CONTENTS
CALLS TO ACTION
Parliament Must Extend Study of New Bill…
Bill C-70, the Countering Foreign Interference Act was introduced last month in a climate of panic and fear-mongering. If adopted, the bill will bring extensive changes to Canada’s national security, intelligence and criminal justice systems, and have significant negative impacts on the lives and fundamental rights of people in Canada.The study of C-70 by the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security (SECU) began on Monday June 3rd and the hearings are scheduled to be over on Friday June 7th, after only five days. The Senate is planning on beginning a pre-study of the bill as of Monday June 10th, before it has even faced amendments in the House!
iclmg.ca
EVENTS
Fast to Free the Canadian Captives
When: June 1 to 19Please pick a day to fast in support of immediately freeing and bringing home 19 arbitrarily detained Canadian Muslim men, women, and children, including the longest-held detainee at 7+ years, Jack Letts. All of them are illegally held without charge in northeastern Syrian jails and prison camps under conditions the United Nations describes as meeting the “threshold for torture, cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment under international law.”
Their jailers have called on Canada to come and take these long-suffering detainees home. Yet Canada refuses.
homesnotbombs.blogspot.com
Arms Embargo Now
When: June 13th, various timesWhere: Various locations
On June 13th we’re taking action at MP offices across the country to demand they sign onto the call for a full and immediate arms embargo on Israel.
– Gary Anandasangaree, Scarborough–Rouge Park, 12:30 PM
– Bill Blair, Scarborough Southwest, 3 PM
– Michael Coteau, Don Valley East, 10 AM
– Julie Dabrusin, Toronto–Danforth, 12:30 PM
– Chrystia Freeland, University–Rosedale, 8:30 AM
– Marci Ien, Toronto Centre, 5 PM
– Rechie Valdez, Mississauga–Streetsville, 12 PM
armsembargonow.ca
#RenewablePowerForAll
When: June 13th, 7pmJoin the #RenewablePowerForAll: Storytelling for Climate Solutions training with Katie Perfitt, Clean Electricity Campaigner at the David Suzuki Foundation.
Participants will learn about the narrative forces in climate policy in Canada, effective storytelling strategies to win ambitious climate solutions, and will be able to workshop personal narratives that will help our movement build support for #RenewablePowerForAll.
zoom.us
Protest at Span bridge over the DVP
When: Fridays, 3-6pmWhere: Span Bridge over the DVP, Spanbridge Rd and Grtenoble Rd
Palestine Solidarity – demonstarting over the Don Valley Parkway since October at Span Bridge, and other bridges overlooking the Don Valley Parkway.
torontoeventsforpalestine.net
We Need Social Housing
When: June 15th, 11:30amWhere: NE corner of Allan Gardens
For nearly a year and a half, 230 Fightback has been working to prevent the owners of the land at 214-230 Sherbourne, KingSett Capital, from building a luxury condo and we have pressed for social housing that meets the needs of the community to be created instead.
On June 15, we are going to rally and march to 214-230 Sherbourne to drive home the demands of the community for the housing solutions it desperately needs. There will be food, music and speakers who are part of the struggle being taken up in Toronto against the greed of the developers, the speculators and the corporate landlords. Come out that day and show your support.
230fightback.com
Na-Me-Res Traditional Pow Wow
When: June 15th, 12-5pmWhere: 250 Fort York Blvd
A Community Festival to celebrate Canada’s NATIONAL INDIGENOUS PEOPLES DAY.
Traditional Dancing, Drumming, Giveaways, Craft and Information Booths.
nameres.org/pow-wow | Facebook
Gaza and Ukraine to WWIII: The NATO Problem
When: June 15th, 12pmWhat does NATO have to do with current and looming wars? How does NATO work and what is it working on? How does an alliance whose members and partners make up 69.4% of the world’s military spending shape international relations? What alternatives exist? What is being planned by advocates for peace and demilitarization?
worldbeyondwar.org
Health Worker Picnic and Social
When: June 15th, 4pm – 6pmWhere: Christie Pits Park, 750 Bloor St W
Join us for this health worker picnic to connect with other health justice advocates, enjoy great food, and build community. See you there!
Co-hosted by the Decent Work and Health Network (DWHN), Health Providers Against Poverty (HPAP) and Healthcare for All campaign.
decentworkandhealth.org
Solidarity Roda
When: June 15th, 6pmWhere: Scadding Court, 707 Dundas St W
Fourth solidarity roda happening in Toronto. We will be fundraising so that members of Campbreakerz can leave the Gaza Strip.
instagram.com
Transit Rider Summit
When: June 16th, 10:30am – 4:00pmWhere: Scarborough Civic Centre, 150 Borough Dr
Join TTCRiders on Sunday, June 16 to:
– attend workshops to improve our ability to run effective campaigns
– connect with other transit users and advocates in your region
– meet people across the GTHA who want to win better transit
– get involved in the transit movement
ttcriders.ca
Gaza Square
When: Every Sunday, 11am to 1pmWhere: 371 Wallace Ave
We’ll be at Gaza square once again this Sunday morning with hot chocolate and coffee, buttons and posters, lawn signs and colourful chalk! Come say hi and meet your fellow neighbours/organizers as we make our presence known and continue to build safety in our community!
