ+ continue to feel unsafe and rejected in their own schools, public areas, or homes, and this occurs in every city in every province in our country. In addition to being disproportionate targets for bullying and harassment, the LGBTQ+ experience a much higher rate of poor mental health, self-harm, homelessness, and suicide attempts. Twenty-two per cent of Canadians disapprove of same-sex marriage, something legalized in this country over a decade ago. The lack of progressive LGBTQ+ rights in other parts of the world is also troubling; in some countries, homosexuality is still punishable by imprisonment, lashes, or execution. We all know people who are LGBTQ+, whether we realize it or not. Their progress into full acceptance in our society is coming along, but there is still a lot of work to be done. Trudeau’s pledged support of this community is a milestone in governmental acceptance. We can only hope that any LGBTQ+ member of society, particularly ones feeling completely rejected, feels a little bit of hope in seeing that the Prime Minister has their back. Can hypocrites save the world? > DiCaprio gets heat for extravagant privileges while preaching eco-friendliness Elliot Chan Opinions Editor hen Leonardo DiCaprio won his long-awaited Oscar for his role in The Revenant, we all cheered for his deserved award. But it was the subject matter of his long speech that caused some people to roll their eyes. DiCaprio has been a long-time activist. Time and time again we see him appearing on screen—not dressed in a tuxedo, but in a “regular” jacket or sweater, in boots, with a rugged beard—talking about the destruction of our environment. His most notable cinematic contribution to that cause is his producer, narrator, and writer roles in the environmental documentary— an unofficial epilogue to Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth— The uth Hour. We don’t need movies or movie stars to tell us about the environment. We all feel the change. This has been one of the warmest winters of my life. I'm concerned, but I don’t have time to be both an advocator and fulltime employee, making money to live. Many people feel the same way and are insulted when big shot celebrities rub it in. And when the Best Actor winner, some big shot multi- millionaire, is only talking the talk instead of walking the walk, people have the right to be angry. DiCaprio was specifically called out for having a 16,000-horsepower private yacht, the Topaz. For someone who cares so much for the environment, sailing the seas on a luxurious, diesel-gas-guzzling vessel is surely counter-productive, right? Now, I could go on about how DiCaprio is a hypocrite—and how the movie The Revenant did nothing to improve the lives of First Nations people, the very people DiCaprio sought to empower, but in fact marginalized them more—but I won't. Because, as rich and arrogant as I’m sure Leo is, he is at least putting his free time into advocating good. Is he good? No. He’s a hypocrite. But I would rather take a hypocrite actor over one who is a woman-beating bigot. What can I say? I have low standards for my celebrities. There are many bad traits in the world, and being hypocritical is a minor one. With that being said, is there any more DiCaprio could do without giving up his fortune? Probably. But why should he? He’s not God. He’s just a servant of God. Sure, in the grand scheme of things, he is doing very little, but he is still doing it. When you are one of the most powerful actors in the world, you can merely sit back and accept awards, or you can use your clout to announce a concern. Some people choose racial equality, other chooses gender equality, but Leo chooses nature conservation. DiCaprio is not committing to his cause 100 per cent, we can all agree on that, but he is dedicating some of his time to it. That is more than what I can say about me... or even you. How much have you committed to saving the world, or any other cause? Take a look at yourself the next time you criticize someone for wanting better in the world. The old idiom “Do as I say, not as I do” is one every parent has once evoked if not said. If the heart is in the right place, then the person is moving in the right direction. We humans are not perfect, and that is the very reason why the world will end with a hopeful whimper, or like The Departed.