Join the struggle for a better Canada on Canada Day
With most July 1 events cancelled due to COVID-19, lots of people will be spending Canada Day at home. But what better time to learn about colonialism and racism than Canada Day? You can do just that with the click of a link, thanks to a public webinar presented by the Migrant Rights Network: “Canada Day…
What is happening with the Halifax Pop Explosion?
It started with the posting of a black square. Halifax Pop Explosion—like many other festivals and organizations within the music industry—took to Instagram a month ago to share a message about solidarity with #theshowmustbepaused, an initiative asking the music world to address its own systemic racism. Then last week, the post started getting renewed attention.…
Halifax hosts Day of Rage in protest against West Bank annexation
On July 1, Palestinian land, identity and culture will once again be threatened with brute force by Israel through the planned annexation of the West Bank. The annexation, slated to take place this Wednesday, has been widely condemned by the international community. “Acquisition of territory by force has no place in 2020 and must have…
Just the news on COVID-19 in Nova Scotia, for the week starting June 29
NOTE: This week is now over. For the very latest news, please go here. But for an informative look back at exactly how Nova Scotia responded to COVID-19 in realtime, keep on reading. Display problems with The Coast’s Nova Scotia COVID-19 case graph? For the mobile version click here. Editor’s note: In its 28 years…
Restaurants can return to full capacity, if they have the space
Premier Stephen McNeil made a major announcement this afternoon to help restaurants during the pandemic. At least it sounded like a big deal. As of today, June 26, restaurants and bars in Nova Scotia are allowed to operate at their full capacity, not the 50 percent limit the province imposed when the first stage of…
No extension for eviction ban puts Halifax’s renters at risk
Renters in Halifax are getting a bad deal. Elected officials neglect them, vacancy rates favour their landlords and worldwide crises expose their vulnerability. It’s time to put that to an end. Forty percent of Haligonians rent–10 percent higher than the national average. Yet, somehow, even the direst of circumstances–a literal pandemic–isn’t enough to inspire elected…
Joel Plaskett Emergency to play virtual Canada Day concert
Joel Plaskett certainly does love this town—and if you were ever looking for proof that the feeling’s mutual, how about this: Today, HRM Civic Events announced that the city’s annual July 1 show will star none other than the King of Dartmouth, playing alongside his bandmates from The Emergency, streamed live from inside the Halifax…
Kye Clayton, fresh prince of Uniacke Square
“If the beat talks to me, I know exactly what I’m going to speak about on the beat. So I play a beat, freestyle the whole song—and then I’ll re-write certain words that don’t make sense or could be filtered. I freestyle so I can get a good flow on the song instead of writing…
Cliff Robinson is one of Halifax’s essential workers—COVID or no COVID
On my way to work one morning during the pandemic, I had to pick up some naloxone kits for the hotel that is providing transitional housing to people reentering the community from provincial correctional facilities. I was walking down Cornwallis Street and I saw the friendly and familiar face of Cliff Robinson, standing outside of our local…
It’s Kye Clayton’s time
Kye Clayton waits for no one. He doesn’t get caught up watching for the right time: The prodigious, prolific MC has released more music in the last six months than most rappers do in a year. He doesn’t pause, holding out for the perfect moment to begin: After all, in ninth grade, when he decided…
Don’t be surprised to find yourself in a controversy, Capricorn
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CANCER! (June 21-July 22) “Who would deduce the dragonfly from the larva, the iris from the bud, the lawyer from the infant?” Author Diane Ackerman asks her readers that question, and now I pose the same inquiry to you—just in time for your Season of Transformation. “We are all shape-shifters and magical reinventors,”…
I don’t care about all those sexts blowing up my partner’s phone, but…