Instagram poster
Weekly Phone-zap for Palestine
When: Mondays at 12pmWeek after week, we’re keeping the momentum going with our Monday lunchtime zaps.
Our collective action is making waves, but we need to ensure our elected officials continue to feel the pressure until real change happens.
Instagram poster | Register at zoom
Bicycle in Toronto
When: June 17th, 1pmCities around the world are discovering the value of the bicycle not only as an option to fight traffic congestion, but as a key part of the solution to the climate crisis, poor fitness levels, and challenges of affordability. It turns out that this “discovery” is not actually new. During this webinar, lawyer and author Albert Koehl will discuss his new book Wheeling Through Toronto and take us on a 130-year ride through history to show that Toronto (like many other cities) enthusiastically embraced the bicycle – alongside mass transit and walking – long before road space was handed over to motorists. Albert will help us learn from the past so we can chart a more hopeful course forward – one that many cities are already taking.
Register today and bring your perspectives as we discuss where the bicycle belongs in a multi-modal transportation network. You may win a copy of Albert’s book — and everyone will receive a 30% discount!
transportfutures.ca
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 the exploitation of African resources. Join Yves for a critical take on Canada’s foreign policy. Questions, comments, and criticisms are all welcome.
zoom.us
It’s Time to Speak Up for Funding Our Schools!
When: June 19th, 4pmWhere: 5050 Yonge St
Join us and Fund Our Schools for the last TDSB meeting of the school year. It’s time to Speak up and Speak Out!
Let’s rally against Conservative cuts to education.
Facebook | fundourschools.ca
Abolitionist Pride teach-in
When: June 19th, 6pmSpeakers: Gary Kinsman; Nisrin Elamin; Brianna Pitawankwat Olsen; Qui Alexander; Erica Violet Lee Nehiyaw Poet; May E.; Moderated by Beverly Bain.
This teach-in will make connections between the current genocidal attacks on the Palestinian people, on Indigenous people on Turtle Island, on people in Sudan, and on attacks on queer and trans people in Canada and beyond.
Mainstream white homonationalist LGBT and Pride organizations in Canada have refused to support the call for an end to the Israeli genocide of Palestinians and instead support the genocidal Canadian state as well as corporations and banks that are supporting the ongoing destruction of Palestine.
facebook.com | Youtube live
ARTICLES
Fight for Social Housing
Regent Park TV (RPTV) recently conducted an enlightening interview with Gaetan Heroux from the 230 FightBack, spotlighting a critical issue at the heart of Toronto’s housing crisis. The vacant lot at 214-230 Sherbourne Street, located at the intersection of Dundas and Sherbourne, has remained undeveloped for over 15 years while the number of people living on the streets continues to rise. Heroux, a passionate advocate for housing justice, shared insights into the importance of this site and the urgent need for social housing.Source: LeftStreamed
The Next Front in Palestine Solidarity: Worker Strikes
By Jonathan RosenblumThis spring’s university encampment protests represented a welcome step up in the Palestine solidarity movement. Now, as students leave campus for the summer, their activism is spawning a further escalation – one that holds tremendous promise for the US anti-war movement: worker strikes. This week, 48,000 University of California (UC) workers – postdocs, graduate student researchers, and teaching assistants – began a rolling strike in response to the violent police crackdown on pro-Palestinian campus students and workers.
Source: The Bullet No. 3000
Statement on Morning Encampment Raid at York University
By York Federation of StudentsOn June 5, 2024, York University students launched the York Popular University for Palestine Encampment in solidarity with the People of Gaza facing a genocide. Students made their demands clear – for York University to Disclose, Divest, and Boycott. Early this morning, Thursday, June 6th, 2024, York University Administration made the shameful and violent decision to call militarized Toronto Police Services onto the Keele campus leading to the arrest of three students and community members, fines, and violent dismantling of the Encampment without prior dialogue.
Source: The Bullet No. 3001
In Step With Other Dignified Feet
“In Step With Other Dignified Feet” was composed in September, 2022. I wrote the music and first verse, which is performed in a singer-songwriter style. The rest of the song, performed as a Bolero Lento (a style popular in Mexico which originated in Santiago de Cuba), gathers words from public declarations of the Zapatistas. (The song’s title is also from the Zapatistas.) The instrumental outro recalls “Song for a winter’s night,” by singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot.Source: LeftStreamed
EMPLOYMENT
MOtiVAtE Project
The Manager will primarily spearhead and lead the MOtiVAtE (Mothers On Initiating the Vote and Equality) project and its successful implementation by achieving time-based outcomes through effective planning, mentoring, guiding and supporting the team of workers. The role encompasses a range of responsibilities aimed at supporting the effective operation and delivery of services to clients through an effective performance management system that will be developed and continually improvised by the incumbent.culturelink.ca