Tuesday, 17 September 2024

Inclusion

Review: Two board games Father Moses Coady would like (and John Risley would hate)

Alex Kronstein reviews two board games rich people are bound to hate. He looks at Co-opoly, think Monopoly for people who rather cooperate than compete. Next he looks at Rise Up: The Game of People and Power, where the purpose is to build a social movement and beat an oppressive system. To cover the Nova Scotia angle for this review Alex also looks at Father Moses Coady of Antigonish, the founder of the cooperative movement and the main reason there are still so many co-ops of all sorts in Nova Scotia.

Liane Tessier at the Halifax Women′s March: Speaking out has been the sanest thing I have ever done

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Former firefighter and justice fighter for ever Liane Tessier speaks at the Halifax Women’s March about her 12-year battle with HRM and the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission. “For me, coming forward, speaking out, has been the sanest thing I have ever done in my life, no matter how many people try to shut me up. Remaining silent is guaranteed only to change nothing at all.”

The need for rural women’s marches

Applied to current events, no march on Saturday will be better than any other. However, ensuring that there are marches in rural as well as urban areas is crucial in signifying both difference in lived experience and togetherness in the struggle for female empowerment, writes Lori Oliver. She then takes a closer look at two key problems for women in rural Nova Scotia are difficulties accessing abortion services and a higher rate of domestic, intimate partner violence—both of which disastrously intersect with how women continue to earn, on average, 87 cents to men’s $1. Barriers faced by racialized groups are even more severe.

Julie Chamagne on Abdoul Abdi: ‘We need to show that we will not let him go’

Speech by Julie Chamagne at a rally in support of Abdoulkader Abdi, on the occasion of the Justin Trudeau Town Hall in Lower Sackville. Abdoul Abdi is a Somali refugee who fell through the cracks and faces immanent deportation to either Somalia or Saudi Arabia. He has ties with neither country. You can help.

Update on Abdoul Abdi

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El Jones provides this quick update on Abdoul Abdi, the refugee who is at high risk of deportation to Somalia or Saudi Arabia, even though he has lived in Canada since he arrived here as a young boy. The speed at which they are moving suggests they are prioritizing deportation over all other issues, and despite the severe human rights issues in this case, they are pushing forward.

Deportation imminent for Somali refugee who grew up in Nova Scotia

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Ralph Goodale, the federal minister of Public Safety, continues his efforts to deport Abdoulkader Abdi to either Saudi Arabia or Somalia, his lawyer reported yesterday. He has no family connections in either country, does not speak the language, and does not know the local culture. Deportation would separate Abdoul from his entire family who are all in Canada, including his Canadian-born daughter. None of this would have happened if Nova Scotia’s Department of Community Services had applied for Canadian citizenship on his behalf while Abdoul was a ward of the state.

Weekend video: The Scotch Village history project

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Scotch Village, in Hants County, has a long history shaped by its original Mi’kmaq inhabitants, Acadians, African Nova Scotians, and Planters’ descendants.  In July 2017 people from these communities met to commemorate and celebrate their diverse but intersecting histories.The event makes for a fascinating Weekend Video, and a very appropriate one to ring in the new year. The event was organized by my beloved sister in law Carolyn van Gurp, and it features many inspiring people like Dorene Bernard and Dr. Afua Cooper, to name just a few.

Kendall Worth: Online dating, poverty, and that special someone

Poverty advocate Kendall Worth relates the happy story of how one one woman escaped social isolation through online dating. However, “online dating is not always safe. It’s not something I would personally want to pursue,” he writes.