Over the Edge + September 28, 2005 News 3 March Brings Hope to the Highway of Tears BELINDA Li PRODUCTION COORDINATOR On a sunny Saturday afternoon, chants of “No means NO! and “Stop the Violence! Stop the Hate!” echoed’ along Highway 16. More than 100 women and children in Prince George gathered together on September 17 for Take Back the Highway in a march to raise awareness about violence against women. Take Back the Highway was an in- itiative by communities along Highway 16 in Northern British Columbia as a collaborative means to shine thie light on the astounding number of women who go missing or are murdered along what is often called the Highway of Tears. “This was a coordinated event. Vanderhoof, Burns Lake, Smithers, Prince Rupert, and other communities all had marches at 2pm [on September 17]. We are making a statement and symbolizing a chain of women,’ ex- plained Pearl Brown, one of the organ- izers of the event. Take Back the Highway was based on Take Back the Night, an annual march that takes place in communities internationally to rally against violence. In past years, Take Back the Night in Prince George would consist of a march in the downtown area. This year, Northern B.C. communities wanted to localize the focus of the march, so the Highway of Tears was a major issue. “It’s good to focus on the specifics of what's happening in the north,’ said Sherrice Lucier, a march participant. To date, 32 women have been re- ported missing or murdered from the Prince George to Prince Rupert stretch of Highway 16. However, many of these missing women are usually not reported, so the actual numbers of those abducted or killed are not known. Moreover, the majority of these women are of First Nations descent, “The real- ity is aboriginal women are five times more likely to experience violence,’ said Claire Johnson, an organizer of Take Back the Highway who works for the Prince George Sexual Assault Centre. . Armed with dozens of brightly col- oured signs, a sound system on a pick- up truck, and high spirits, participants met at Southridge Arena for an opening ceremony of prayers, poetry, and a min- ute of silence to remember the women who died, Everyone then marched from the arena to the Parkridge Heights Mr. G along Highway 16. Chants rang without skipping a beat during the entire hour and a half march, gather- ing the attention of passing motorists and pedestrians. The event concluded at the Mr. G with performances by the - Rainbow Dancers. “We had a great turnout,’ comment- ed event organizer Bertha Cardinal of the Native Healing Centre and Prince George Native Friendship Centre. “It's like a mark of the universe of the gen- eration. I hope it keeps on going on. We have to get more active and supportive no matter what colour or race. This event is taking back the tears.’ Take Back the Highway helps the fight against violence and abuse BELINDA LI UNEBC students were amongst the participants in Take Back the Highway on September 17, NUSC Referendum Delayed Indefinitely ANDREW KURJATA NEWS EDITOR The September 28 and 29 referendum on the proposed Norther Undergradu- ate Student Centre (NUSC) has been postponed indefinitely for reasons that have not yet been made public, Accord- ing to VP External Aidan Kelly, the de- lay is a result of some new information that came to light just hours before the September 14 Board meeting, Though he cannot comment on what this infor- mation is, he says that is important that the NUGSS board explore all their op- tions prior to putting the referendum forward to students. “Until we're able to make all this information [available], it’s not fair to the students to hold a ref- erendum, he said. This referendum is a follow-up to one held last year in which it was pro- posed that building fees be increased by $35 per student per semester in order to raise the $11.6 million needed to fund the four-story building. Though there was a 57 percent vote in favour New information puts NUGSS campaign on hold BELINDA LI UNBC students ponder the consequences of increasing fees to build the Northern Undergraduate Student Centre. ~ of the building, the referendum needed a 66 percent absolute majority to pass. The current NUGSS Board has taken last year's majority vote as an indicator that the students want the building and are optimistic that the fee increase will go through this year. A prime priority for this year's campaign, says Kelly, is information. As soon as possible, he hopes to have a question and answer forum on the building; as well, there are plans to have an information booth set up soon. This doesn’t mean that the NUGSS Board will be actively promoting all the facts about the building, Last year's referendum caused some controversy when it became public that NUGSS board members who disagreed with the fee increase were not allowed to mount a“no’ campaign. Once again, this year's NUGSS board will only be promoting the “yes” side, distributing flyers and. posters expounding the benefits that the NUSC building would bring, while not mentioning any of the possible problems or alternatives. “Until we're able to make all this information [avail- able], it’s not fair to the students to hold a refer- endum, - Aiden Kelly According to Kelly, this is because this year's NUGSS board is entirely in favor of the project and no one wants to mount a campaign against it. “That being said,” he continues, “if anyone wanted to come to the board and be involved in the process as far as having a‘no' side or ‘no’ say, we would be wel- come to that.’ Plans for the building are currently on display in front of the NUGSS office. Students are encouraged by NUGSS to come on down and voice their ques- tions, comments, or concerns, NEWS BRIEFS Parking Fees Increase Parking fine values have increased at UNBC, with minor offenses such as having an expired permit rising from $5 to $30 and more serious viola- tions reaching up to $100. The decision was made to target those who weren't paying by _increasing the penalty side, instead of punishing everyone by increasing parking fees. Northern Sports Centre — Consortium Chosen Northern Sports Centre Ltd., the organization formed to oversee the development of the Northern Sports Centre, has decided to use the Norther Sports Centre Consortium to | build the Norther Sports Centre. The consortium will be design- ing and building the new centre which will be located at the entrance to UNBC. The building will contain a multi-court gym, indoor track, and a multi-use indoor field. Continuing Studies Program Develops More Courses Continuing Studies has increased its course availabil- ity by over 40% to over 160 © classes, The program is now | offering courses in Business and Executive Education, Profes- sional Development, Computer Training, Health and Safety, Per- sonal Wellness, Liberal Arts and Culture, Writing and Publishing, and Natural Resource Manage- ment and Environment. Terrace Nursing Pro- gram Receives Phase One Approval | The new nursing program in Terrace, offered through col- laboration from UNBC, NWCC and CNC, has received phase “one approval from the College of Registered Nurses in British Columbia. This means the program can run until Decem- ber 2007, at which point it will receive a phase two review. This unique program offers training in northwest rural health and First Nations health. UNBC Vice-President of Research Wins Award Dr. Max Blouw, Vice-President of Research here at UNBC has won the BC Science and Technology Champion of the Year Award for his work campaigning to pro- mote BC's science and technol- ogy capacity. Dr. Blouws work in this area has been astound- ing. Congratulations Dr. Blouw!