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<\/a>\r\n\r\nSo earlier this week, fulfilling my civic duty as a student, I attended the UTSU\u2019s Special General Meeting \u2013 I\u2019ll spare you the details. While there were a few instances of student politics as usual, nonetheless it was a productive meeting, lots of good motions passed including one propose by my friend and fellow blogger, Shak to endorse the Idle No More<\/a> movement. When I finally got home that night and surfed the internet \u2013 I came across a comment on an UTSU page that I will not dignify with a quotation. Needless to say, it was quite racist and demeaning to people of First Nations\u2019 heritage.\u00a0 Whether you support the Idle No More movement or not \u2013 there is no room for racism on our campus.\r\n\r\nThat unfortunate message got me thinking about oppression on our campus. Before I go on, I\u2019d like to say that U of T is a very open, diverse and welcoming campus and the people here for the most part espouse the ideals of equity. That being said, things aren\u2019t perfect and it\u2019s time we had an open and frank conversation on how we can move forward.\u00a0 In the two years that I have been on this campus, I have heard stories of Aboriginal students having their heritage questioned, of Muslim students that don the hijab being asked if they are \u201coppressed\u201d and have seen mature students get far too many glares sent their way in class.\u00a0 I have heard students make fun of their peers that hold part time jobs and far too many students subject to the stigma and stereotypes that come with being diagnosed with a mental health issue, and I have heard some of these comments be justified under the guise of \u201cbeing politically incorrect\u201d.\u00a0 We have to realize that our words have weight and that if they publicly offend a lot of people, then we\u2019ve probably gone too far.\r\n\r\nWe as students need to come together and truthfully, usually we do. However, when equity issues enter the realm of student politics \u2013 that is when things get complicated.\u00a0 Accusations of racism and counter accusations of falsification are thrown around.\u00a0 I have seen students\u2019 mental health issues dismissed due to the position they were holding and the issue of equity becoming a touchy political football.\u00a0\u00a0 I urge my fellow students, no matter what divide you are on when it comes to student politics to view equity as a problem that is higher than politics. Something that we can all come together to tackle. Next time, regardless of the context it arises from, when an equity issue comes to the forefront of campus discussion \u2013 I hope we can have a frank and honest conversation about it. Rather than jumping to conclusions about the political implications behind a story of oppression, we owe it to the person who has been oppressed to honestly discuss what has taken place and move forward.\r\n\r\nIf you are facing an equity issue, be it in the lecture theatre, in your residence or in a common room there are many outlets to which you can turn \u2013 see the list below.\r\n\r\nU of T Human Resources and Equity.<\/a>\r\nU of T Anti Racism and Cultural Diversity Office<\/a>.\r\nAnd more\u00a0resources can be found here.\u00a0<\/a>\r\n\r\nHave a good week U of T!\r\n\r\n-\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Abdullah","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"