Taking over the University District two weekends in a row, the AMS is working to reduce harm this Homecoming season.
Queen’s students and over 2,000 alumni celebrated Homecoming from Oct. 18 to 20, with the AMS focusing on safety and harm reduction, continuing efforts from previous years. To reduce harm on campus, AMS executives distributed vouchers for free food and snacks. These safety measures are set to extend into the “Fauxcoming,” or “FOCO” celebration on Oct. 26. During both weekends, the City imposes heightened fines through the University District Safety Initiative (UDSI).
The City is able to use the istrative Monetary Penalty to increase fines in efforts to decrease the number of violations that take place.
Last year, the goal for harm reduction initiatives was to develop a more comprehensive plan to enhance access to food trucks on campus. Reflecting on these efforts, Claire Golding, ArtSci ’27, shared her thoughts during an interview with The Journal. “When I was walking around campus for Homecoming, I was pleasantly surprised to see the AMS handing out food and drinks for harm reduction,” Golding said.
Golding stated she understood why there would be increased fines but overall, Homecoming and FOCO traditions, which reinforce the Queen’s student community, need to be guided rather than policed.
“We had booths with Gatorade as well as other harm reduction initiatives as well available for Homecoming that weekend and then we also had food vouchers that we give out,” Vice-President (University Affairs) Ruth Osunde said in an interview with The Journal.
This year’s FOCO celebrations are expected to sur Homecoming in the number of people present, prompting the City of Kingston to extend the UDSI until Nov. 3 with it starting on Oct 18. This time period covers Homecoming from Oct. 18 to 20, FOCO Oct. 25 to 27, and Halloween Oct. 31 to Nov. 2. The UDSI will target common issues like underage drinking, public intoxication, noise, and nuisance parties during FOCO and Halloween, with increased fines and police presence in place.
While the City has a longer consecutive UDSI in comparison to other years, the AMS is working to extend the harm reduction initiatives they put in place for Homecoming into FOCO.
“We’re attempting to see how we can duplicate the work that we did over this past weekend into the coming up the weekend that’s coming up as well, obviously that work is important, but it’s even more important when the majority of students are here to experience it,” Osunde said.
Osunde highlighted the AMS has been working with the City of Kingston and Kingston’s Police Liaison Team in an attempt to reduce harm and fines, as well as educate students on bylaws put in place during Homecoming and FOCO through leaflets the team es out on campus.
Last year, Homecoming resulted in over $57,000 in fines and 135 by-law enforcement charges, the majority of which were for open liquor.
READ MORE: Fewer unsanctioned events at Homecoming amid increased police presence
Different AMS commissions, according to Osunde, have been working to keep students safe during Homecoming. For example, the Social Issues Commission has launched a “Know Your Rights” campaign to help students understand Kingston bylaws and fines during the UDSI.
“This is new grounds for us, […] we’re not used to seeing FOCO […] be bigger than Homecoming,” Osunde said.
The AMS hasn’t been made aware of any significant harm that came to students during Homecoming weekend, according to Osunde. But, they still encourage students to continue to be safe this FOCO weekend given the increased construction around campus.
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