What happens when a Mi’kmaw and settler university student share car rides on their way to university and other places? They talk, and the settler learns some hard lessons about colonial oppression, systemic racism and white privilege. “One Saturday afternoon when we happened to be together, Flo shared a very personal story about why she finds it difficult to eat when she is in a social food sharing situation.”
Raymond Sheppard: “We should recognize and credit those African Nova Scotians who have made a difference in the past and continue to make a difference today. Dr. Lynn Jones is such a person. She helps wherever and whenever she is able to.”
Press release: The Nova Scotia Policing Policy Working Group is deeply concerned by some of the claims that representatives of Halifax Regional Police, including Chief Dan Kinsella, made yesterday in their presentation to the Board of Police Commissioners regarding the implementation of body-worn cameras (BWCs) across the police force.
Wayne Desmond: “Something that is not often talked about are tenancy disputes and discriminatory practices carried out by landlords here in Nova Scotia. This continues to be one of Nova Scotia’s best kept secrets.”
More than 30 people gathered in a candle-lit vigil tonight in Halifax’s Victoria Park to demand justice for Barbara Kentner, an Indigenous woman murdered in Thunder Bay, Ont. in January 2017. Judy Haiven was there.
Media release: A group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Halifax will be holding a vigil for Barbara Kentner at Victoria Park in Halifax at 5 pm on December 14. Several local speakers will be featured and we are planning to broadcast a live call with activists in Thunder Bay to discuss the case and the verdict.
Raymond Sheppard: African people did not develop racism and did not benefit from it, therefore the creators and beneficiaries of racism are the ones who must disassemble it.
How well is Nova Scotia’s health system serving the Black community during the pandemic? Not well at all, says Dr. OmiSoore Dryden, who is the James R. Johnston Chair in Black Canadian Studies in the Faculty of Medicine and an associate professor in the Department of Community Health and Epidemiology. We spoke about the province’s refusal to collect disaggregated race-based data, the impressive mobilization against COVID by members of the North and East Preston communities, and the challenges of vaccination. More than anything we spoke about racism.
An online roundtable discussion late last week asked the question how Nova Scotia media contributes to racism and oppression. Observations that came out of the discussion will be reflected in a document that can serve to educate and change Nova Scotia’s mainstream media for the better.
PSA: Join African Nova Scotian community members for a roundtable discussion about the role of media in contributing to oppression and anti-Black racism.