QI’m committed to my male partner and he’s committed to me. (I’m a woman.) But we both understand we need to flirt and that we will both want to sleep with someone else at some point. We live together, we have a dog and neither of us believes in marriage. We plan to purchase a…
Halifax approves ambitious and unprecedented climate plan
Halifax Regional Council approved a landmark planning document on climate change this week. The opus, HalifACT 2050: Acting on Climate Together is Halifax’s long-term climate action plan that outlines 46 actionable items that HRM can do to get to net zero emissions by 2050. Net zero emissions means for every bad-for-the-environment molecule HRM puts out…
Halifax’s largest catering and tourism groups have laid off almost all staff this summer
H alifax’s economy is taking a hard hit with COVID-19 and the effects are still setting in. Although restaurants, bars and events spaces have begun to re-open, that doesn’t mean everyone is back to work. “I wouldn’t necessarily say that the 50 percent capacity has affected us as much as the fact that there’s no…
Bring Halifax culture home with The Coast’s June 23-28 streaming guide
Tuesday June 23 Carbon Arc screens The Booksellers (remotely) While there’s no news yet as to when Halifax’s indie movie house will re-open, you can get your film fix by streaming its latest pick, The Booksellers. Available through Carbon Arc’s website for $9.99 (and available to watch until July 2), the film takes a look…
Just the news on COVID-19 in Nova Scotia, for the week starting June 22
NOTE: This week is now over. For the very latest news, please go here. But for an informative look back at exactly how Nova Scotia responded to COVID-19 in realtime, keep on reading. Display problems with The Coast’s Nova Scotia COVID-19 case graph? For the mobile version click here. Editor’s note: In its 27 years…
Halifax gets its first vegan chain restaurant
Copper Branch, a “quick-serve vegan” restaurant, opened a Halifax location last Sunday, June 14. The downtown spot is the 68th location for the Quebec-based chain, mainly across Canada and the US with a handful in France and Belgium. There’s one in Dieppe, NB, but this is the first in the province. “I’m plant-based, my husband…
The Harbour Hopper prepares for a summer with no tourists
On July 1, Transport Canada regulations will allow boats and watercraft of all kinds to get back to business. Although it spends about half its time on the roads, the Harbour Hopper is classified as a vessel. “Obviously COVID’s affected every business, but in the case of our vessels it hasn’t made a huge difference…
Stop making Indigenous voices calendar dependant
Here we are: Another June. Another Indigenous History Month. Another National Indigenous People’s Day. And media outlets and organizations everywhere are pushing us into the forefront to be the “voice of the people.” Land Acknowledgements will increase in frequency as a reminder that this land is indeed stolen—but institutions, governments, and individuals are not going…
The 50-person breakthrough
UPDATE June 22: In this section about the number of new COVID-19 cases in Atlantic Canada compared with the rest of Canada, we double-checked the math and discovered an error. To summarize, we said the east coast had 13 cases while the other six provinces had 3,100 cases over the same stretch of time, but…
It’s time for white people in Halifax to get down to work on racism
Game Changers 902 wants to make sure all the newsfeed posts and Instagram stories about the Black Lives Matter movement amount to more than a look at a moment in time. As the name of this new group says, they want to change the rules of the game in order to give young African Nova…
MDMA likely laced with fentanyl leads to overdose and death in Halifax
The city of Halifax mourns this week after the fatal overdose of 15-year-old Miya Harris. It’s believed Harris’ overdose was caused by MDMA (AKA Molly) laced with fentanyl—two drugs that should never go together. Harris’ death was preventable: the downstream result of the criminalization of drugs which leads to increased uncertainty of the current drug market…
Jah’Mila releases reggae rallying call to end police brutality
Jah’Mila’s “Chant Their Names” is a reggae anthem calling for justice, action and an end to police brutality—all while ensuring that no story is forgotten. The track (and its accompanying video) came out weeks after the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police. Jah’Mila—arguably the biggest name in Halifax reggae—lists the names of Black people…
