CONTENTS
CALLS TO ACTION
Protect Hassan Diab from further injustice
We call on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Canadian government to protect Dr. Hassan Diab from unjust prosecution and an unfair trial in France for a crime he did not commit.In 2014, Hassan was wrongfully extradited from Canada to France. After spending more than three years in a French prison, French investigative judges found strong evidence that he was not in France at the time of the 1980 crime. He was released in 2018 and cleared of all allegations.
In a politically motivated appeal by French prosecutors, and despite no evidence against him, Hassan was ordered to stand trial in France; the date of the trial has been set for April 2023. This shocking disregard for facts raises fears that a show trial will lead to a wrongful conviction based on unreliable material and unsourced intelligence.
Mr. Trudeau must honor his own words and protect Hassan. The unfair political trial of an innocent Canadian citizen cannot be tolerated. PM Trudeau and the Canadian government must:
(a) Put an end to this continuing miscarriage of justice, and
(b) Refuse any future request for Hassan Diab’s extradition.
you.leadnow.ca
EVENTS
Lecture on Palestine and Apartheid
When: March 16th, 7pmWhere: York University, Keele campus, room number TBA
The former UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Palestine, Michael Lynk, will be coming to speak about Palestine in international law, Aparthied, and the deeply problematic IHRA working definition of antisemitism. There will also be a Q&A session after the speech. Registration is mandatory for attendance.
eventbrite.com
The Art of Peace
When: March 18th, 12pmDimitri Lascaris, a leading Canadian peace activist, is planning to embark upon a mission of peace to Russia for the month of April 2023. He would like to explain to Canadians from coast to coast to coast why he is doing so. The title of his twenty-minute presentation is “The Art Of Peace: Seeing the world through the eyes of our ‘enemies.'”
Dimitri’s presentation will be followed by a Q&A open to all Canadians, with simultaneous translation between French and French, and moderated by the co-chair of the Hamilton Coalition To Stop The War, Brendan Stone.
zoom.us
Unite Against Racism, Refugees Welcome, Status for All!
When: Sunday March 19th, 2pmWhere Christie Pits Park, 750 Bloor Street W
Anti-immigrant forces are trying to shut down immigration justice. They are blaming immigrants for low wages and creating hysteria about refugee claimants escaping the United States via Roxham Road. We must show the federal government that there are more of us, who want Status For All. We have already won massive changes, and we won’t back down on Status For All.
migrantrights.ca
Learning about Wet’suwet’en Yintah and Culture
When: March 19th, 7pmJoin Wet’suwet’en Land Defenders to learn directly from them about their home and culture, and what we’re all fighting to defend. Then discover more about how you can help draw attention to the issue at the upcoming RBC AGM.
zoom.us
Canadian Foreign Policy Hour with Yves Engler
When: Mondays at 6pmJoin author Yves Engler on Mondays for a weekly news roundup and interactive discussion about Canada’s role abroad. This weekly session will delve into the latest developments on subjects ranging from military affairs and Canada’s role in Ukraine to its contribution to Palestinian dispossession and exploitation of African resources. Join Yves for a critical take on Canada’s foreign policy. Questions, comments and criticisms are all welcome.
zoom.us
SURJ-TO and JFAAP Present Care Not Cops
When: March 22nd, 7pmJoin SURJ and JFAAP for a conversation about the dangers of police involvement in mental health crises and what community safety can look like without police.
Speakers: Desmond Cole, Jane Finch Action Against Poverty (JFAAP) and The Family of Taresh Bobby Ramroop.
Moderated by Robyn Maynard.
zoom.us
Ontario Health Coalition Townhall
When: Thursday, March 23rd, 7pmWe will be building toward a province-wide referendum. To do this we will hold a large regional online mobilizing meeting followed by in-person meetings in every community in which we can get volunteers to help. Thank you to everyone who volunteered.
Greater Toronto & Surrounding Area Regional Organizing Meeting (Toronto, Scarborough, Etobicoke, North York, Peel, Caledon, Newmarket, Aurora, Markham, Stouffville)
zoom.us
ARTICLES
International Women’s Day: What is Canadian Feminism?
By Joan SangsterFeminism has been categorized variously as theory, ideas, organizations, movements, sensibilities, feelings, even a way of living. It can be some and all of those. However, if we define it too expansively, it can dissolve into an amorphous description of all women’s empowering political activity. Feminism is more specific: it questions, challenges, and hopes to alter women’s subordination; it encompasses women’s efforts to secure equality, autonomy, and dignity. Can we apply a “feminist” label to women in the past despite their seeming refusal of the term? If we redefine feminism, I think we can.
Source: The Bullet No. 2276
What Does the US Get Out of Shielding Israel From Accountability at the UN?
By Michael LynkIn his eloquent 2012 memoir, Kofi Annan, the former secretary general of the United Nations, wrote that the failure of the UN to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East was a deep internal wound as old as the organization itself. In his words, it has been “a painful and festering sore consequently felt in almost every intergovernmental organ and Secretariat body.” The ramifications of this paralysis, he observed, are global: “No other issue carries such a powerful symbolic and emotional charge affecting people far from the zone of conflict.”
Source: The Bullet No. 2791
Workers’ Organizations and ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’
By Niloofar GolkarOn February 15th, twenty workers’ unions, feminists, students, and one human rights organization in Iran published the Charter of Minimum Demands of Independent Civil and Trade Unions of Iran, the first collective document from within the country, voicing their demands for a democratic and just future without dictatorship and oppression. Eighteen organizations, primarily students and university student organizations, also joined to support the Charter on February 21st. However, there are critics of the Charter regarding how they gathered endorsements without giving adequate time to large important unions such as the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company to discuss it with members and provide their input.
Source: The Bullet No. 2792