By Sarah Krichel
Ah, the first editorial of the year.
In past years, this section of The Eyeopener ranted to you about why you should give a shit about us. Oh, how we ranted—on the pages of your newspapers, your mobile screens and Twitter timelines.
Little did we know, those rants were a luxury. Now, we face a time where we must rant about something new.
But first, where are my manners? Let me introduce ourselves for those of you who don’t know what you’re currently reading:
We are The Eyeopener, Ryerson University’s largest student publication. We are independent of the school, meaning we can scrutinize campus institutions that operate using your money. We pay attention to it all: the news, the arts, the biz and the tech, the communities, the sports, the fun, and scoops of all kinds—all so that you don’t have to.
This year, however, things are going to be a little bit different for us at The Eye. Now, we must rant to you in ink and pixels about why you should choose to support our paper.
Back in March, Ontario Premier Doug Ford introduced the framework for the Student Choice Initiative—a program which saw the government deem a myriad of student services “non-essential.”
And, you guessed it, that included The Eye, among other “crazy Marxist nonsense” like student unions, student groups and equity service centres.
As you may have noticed, you now have the option in your course enrolment accounts to opt out of certain ancillary fees. Previously we were under a cozy, dry umbrella of student levies to keep us funded and operating. Now we’re just like every other publication out in the “real world”—low on resources and trying to find support wherever we can.
Listen. This isn’t some cheesy rant about how we’re going to “save the campus newspaper!” This isn’t a movie, and that’s what I told my co-editors when I decided to run for editor-in-chief this past March. This is about surviving—even when our government is doing everything in its power to ensure we don’t.
Even so, we don’t intend on having a rainy cloud above our heads from this day forward. We’re going to let our work speak for itself. It’s just that this time around, you’re in this too.
Don’t just mindlessly opt out of the services listed on the RAMSS page (which would save you a grand total of $66.33—thanks, Ford!). Look into the groups like CJRU, the campus radio station asking for just $3.73 annually, or the program for student refugees, which asks for just $4.69 annually. Even look into the Ryerson Students’ Union. Just because you see the controversial headlines, doesn’t mean they haven’t been there for you in countless ways. Consider everything their fee goes toward: more than 200 student groups, student advocacy and other resources you never realized were run by them.
Our goal with this annual Frosh Issue was for first-years to find a (severely exaggerated) version of themselves in these pages. Each section devotes itself to a first-year stereotype. And whether you fancy yourself a pretentious art critic, the gifted first-year athlete or a marketing-savvy business student—this paper is for you. Take a look inside.
And finally, remind yourself and remind your friends: opt in.
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