I Hear You: a medical drama that listens
I Hear You now streaming on ihearyouseries.com free The world doesn’t need another medical drama. If you’re looking for life-or-death plot lines and heroes (or hunks) in scrubs, you’ve been long-satiated thanks to Grey’s Anatomy, E.R and even the likes of The Mindy Project. Good thing, then, that the web series Halifax-based filmmakers Amy Trefry…
Salons and barber shops booked up for weeks after re-opening
Starting on May 27, Marvin Upshaw was bombarded with phone calls. The owner and head barber at Ascension Barbershop began taking bookings as soon as Premier McNeil and Dr. Strang announced the re-opening, scheduling appointments starting June 5. “Our clients have been nothing but supportive, always contacting us saying, ‘Book me in ahead, I’m waiting…
Straight guys doing gay things
QI’m a 32-year-old straight guy. My wife and I have been married for four years and together for nine. We have a great marriage and all is well. We have been quarantining at home since March. During this time, we have been exploring things sexually, which has been really fun. We have also been talking more…
Prep for a phase of sweet harmony, Aries
HAPPY BIRTHDAY GEMINI (May 21-June 20) “A finished person is a boring person,” writes author Anna Quindlan. I agree! Luckily, you are quite unfinished, and thus not at all boring—especially these days. More than ever before, you seem willing to treat yourself as an art project that’s worthy of your creative ingenuity—as a work-in-progress that’s…
Keep showing up for Black Lives Matter with more events
Tonight, June 17, there will be an anti-racism rally at the Captain William Spry Community Centre (16 Sussex Street), beginning at 7pm. “This rally is in support of the global Anti-Racism and Black Lives Matter movement happening around our globe, while highlighting the impact of individual and systemic racism that has happened, and continues to…
Here’s everyone who made it onto the 2020 Polaris Long List
This afternoon, the most prestigious award in Canadian music—sorry Junos, we’re talking about the Polaris Prize—announced its long list (as in, the list of all the Canadian albums released since last spring that are in the running for the $50,000 prize). These 40 albums will be parsed through by the Polaris’s 201-member jury before the…
Bring Halifax culture home with our June 15-21 streaming guide
Monday June 15 Trivia for Shut-ins Halifax trivia hosts-about-town Jason Dorey and Andrew Evans have shifted their popular trivia game from pubs like Durty Nelly’s, the Lion’s Head and The Fickle Frog, to a Facebook livestream. Three 20-question rounds will challenge, amuse and delight, and with no prizes on the line, you won’t even mind missing…
Just the news on COVID-19 in Nova Scotia, for the week starting June 15
NOTE: This week is now over. For the very latest news, please go here. But for an informative look back at exactly how Nova Scotia responded to COVID-19 in realtime, keep on reading. Display problems with The Coast’s Nova Scotia COVID-19 case graph? For the mobile version click here. Editor’s note: In its 27 years…
Canada should require more than a Grade 12 education for police and RCMP officers
The RCMP is in the midst of conducting a criminal investigation of the country’s deadliest mass shooting, which began in Portapique, Nova Scotia April 18, 2020. Several questions have been raised about the force’s handling of the 13-hour rampage but also whether police acted appropriately on previous serious complaints about the gunman, including domestic abuse allegations…
Thirteen people more deserving of a statue in Halifax than Cornwallis
Halifax’s public figures are not as diverse as its citizens, especially when it comes to who is cast in bronze and put upon a pedestal. There’s The Emigrant statue that was erected at the waterfront in 2013, and the 2017 statue The Volunteers recognizes three women who volunteered in the Second World War. But our most…
Five opportunities for visual artists in Halifax
Sure, the difficulty of making money as an artist is nothing new—Oscar Wilde’s painter protagonist complains about it in his 1890 novel The Picture of Dorian Grey—but just as the novel coronavirus has underscored many things we all knew with a renewed urgency, it isn’t easy to be a creative right now. While some galleries…
“Music, lyrics, and sounds can just bring this type of self-acceptance that we need.”
