There’s this news story I have been following with great interest, and the deeper I research it, the more complex it becomes. A white man from South Africa by the name of Huntley has applied for refugee status in Canada on the basis of his experience of violent racial discrimination he claims is being perpetrated by the South African government.
What made this particular refugee claim newsworthy? Thousands of refugee claims are processed in Canada every year that are the result of violent racial discrimination and oppression. Why was Huntley’s case singled out as newsworthy… was it because he is caucasian? Is it SO rare that a white person from another country applies for refugee status as to make it newsworthy? Is it really that rare; are white people universally privileged and immune from racial oppression? Oh, but wait… this story gets better! Read more »
On Sunday, August 23rd, the Regina Symphony Orchestra played a concert in Wascana Park, marking the opening of the 2009/10 season. A wonderful event with vendors, great opening acts and scenery, Symphony Under the Sky was a shining example of accessible fun for all ages. More significantly, it was free.
Regina has had a whole host of amazing events this summer, from classical performances to AC/DC. The problem is that it often costs a great deal of money to attend. They are exclusionary when they are supposed to bring people together. While events often have larger corporate or business sponsors, for the first time Regina’s city council stepped up to the plate to the tune of $25,000. Read more »
This is a brief and very interesting interview with K’Naan, a hip-hop protest artist from Somalia now based in Canada. His music speaks to the struggle people face living in his home country, and the government and warlords that prevent peace and prosperity. In this interview he talks about the origins of Somalian pirates from an angle that no other media source has addressed… watch on.
This song is called “Yesterday’s Halo”, and it seems to sum up nicely the barriers and battles that so many of us face. The second verse is my personal favourite – it’s so poignant that chills inevitably follow!
Do you want a new stadium in your backyard? How about a landfill or a nuclear power plant? I know what you’re thinking – who on earth would want to live with the noise, smell, or danger? I wouldn’t!
There’s a new buzz word that I really dig that’s being used to describe this conundrum – eco-discrimination. The hot topics of the day, such as the unanimous (albeit grudgingly) support in the Saskatchewan Legislature of nuclear power, or the equally hot debate surrounding Regina’s new stadium, often neglect that massive amounts of discrimination go into decisions like these. Especially when it comes to location – and the consequences are grave. Read more »
My oh my! Are the blogs ever hopping these days! Particularly over the SaskParty’s recent move to examine Canada’s same-sex marriage laws in the context of making sure those religious figures that don’t want to perform the marriages don’t have to. In regards to this topic, the majority of the blogs I have read contained nasty, repugnant, hurtful, and illogical low-blow comments, and hell… everyone has the right to an opinion. Ironically, these comments are being made by both those who support same-sex marriage, but also those who don’t. Read more »
What does Canada Day mean to you? Is it simply a day off… kind of like ‘today’s reason to drink’? In the briefest of terms, to me July 1st is a day of pride and reflection.
It’s a day of pride! No matter what you take away from this brief post, know that I love Canada passionately – for this is true. We have so much beauty, so much prosperity as a whole. Don’t think that I didn’t toast my country with a pint tonight… I did! I’m one of the luckiest people of in the world because I get to wake up in Canada; and I’m certainly very privileged.
However, July 1st is also a day of reflection. Canada has a repugnant, violent, and often invisible history. Canada was not founded by noble pioneers that lived off the land in the face of all odds. Nor was it a mosaic of culture or a project of multiculturalism that succeeded. Canada was founded on the violent misappropriation of Indigenous land. It was founded on the backs of those people that still experience marginalization and poverty to this day.
Do I toast my country on the eve of its birthday? Sure. Do I remember that I only have as much privilege as I do because of colonialism, both historic and contemporary? You better believe it.
Why are there so many barriers to justice? Of course there are several definitions of justice, with different meaning for different people even. The question I have is why justice is so often difficult to seek.
I would argue that our legal system is designed to serve certain people and not others. Take the most basic of facts – if you are going to enter into a court case, you need time and you need money. Competent lawyers cost a lot of money; hell even incompetent lawyers cost a lot of money! Planning a court case and then going to court takes an incomprehensible amount of time – most of which is spent being apprehensive and stressed out. Most people simply can’t afford the time and money it takes to see a court case through – which can take years.
The very succinct point that I’m trying to make is that when rights are violated, some people have more recourse than others do. The impoverished are only one of those demographics that feel the intolerable sting of injustice. It leads to less dignity and recognition of the inherent humanity in the person/people to which the infamous scales of the law do not tilt toward. It’s just a thought… ; D
In March of 2008, a 7 year old girl in Manitoba went to school with a swastika drawn on her arm. When her teacher noticed the symbol, she took the child to the bathroom and washed it off. The next day, the girl came back with more symbols of white supremacy drawn on her body. It was then that the teacher found out it was the girl’s mother that had helped to draw them on.
Here’s where it gets more interesting… the teacher then calls Child and Family Services (CFS) to investigate the wellbeing of the girl (who also has a younger brother) at home. Lo and behold, when the CFS workers get to the girl’s home, they find all sorts of repugnant crap – anti-Semitic flags, white supremacy literature and posters hanging on the walls, all in all your basic “turn me into a total racist bain on society” environment. The CFS workers removed the children. Read more »