In the morning,
the police came;
although we were outside
rent was due

We were in tents
that’s one thing we had left
we weren’t on the sidewalks
it was a disquieting perspective yet
to have no roof left at all
to be homeless, hopeless.

The Halifax Police,
handed out fines:
$300 to pay, for illegal camping
when they weren’t for kicks
but for survival, these camps
we were refugees without fleeing our motherland
the weapons against us were rising costs
we were out of work, and rents unbound
had, with no foreboding, doubled or tripled.

We who had not
a family as a lifeboat
such good friends nearby
that we could have begged for a couch…
we who knew not where to go
were in the city parks.

In Peace and Friendship park
near where the cruise ships dock
or by the Waegwaltik
where the nice yacht clubs are
or in front of the empty old library
in the heart of downtown.

There, charities had placed shelters
plywood shacks, isolated against the cold
the friends who had been surviving there
for a couple of rough months
and, we too, got two days notice
they were from city hall, and barked “get outta here”
Where to go? God only knows!
We were there, not too joyous
but since we had no other solutions
and no one had any suggestions!
If the city didn’t like our resolution
they could at least give us another option!

If rents had stayed frozen
after hearing about housing crises for four or five years
if the empty buildings, numerous as they are
were turned into bunkhouses…
or if the infamous Shannon Park became
an affordable housing complex
instead of allowing for the city council
to fantasize about a football stadium…

The morning after two days of dread
the police came, told us to break camp
Our people, the more desperate ones
they were arrested
and the rest of us, where do we go?
To cardboard boxes on Spring Garden Road?

The city claims to have “tried to work with us”
we would like to work, but where’s the work at?
The city told us to leave, with no substitute to our misery
(not even a different misery, just as bleak)
no unemployment, no recruitment aid, no lodgings
“tried to work with us”, it’s the city’s way of saying
that it doesn’t stand by its actions.

Let Halifax admit “we don’t like to see bums”
the city could have kept the name “Cornwallis”
if it was all just to deport folk from the park
which is now called Peace and Friendship
pretty words, diplomatic language
Let Halifax admit that the city doesn’t give a damn
about solving social problems,
treating people with dignity
Let Halifax admit that the city’s actions
say “when you’re down, we’ll kick you down”.

In the morning of the 18th of August
Halifax police threw us out
of Peace and Friendship
and proceeded to emptying other parks
of all the “undesirable people”
who during a pandemic of lockdowns
lack of work, bills to pay
sunk
and got washed up
with a tent, and a backpack, on a public lawn
with no water, no showers, no heating, no washing, no toilets
and all that was taken from them
while in their ears they screamed :
“Go be homeless someplace else!”

Thibault Jacquot-Paratte started publishing poetry in 2010, has since published poetry, short stories, essays, and theatre in both English and French, in Canada, Europe and India. See his profile on the Writers Federation of Nova Scotia website.

Originally published in French in : Le courrier de la Nouvelle-Écosse, Aug. 27 2021. Poem translated from French by the author.

The post Thrown out of Peace and Friendship, a poem by Thibault Jacquot-Paratte appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

No One is Illegal – Halifax/Kjipuktuk is a community organization that is committed to working in radical solidarities with undocumented migrants and those with precarious immigration statuses. Our mission is to advance migrant justice across Nova Scotia and beyond to ensure equal rights, dignities and decencies for all. You can read more about our work, such as our Migrant Worker Program, on our website.

The reason why we’re writing is to invite you, your organization and members to our free community event on September 12 at 1-3pm at the Halifax Commons (behind the Pavilion). For over a year, community members across Halifax came together to build a series of life-sized, collaborative and radical artwork centering migrant justice and solidarity-building. We’re inviting you to join us in challenging the pervasive xenophobic narratives imposed on migrants in our communities, whose stories are made invisibilized due to Canada’ racist two-tier immigration system.

There will be free food, activities for children, beautiful life-sized art, poetry readings, and an impressive silent auction. More importantly, for those who are able to donate, every single dollar raised at this event will go directly to migrants in Nova Scotia requesting emergency support. If you don’t already know about our mutual aid Migrant Solidarity Fund, you can read more on our website and make a monthly/recurring donation as low as $2/month.

