his year, as you all know very very well at this point, is Canada’s 150th anniversary. With this has come a lot of pride, a lot of advertisements, and a lot of controversy. Although Canada is known globally as a progressive and peaceful nation, much of these 150 years have been filled with many levels of abuse of the Indigenous population and non-white immigrants. Mercedes wrote a compelling article on Canada’s 150 from an Indigenous perspective in Opinions, and everyone should take the time to read it. The treatment of the Indigenous people is something that is inexcusable, and it’s this treatment that our country is built on. It’s hard to be positive with that knowledge. It wasn't only the Indigenous people who were harmed—even though Canada was a nation stolen and created by colonizers and filled with immigrants, the white people in power in Canada went out of their way to ostracize and Rm 1020 — 700 Royal Ave. Douglas College New Westminster, BC V3L 5B2 & 604.525.3542 a i - 4 Lauren Kelly Editor-in-Chief M editor@theotherpress.ca Mercedes Deutscher News Editor M news@theotherpress.ca R @ ath. Davie Wong Sports Editor M sports@theotherpress.ca Cazzy Lewchuk Opinions Editor M opinions@theotherpress.ca Lauren Paulsen Multimedia Editor M multimedia@theotherpress.ca push out Asiatic immigrants, who came here to start a new life in a country that they hoped would welcome them and received little but discrimination and violence. And after working so hard to create a home for themselves in this hostile country, Japanese Canadians were forcibly interned and had their livelihoods stolen from them during World War II. Canada has a terrible history. It’s important to remember all of this in our celebrations. However, in many aspects I am proud of the country we are now. Asa woman, I am immensely grateful to live in a country that respects my rights. As someone who is low income and needs to take medication, I am grateful that I have access to it through Fair Pharmacare. I am grateful that two of my best friends, who are gay, can get married without question. lam proud that my country is making steps towards being safer for LGBTQ+ people , including the passing of Bill C-16, @ theotherpress.ca M editor@theotherpress.ca ¥ © /theotherpress f/DouglasOtherPress = Chandler Walter Assistant Editor mm’ M assistant@theotherpress.ca == Caroline Ho = Arts Editor = Sp Marts@theotherpress.ca #4 Brittney MacDonald = Life & Style Editor M lifeandstyle@theotherpress.ca Rebecca Peterson Humour Editor Y MS humour@theotherpress.ca i ar Cara Seccafien Layout Manager © layout@theotherpress.ca which changes the Human Rights Act to prohibit discrimination and violence based on gender identity. It’s sad that your country having a basic respect for human rights is something to be proud of, but with the state of global politics, it is. I’ve seen a lot of positivity around me, too, and it’s hard for it to not be a bit infectious. On Canada Day, my old supervisor and friend made a post on Facebook about how he had come to Canada to find love and peace a few years ago, leaving his hard life in Iran behind. His dog just finally joined him in Canada, and my Facebook feed has been covered in happy pictures of them playing together. Another close friend just gained his permanent residency in Canada, and celebrated his first Canada Day as an almost-citizen. My song in the Other Playlist this week is by Ivan Hrvatska, a local singer and painter, who emigrated from Croatia and passionately loves Photo by Lauren Kelly Canada. Even though we have a horrible past of dealing with immigrants, I’m happy to see that that is starting to change. This Canada Day, I watched the fireworks with friends by the Convention Centre. The streets were crammed full of people in red and white, and one man even brought an obnoxiously large Canadian flag. We all had a great time celebrating our country. However, even though that kind of blind patriotism can be fun in the moment, we need to continue to bring light to how we got to this point as a country, and why exactly this was a controversial anniversary. Until next issue, Lauren Kelly Editor-in-Chief Angela Ho Business Manager Jacey Gibb Distribution Manager Joel McCarthy Graphics Manager Elizabeth Jacob Production Assistant Ed Appleby Ilustrator Jony Roy Social Media Coordinator Aaron Guillen Staff Reporter Greg Waldock, Jessica Berget, & Carlos Bilan Staff Writers Analyn Cuarto Staff Photographer Jerrison Oracion and Jan Prchal Senior Columnist Angela Wang & Katie Czenczek Contributor v The Other Press has been Douglas College’s student newspaper since 1976. Since 1978 we have been an autonomous publication, independent of the student union. We are a registered society under the Society Act of British Columbia, governed by an eight-person board of directors appointed by our staff. Our head office is located in the New Westminster campus. The Other Press is published weekly during the fall and winter semesters, and monthly during the summer. We receive our funding from a student levy collected through tutition fees every semester at registration, and from local and national advertising revenue. The Other Press is a member of the Canadian University Press (CUP), a syndicate of student newspapers that includes papers from all across Canada. The Other Press reserves the right to choose what we will publish, and we will not publish material that is hateful, obscene, or condones or promotes illegal activities. Submissions may be edited for clarity and brevity if necessary. All images used are copyright to their respective owners.