an! Lee LAS Aids r Matt a Real problems likely sy = _ Weg? to be ignored on nation's birthday > Canada’s 150th and the superficially Indian Greg Waldock Staff Writer s America staggers, burning and drunk, towards its 241st birthday in July, Canada coasts smoothly towards our 150th a few days earlier. We've had a lot of reasons to feel painfully smug this past year, or to put less cynically: We have a lot of good things in our country worth celebrating. The Canadian government has decided to focus on the most controversial, violent, and oppressive aspect of our history and current society: Indigenous peoples. The sesquicentennial celebrations around the nation will have an emphasis on the local First Nations, Inuit, and Metis cultures of each region. This raises a lot of obviously difficult emotional questions about how the government—and the Canadian public—view the cultures they were trying to smother with a Christian pillow just a few short decades ago. It’s commendable of the Trudeau government to focus on this societal reality, if it does actually focus on it in areal and meaningful way. So often attempts at “recognizing First Nations contributions to Canada” and “building community bridges with indigenous peoples” end up being a few paintings and totem poles erected, the prime minister attending a ceremonial dance, and absolutely nothing else. This anniversary is gearing up to be the exact same. While showing and spreading indigenous art is crucial to maintaining a unique cultural identity in a tribe or nation and for keeping the general public aware that this large group even exists, it can all seem slightly pointless if it doesn’t cause change to the way we see and act towards a large and diverse part of Canada’s history. Though art is never useless, it sure can feel like pure lip service after a few centuries of neglect. There’s an opportunity for something real here. Indigenous culture, particularly here in the Pacific Northwest, is incredibly rich and diverse, and largely unexplored in our mainstream media (for better and for worse). After the tragic and inspiring events at Standing Rock in North Dakota, it’s clear that the general public is willing to listen to indigenous issues, if only briefly. If the board responsible for planning the sesquicentennial celebrations can leverage it, we could be seeing some incredibly stories of the pain, power, and complexity behind the thousands upon thousands of indigenous cultures that have been stifled. However, the track record here is so bad that my expectations are low. We might be smug about not electing Donald Trump, but there’s nothing to be proud of in our history regarding the indigenous peoples of North America. It's ok to admit you dont have an opinion > When to not weigh in Cazzy Lewchuk Opinions Editor I an extremely divided world, many issues formulate our views and opinions. In many ways, our opinions define us and are a vessel for others to judge us on. Generally, our friends and peer group have a lot of the same opinions, and they are feelings that we will defend and argue. In such a divisive world, being unsure of one’s opinion can be conflicting, particularly if others around you seem to have such strong viewpoints one way or the other. Having mixed feelings on an issue is a problem that we've all faced. In this day and age, we're all expected to be aware, have a certain level of “wokeness.” Can one really afford to be ignorant? The fact is, it can be hard to know everything about an issue. Topics are divisive for a reason, and every issue is complicated in some sense. This is especially true when discussing social justice issues if one isn’t well-versed in the topics of privilege, class, systemic abuse, etc. If you're not a member of a certain group, you may not even be qualified to speak out about an issue directly impacting that group. It’s important to support equal rights as often as possible, but there's a difference between supporting and genuinely pleading ignorance. If youre a straight male and there’s an issue dividing the lesbian community that you don’t understand, you may be better off just not giving your two cents. If you honestly don’t know all the facts about an issue, it’s okay to say something along the lines of: “You know what, I don’t know enough to have a solid opinion on this.” There may also be cases in which you just don’t want to comment on an issue, and that’s okay, too. It can be very exhausting to keep up with the problems Image via Chris Wattie / Reuters Groundhog Day! > How Douglas College is gearing up for this exciting event Rebecca Peterson Humour Editor his Thursday, modern society prepares to celebrate one of those weird held-over traditions from the days of wild paganism and human sacrifices (according to The Wicker Man remake with Nicholas Cage, at any rate). We at the Other Press caught up with some students to ask how they'll be spending their Groundhog Day! “Could someone tell me what Groundhog Day is?” -Finn McCool, age 21, computer science major “Hold on, haven’t you asked me this before? This feels really familiar” - Alison Cho, age 19, liberal arts major “Yeah, no, people definitely don't really do anything on Groundhog Day. This is kind of a dumb premise for an article.” -Mike LeMike, age unknown, graphic design major “I'm gonna dress as a groundhog!” -Davie Duke, age 23, furry However YOU choose to celebrate Groundhog Day, we at the Other Press wish you a very merry one indeed, and we extend our hopes for an early spring because man has it ever been fucking cold! facing the world today. If you don't know and you don’t care to research the topic, it’s fine to sit something out. There is a general expectation from many that we are to be well-versed and have the “right” views on many topics. While it’s very important to keep an open mind and be aware of important issues, not everyone can be an expert on everything. It is far better to admit that you don't have an opinion than it is to form one from ignorance, apathy, or intolerance. It is far less closed-minded to admit you aren't knowledgeable about something than to act like you know what youre talking about with an uninformed opinion.