We really hope to see you on Sept 12.More details can be found on our Facebook event.

The post PSA: Invitation to United We Call: Status For All appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

“For anyone already living there the categories were pre-set and you were born into them. Normal people knew they were normal, poor people knew they were poor, and the stupid people knew they were stupid because they were told. The uppity people didn’t know where they belonged, although everyone else did. If you wanted to change your category you had to leave town. That’s just the way it was.” 

Marla Dominey has dug deep into her small town Cape Breton roots to give us Kat, a keenly observant  girl evolving into a woman. We meet her as a child on her knees among the weeds in front of her house, creating an imaginary world of “landscaped yards around pebble mansions and swimming pools dug with  old spoons … snuck from the cutlery drawer.” When we part with her, she is a mature woman living elsewhere. She reconnects with a man she briefly admired across the town’s class divide when they were  teens and discovers “that old feeling of less-than came back just as if it had never left.” 

Through the fourteen stories in Through the Elephant Ears we become very familiar with Kat’s voice as  we accompany her along her rough road to adulthood. We feel her guilt when a child she is supposed to be watching is seriously injured, resulting in a vicious campaign to run a neighbour out of town. She encounters other puzzling and sometimes frightening neighbours, including the local witch, and has her  first experiences of death – a neighbour drowned at sea, a classmate hit on the road and a seagull  pointlessly shot by her brother at the local dump. She is fascinated by an exotic new girl from away while  she is relentlessly drawn into the disastrous slipstream of her rule-defying friend Stacey. Through Kat, we  feel the terrifying vulnerability of young women navigating their own blossoming sexuality surrounded by predatory males and without access to sex education or birth control. Tension comes, too, from the  precarious livelihood of a family dependent on the income of a father who is repeatedly brought ashore from his trawler for his drinking and a mother descending into mental illness. 

Fiction writers are told “show don’t tell” and Dominey does it brilliantly, building up layer upon layer of  detail until the reader can see, feel and smell the never-finished house or the filthy backseat of the local  drug dealer’s low-slung brown car. The people, too, become vividly real this way. It is impossible not to  keep turning the pages. It is also impossible not to care deeply about Kat, with her keen eye for the comic  and ironic, and the cynicism nurtured by deprivation and despair. If you grew up in a small town, anywhere, but particularly in Cape Breton, and particularly on the wrong  side of the tracks, Through the Elephant Ears will go straight to your heart. If you grew up elsewhere, it will open your heart to the scary and complicated path young women living in poverty must travel on the way to adulthood and how it sticks to them for life.

Through the elephant ears, by MJ Dominey, is available at Amazon.ca as paperback in KIndle format

See also: Anne Bishop about writing Under the Bridge: ‘There is this idea out there that you can’t write fiction about social justice issues’

The post Book review: Through the elephant ears, by MJ Dominey appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

WHEN: Sunday, September 12, 1-3pm

WHERE: Halifax Commons (behind the pavilion), 5816 Cogswell St. 

PHOTO OP: During the event, NOII-Hfx will be publically unveiling, for the first time, a series of large painted panels promoting the call for full and permanent immigration status for all migrants. The art project is titled, “United We Call: Status For All!”

NOII-Hfx is a grassroots, volunteer-based migrant justice organization that launched in September 2019. The organization is engaged in direct support, education, direct actions and advocacy in support of migrant rights in the province and beyond. NOII-Hfx’s Migrant Workers Program has provided support to over 1,300 people throughout Nova Scotia so far this year. 

In advance of the upcoming federal elections, NOII-Hfx is unveiling an art project calling for immigration status for all migrants, with no exceptions or exclusions. In addition, NOII-Hfx is hosting a silent auction, with items donated by local businesses. The funds raised will go to NOII-Hfx’s Migrant Solidarity Fund, which provides emergency financial support to migrant community members. The event will include music, poetry, radical storytelling and free snacks. 

