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FTW Friday: Support grows for national inquiry into murdered and missing aboriginal women

Simon Treanor

This Monday, Nova Scotia’s provincial party leaders  added their support to a national public inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women in Canada. Their support comes following the tragic death of Loretta Saunders, an Inuk woman originally from Labrador who was studying in Halifax. On February 17, Saunders was reported missing from her dorm at […] More »

WTF Wednesday: Russia approves troop deployment to Crimea; Canadians protest

Simon Treanor

This week, hundreds of protesters in Toronto and Ottawa gathered to call for a peaceful solution in Ukraine, where tensions are only escalating—especially thanks to Russia’s presence in Crimea. In both cities, crowds of people wearing blue and yellow shouted, “Putin hands off Ukraine!” At night, Toronto Ukranians gathered outside the consulate, holding candles and […] More »

Throwback Thursday: Out in the cold

Simon Treanor

Today at This Magazine, we’re excited to introduce our new blog feature, Throwback Thursday. With our 50th anniversary fast approaching (!!!), we’d like to look at some of our best articles that never made it to the digital stage. In all cases, these articles are still relevant today: They are the issues that stick with […] More »

Gender Block: Our federal government is rewriting prostitution laws

Hillary Di Menna

The federal government has opened an online public consultation regarding adult prostitution laws in Canada. It will remain open for the next month, closing March 17. The six-question survey asks Canadians if it should be legal for people to purchase sex, legal for people to solicit sex and what, if any, limitations should be put […] More »

WTF Wednesday: Teen who died had been recommended for permanent removal from parents

Simon Treanor

Rodica and Emil Radita were arrested in Calgary on Tuesday morning on charges of first degree murder of their 15-year-old son. Alex Radita died in May 2013 under what police say were “suspicious circumstances.” His official cause of death is listed as a bacterial infection that arose from “complications of neglect and starvation.” Alex was […] More »

WTF Wednesday: Authorities totally mishandle Avery Edison’s visa issue

Simon Treanor

On Monday, U.K. comedian Avery Edison was detained and later arrested at Toronto’s Pearson airport over an issue with her visa. Edison admits she overstayed her student visa while previously in Canada, and had returned to visit her girlfriend and collect some belongings she’d left behind.  Avery Edison ‏@aedison  Feb 10 For those asking – I overstayed […] More »

Gender Block: February 14 Annual Women’s Memorial March

Hillary Di Menna

Starting in Vancouver after a 1991 murder of a Coast Salish woman in the Downtown Eastside, Canadian cities have participated in the Annual Women’s Memorial March, to honour the lives of missing and murdered women, every Valentine’s Day. “This event is organized and led by women in the DTES [Downtown Eastside] because women—especially indigenous women—face […] More »

FTW Friday: Toronto protest sends a message to Russia, with love

Simon Treanor

Standing in knee high snow in Queen’s Park yesterday, I witnessed my very first protest run. The event, which was organized by journalist and university instructor Margaret Webb, was to protest Russia’s anti-gay propaganda law, particularly in conjunction with the Sochi Olympics. I watched as the group of protestors ran around the designated route, holding […] More »

FTW Friday: Woodgreen’s ad campaign turns celebrity gossip on its head

Simon Treanor

To me, the mark of good writing is taking something that everyone is familiar with, and presenting it in such a way that it surprises the reader. When that also highlights the struggles of those living in poverty, it helps improve the lives of everyone. Take  Toronto’s Woodgreen Community Services’ recent ad campaign.  For the […] More »

Friday FTW: China’s Human Rights Violations Enjoy a Moment in the Spotlight

Vincent Colistro

When I returned from China over the summer, having worked there for a year and a half, people would ask me, “What was it like?” And I, like a child trying to verbalize their first lofty idea, was sort of tongue-tied. There are over a billion individual perspectives in the country, yet only one autocratic […] More »

FTW Friday: This Week in Protests

Vincent Colistro

“The protesters should fall in love with hard and patient work – they are the beginning, not the end. Their basic message is: the taboo is broken; we do not live in the best possible world; we are allowed, obliged even, to think about alternatives.” -Slavoj Zizek As we all move slowly into the second […] More »