issue 04 / volume 41

We are your ‘Sisters in Spirit’

» The Aboriginal Students’ Collective helps host this year’s event

Angela Espinoza
News Editor
Minews
@theotherpress.ca

he Douglas Students’
Union (DSU) is once again
hosting the annual Sisters
in Sprit event on October 1,
held in honour of the over
1,200 aboriginal women and
girls missing and murdered in

Canada. Similar Sisters in Spirit :
: (ROUGLAS STUDENTS UNION

a

events are held throughout the
country each year to remember
the lost and remind others that
such crimes continue to take
place.

In previous years,
Sonia Keshane, former
aboriginal liaison for the
DSU, “worked closely with
the DSU and college relations
and membership outreach
coordinator Tracy Ho in
planning and promoting the
event.”

Keshane, speaking together

with members from the DSU
Aboriginal Students’ Collective,
elaborates on this year’s Sisters
in Spirit.

“This year’s event differs
from previous years in that we
wanted someone who had ties
to the Sisters in Spirit, who had
some firsthand knowledge of
why the Sisters in Spirit came
about. Ernie Crey has personal
ties to the issue of missing and
murdered aboriginal women,
and the Douglas Students’
Union and the DSU Aboriginal
Students’ Collective wanted
to bring him in and get him to

and journey.

“Dawn Crey, Ernie’s sister,

: was one of the main subjects

: of the 2006 documentary

: Finding Dawn; she was one of
: 60 women who disappeared

: from Vancouver’s Downtown

: Eastside over a 20-year period
: ... and her remains were found
: at the Pickton Farm. Ernie

: also played a key role with an

: oral testimony in the Missing

: Women Commission of Inquiry :
: that ended in 2013.”

Crey, with numerous titles

and accolades to his name, has
: been an active and passionate

: voice in the aboriginal

> . : community, helping to bring
share with us his personal story : sttention to some of the

: issues that continue to plague

: indigenous peoples throughout
: Canada.

“This year we also feature

: the ‘Faceless Dolls Project. It

: was something that we started
: last year and we are displaying
: [the student-made dolls again]
: this year.”

: Aboriginal services provided
: on campus

: quiet setting offers a place for

: students to study and relax.

: Current aboriginal student

: coordinator Dave Seaweed was
: regarded by the group as, “A

: great resource for aboriginal

: and non-aboriginal students.”

: with returning students who

: wanted to actively engage

: faculty and students by

: bringing awareness to the

: college by events such as

: Sisters in Spirit. The collective:
: encourages social, cultural, and :

 

news // 5

: academic dialogue relevant to

: the students at Douglas College
: and to the neighbouring

: community.

“As a collective we will

: also partner up with the DSU

: and provide services and

: organize community events.

|: The collective also recognizes

: the necessity for aboriginal

: peoples to maintain traditional
: teachings and cultural

: practices and works to promote
: community involvement

: and growth through cultural

: events.”

The Aboriginal Students’

: Collective is actively seeking

: membership and working to

: raise awareness of their group
: and its involved events. “We
.: partnered with the DSU and

: Aboriginal Students’ Centre

: to bring forth Sisters in Spirit
: and also to let the student

|: body know that there is a new
: collective that will be involved

: in promoting [events and

The Aboriginal Students’

“We are a fairly new group

: activities] within the college.

“Come out and

: [experience] Ernie Crey speak

: about his personal journey, ask
: questions, and get involved on
: what you can do to assist in

: the Missing Women’s Inquiry

: : and the [recent] roundtable

: Collective is also a recent group :
: on campus, which provides :
: resources and a safe space for

: Keshane and other members of all students.

: the DSU Aboriginal Students’
: Collective have previously been :
: involved with the Douglas

: College Aboriginal Student

: Services Centre, which acts

: asa safe space for all students
on campus. The location and

discussions.”
Sisters in Spirit will be

taking place in the Aboriginal
: Gathering Place (room 4650)

: at the Douglas College New

: Westminster campus, and

: will run from 2:30 p.m. to
4:30 p.m. The event will

: include a smudging ceremony
: anda reception with light

: refreshments.

 

Clubs Day is back at Douglas

» DSU hosts for fifth year in a row

Angela Espinoza
News Editor
Lb Minews

his year’s DSU Clubs

Days are underway at the
New Westminster campus
(September 24) and David Lam
campus (September 25). Each
Clubs Day will feature a variety
of student-organized clubs and
their respective activities.

“Clubs Days have been
happening for about five
years now,’ said Campus Life
coordinator for the DSU, Shaun

end of the month is Clubs Day,
and also in the winter semester.
“One of the big things

: that we like to do is get all the

: clubs to participate, it helps

: get students to join new clubs

: and get involved on campus.

: A lot of the students don’t

: really know what to do at their
: campus or [know about] any

: extra activities, so [Clubs Day]

: gives students the opportunity
: to make new friends and show
: everybody that [the campuses

: are] really diverse.”

Of the college’s nearly 40

: active clubs, at least 12 will be
: participating in this year’s Clubs :
: Day events. Each club will be

: in competition for a free pizza
“ : party for up to 100 members
Dhakar. “Every September at the : and guests. Students are asked

: to check out each club table

: and decide which has rightfully

: earned the pizza prize.

“We get students to go

: around, check out every table,”
: said Dhakar. “They get a voting
: slip, and come to the DSU table
: to pick what club they thought
: was [best].

“The biggest club on

: campus is about 75 members;

: that’s the DSU Douglas College
: International Association.

: The good thing about them is

: because they’re a diverse club,

: they have big potluck dinners

: and stuff like that.”

As more clubs have been

: added to the DSU roster, the

: diversity of club offerings at

: Douglas has expanded greatly in
: the past five years.

: “I actually started Clubs Day, :
: that’s what I was hired for,” said
: Dhakar. “When I was first hired

: there wasn't that much activity
: going around on campus. There
: was probably two, three clubs

: that were active.”

Again, that number has

: ballooned to roughly 40 since

: Dhakar’s inception. But while

: Dhakar and the DSU help

: organize and support college

: clubs and Clubs Day, they don’t
: run the clubs themselves.

“Clubs are solely run by the

: club members,” said Dhakar.

: “We just administrate the clubs,
: we deal with the funding. The

: whole thing about Clubs Day is

: to get students to run their clubs
: on their own [and encourage]

: students.”

Each respective Clubs Day

: runs from 11a.m. to 2 p.m. and
: all students are welcome.