– 30 –

Media Contact: 

No one is illegal – Halifax/Kjipuktuk

noii.hfx@gmail.com 

The post Media advisory: migrant justice art launch and silent auction in Halifax appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

Chaos looms
Inside
Outside

Choices
Few
Not choices at all

Consequences ensue
Inside
Outside

Tainting
Erasing
Dividing Groups

Chaos looms
Inside
Outside

Pulsating
Vibrating
Shifting

Doomed

Angela Bowden is a frequent contributor to the Nova Scotia Advocate. She was one of the talented writers selected for the Alistair MacLeod Mentorship Program, offered by the Writers Federation of Nova Scotia. Unspoken Truth, unmuted and unfiltered, a collection of her poetry, was published earlier this year.

Illustration: The drowning dog, by Francisco Goya, 1820 – 1823

The post Atmosphere, a poem by Angela Bowden appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

my memory
fades
in degrees
like
a stone
skipping backwards
over a pond
a migration
of Canada geese
in reverse
a nameless child

I wander
from room
to room
losing objects
as I go

layers
of memory loss
like the crust
of the earth
the erosion
of a
river bank
a rainforest
in distress

I reconstruct
the past
putting on
protective lenses
to avoid
sharp
flying objects

pieces
reconstructed
by medication
bipolar disease
who am I?
the past?
the present?

memory loss is a wonderful poem from The Blue dragonfly, healing through poetry, a recently published poetry collection by 71-year-old first-time author, Veronica Eley, of Dartmouth. Like all other poems in the book memory loss is inspired by experiences encountered when re-living and thinking through traumatic events that took place mostly in Nova Scotia.  

From the afterword: “Veronica Eley attended no workshops, never imagined herself a poet, is hesitant to think so even now. She wrote her “poetic diary” as a task assigned to her by psychological necessity.” 

I just started reading some of these poems, but I am already hooked and look forward to spending much more time with this collection.

The Blue dragonfly, healing through poetry is published by Hidden Brook Press.

The post memory loss, a poem by Veronica Eley appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

July 23, 2021

funscad – faculty union of the nova scotia college of art & design

Over a year ago, the Board of Governors of the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD) fired the President, Dr. Aoife Mac Namara. The President had been in her post for less than a year. There was no consultation with the University community and there are still no answers. FUNSCAD, the faculty and technician’s union, remain shocked and dismayed at the actions of the Board who made this decision in the middle of a pandemic and without transparency and accountability.

FUNSCAD members, along with our students, are outraged. Union members and members of academic senate, in separate polling, overwhelmingly voted NO CONFIDENCE in the Board of Governors. We want to emphasize that this vote was not taken lightly and was not merely symbolic. The real symbolism is in the massive screens of black ink on page after page of documents reluctantly released in freedom-of-information requests (The FOIPOP office had previously reprimanded NSCAD for unnecessary delays). Here we are a year later and we still do not have proper answers to why this happened and are calling on the provincial government to use its authority to:

a) demand clarity and transparency in the governance of taxpayer and tuition-funded public institutions;

b) use its authority to get to the bottom of questionable decision-making at NSCAD through a public inquiry or similar measure, and to order the full release of redacted documents;

c) strengthen freedom of information legislation so that members of the community, including students and their parents, employees, faculty, and citizens of Nova Scotia, know how decisions are being made; and

d) examine the process of appointing governors to all public institutions with the goal of ensuring accountability and community representation.

Today, Globe and Mail reporter Greg Mercer has published a follow-up to his previous June 7, 2021 report: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-e-mails-shed-new-light-on-ns-art-college-development-battle/ 

Mercer’s article is based on documents released under freedom of information requests, though heavily redacted, that further substantiate questions about Board conflicts of interest and the firing of the former president. The firing appears, at the very least, to stem from personality conflicts between and members of the NSCAD Board and the inappropriate involvement of Board members in operations normally within the president’s domain. These tensions occurred as Mac Namara was repeatedly raising concerns over conflicts-of-interest by Board members related to campus real estate. One email (March 11, 2020) has the subject heading “Conflict of Interest: Legal Opinion” and even that is fully redacted!

