“We are all in this together” is one of those common expressions of solidarity used by governments across Canada in response to the coronavirus pandemic. However, that’s not true in practice for all kinds of people, writes María José Yax-Fraser, who takes a closer look at the cases of women who were denied health coverage here in Nova Scotia.
“We cannot continue to ask for a minute of silence for the women who have been murdered and for those who are missing. We need to scream for systemic change. We cannot be silent. Silent NO more!”
“I know racial prejudice persists in our time. I encounter racism often. Yet, it still shakes me. It catches me by surprise, particularly when it comes from spaces least expected.” María José Yax-Fraser describes such an encounter, and considers how colonial stereotypes continue to be invoked in the present.
As a rule we focus on local stories in the Nova Scotia Advocate, but we gladly break that rule for this article by María José Yax-Fraser on the desperate situation in Guatemala and how Canada should act in defence of all those who are struggling to maintain the rule of law there.