The AMS Social Justice Centre is relaunching The Talon tonight, which is labelled as UBC’s alternative student press and aims to address social justice issues that are not being covered by other campus publications.
The Talon was initially launched in 2014 as a horizontally-structured editorial collective of UBC students. Resurrected from a previous Social Justice Centre print newspaper called The Knoll, which ran from 2006 to 2011, The Talon was reborn as an online publication. Focusing on campus-centric issues such as tuition increase, the BDS referendum and sexual assault on campus, the publication saw a successful first year.
“[The years of] 2014 to 2015 were very successful [and] we were a big part of the campus conversation,” said editor Eviatar Bach. As The Talon editorial collective is entirely student-based, the 2015/16 year was difficult for the publication, with graduating student editors causing it to “fizzle out.”
The Talon is now relaunching for 2016/17 with a brand new editorial collective.
While editors drive The Talon, the collective prefers publishing outside submissions from students, professors and activists-at-large. The Talon also places a focus on covering social justice on campus and has published pieces The Ubyssey has not. For example, professor of history Dr. Paul Krause wrote “The Enduring Silence of UBC’s ‘Hunting Ground,’” which covered sexual assault in the UBC history department for The Talon — a piece that was later cited by CBC.
Publishing a diverse variety of content — from poetry to investigative journalism — The Talon is a platform for alternative dialogue.
“[It's about] giving a voice to people who might not otherwise have a voice,” said editor Tania Talebzadeh. “A more inclusive, radical voice and a form of public action and expression that isn’t otherwise available at UBC. This year, we wanted it to be more accessible, having rants and sign language content. Inclusion was a main factor when we wanted to start The Talon again.”
The Talon's relaunch party is at 6 p.m. tonight in Buchanan D. There will be free food and an open mic.
“We are a bunch of political friends,” said Talebzadeh.