What we do learn from the FOIPOP materials is that from early in her appointment, Board members are urging Mac Namara to meet with Scott McCrea (Armour Group) on his proposal for NSCAD real estate. Mac Namara was simultaneously working to build bridges and restore trust amongst students, staff, and faculty, as well as in the broader community. Meanwhile, Board members appear to have been working to have Mac Namara removed even as she had gained the trust and confidence of the community. It also appears that not all members of the Board were involved in key decision-making, notably elected student, faculty, and alumni representatives.

Acting FUNSCAD President Darrell Varga says: “Faculty and staff stand with our students in having lost confidence in the Board of Governors and worry about the damage done to the school by its reckless decision-making. We know that President Mac Namara was working hard to secure new campus facilities but that her proposals were dismissed without proper consideration since they appear to conflict with vested interests. Over the past year, the Board’s decisions have been completely opaque, and their actions and the timing of their actions do not seem to be in the best interest of the community.”

FUNSCAD, representing technicians and faculty employed at NSCAD, call on the Board to commit to a full accountability of these matters and release all relevant information. If it is unwilling to do so, Board members should step aside so that the Nova Scotia government can step up.

The post Media release: FUNSCAD calls for answers appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

The word discovery
becomes more important than ever;
I know my country well
and today there is no doubt
it will be turned inside out.

Horror sits comfortably beside me.
However it is Love, a quest
to continue to learn
I turn and embrace
for a long, long time.

Chad Norman’s most recent books are Squall: Poems in the Voice of Mary Shelley, released last year by Guernica Editions, and Selected & New Poems, from Mosaic Press. He lives in Truro, Nova Scotia.

See also: Who I move beside, a poem by Chad Norman

The post July First Twenty-Twenty-One, a poem by Chad Norman appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

Elizabeth Glenn-Copeland is an eco-poet, writer and theater artist whose career over the past many decades has evolved at the intersection of arts and activism. After moving three times in less than nine months due to covid-related challenges, Elizabeth and her musician husband landed along the Parrsboro shore in Jan. 2021 and are grateful to be part of such a welcoming community.

“Daring to Hope at the Cliff’s Edge: Pangea’s Dream Remembered”, a book of narrative eco-poetry, was written as part of Elizabeth’s 2018 residency at the Joggins Fossil Institute. The book is published by Chapel Street Editions.

Listen to an animated excerpt from the book: here:https://www.elizabethcopeland.ca/daring-to-hope-at-the-cliffs-edge.html

The post Rock, a poem by Elizabeth Glenn-Copeland appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

June 15, 2021 – Dartmouth, Nova Scotia 

We will be packing up the grease paint July 30, 2022, as our 34 year tenancy is ending. 

“This will be our last season at Sawmill Playhouse, our home since 1987”, says Dale Charron, President of Dartmouth Players. “We’re excited to be searching for a new home that may better serve the community.” 

Dartmouth Players is seeking help in finding that new venue. Ideally, something with rooms for rehearsals; props, set pieces, and costume storage; dressing rooms, and a workshop. High ceilings are necessary for lighting rigs, and, of course, a comfortable audience area for our patrons to enjoy our productions is essential 

“Volunteers have always been the heart and soul of our organization.” 

Dartmouth Players is also seeking assistance from persons interested in helping with funding and grant writing. As we move forward, we anticipate opportunities for involvement in an expanded variety of skill sets including business and legal. 

Dartmouth Players is the only community theatre in Dartmouth, and remains one of the most successful community theatre groups in Nova Scotia, both theatrically and financially. It is a registered charity and a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the creation of a viable, affordable, and inclusive community theatre in Dartmouth. It is a true amateur group – no wages or salaries – and members, performers, and technicians contribute and perform simply for the love of theatre. Dartmouth Players presents at least four productions per year to an average per-play audience of well over one thousand people and hosts many guest groups. Dartmouth Players has been in its current location at 33 Crichton Avenue, across from picturesque Sullivans Pond, since 1987. 

For media inquiries contact: 

Vanessa LePine 

info@dartmouthplayers.ns.ca

The post Press release: Dartmouth’s only community theatre closes the curtain on its first stage appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.