Music As Healing: A Zoom Panel feat. Kwento, NAT Chantel, Lindsay Dobbin, Rebecca Fairless, Bianca Palmer and Danielle Jakubiak Thu June 11, 7pm everyseeker.com From creation to application, Halifax singer-songwriter Kwento sees music as a way to heal, restore and overcome. Tonight at 7pm, she will be a part of a Zoom panel discussing the…
How Israel Ekanem rolls
Emerging Lens Film Festival 2020 June 10-14, 6:30-9pm themerginglens.com The edges of the word prolific aren’t enough of a border to contain Israel Ekanem’s volume of work. His is the sort of output that quickly overflows: He’s constantly making new short films; putting together a weekly radio show for CKDU FM; working on his podcast,…
Bonus quickies from the Lovestream
Hey, Everybody: We had our first Savage Love Livestream event last Thursday night and I had such a blast! A huge crowd of Savage Love readers and Savage Lovecast listeners got together on Zoom for a live online Q&A that raised more than $14,000 for Northwest Harvest, an organization that supports food banks in my…
Breakthroughs are available even when you’re feeling bored, Taurus
HAPPY BIRTHDAY GEMINI (May 21-June 20) According to novelist Octavia E. Butler, “Positive obsession is about not being able to stop just because you’re afraid and full of doubts.” That’s what I wish for you in the coming weeks, Gemini: positive obsession. It’s also what I expect! My analysis of the astrological omens suggests that…
Halifax settles on a budget, lets go of its Big Truck Energy
Yesterday Halifax Regional Municipality’s budget committee signed off on the recast budget for 2020/21 after a lengthy COVID-induced rejigging. In total, the municipality has budgeted $1.1 billion needed for this fiscal year, which will run until March 31, 2021. Thanks to COVID that budget is smaller than it would have been, but, thanks to councillors…
Pandemic math and the case of the missing cases
How many active cases of COVID-19 does Nova Scotia have? This simple question is vital to our physical and economic health. And it’s proven shockingly hard to answer. Every day the province issues a report about the state of the disease—the number of new cases, how many people are in hospital, how many patients have…
Contact-free, locally made greeting cards for any occasion
The pandemic has prevented a lot of things, but it hasn’t stopped time from moving forward. People are still celebrating marriages, birthdays, anniversaries, and welcoming new life into the world. Handmade cards are one of the most sincere and affordable ways to let someone know you’re thinking of them—and one Dartmouth shop has been making…
Bedford Highway getting a beer garden this month
Tucked away under the rail bridge, the former Chinatown restaurant location on the Bedford Highway is a prime space that has somehow sat empty for more than three years. But later this month, a new beer garden called Birch & Anchor will open its doors to the public for the first time, taking over the…
Bring Halifax culture home with your June 8-14 streaming guide
Monday June 8 A conversation on unity w/Tyler Simmonds & Verena Rizg Simmonds, an award-winning filmmaker and public speaker from North Preston, hosts this chat with singer-poet Verena Rizing at 5:30pm via Instagram Live. Made In Bangladesh screening Since we still can’t go to Carbon Arc and see an indie flick IRL, the small theatre…
Just the news on COVID-19 in Nova Scotia, for the week starting June 8
NOTE: This week is now over. For the very latest news, please go here. But for an informative look back at exactly how Nova Scotia responded to COVID-19 in realtime, keep on reading. Display problems with The Coast’s Nova Scotia COVID-19 case graph? For the mobile version click here. Editor’s note: In its 27 years…
Growing the Black economy with no strings attached
The focus of the media has shifted in the past week, from the coronavirus to an international protest movement in support of Black lives. “With pandemic and tragedy and grief, it’s been up and down, it’s been a rollercoaster,” says Bradley Daye, owner of Placemaking 4G, a Halifax-based recruiting company. Daye, who is African Nova…
Half of the city’s highest-paid staff work for Halifax Regional Police
Calls are being made across North America to reduce or redirect police budgets in the wake of another killing of an African-American man by police in the US. But the crime against George Floyd is far from the only reason citizens are ready to change the status quo—here in the Maritimes, a police officer responding…
Ocean’s Week Halifax kicks off online
As if it was preordained, the United Nations theme for World Oceans Week 2020 is “Innovation for a Sustainable Ocean”. While the UN likely chose this theme to highlight the new and exciting ocean technologies that are changing the way scientists understand the ocean (including underwater sampling gliders captained by Dalhousie University here in the…
How to be a good customer in a post-COVID world
Nova Scotia’s reopening day has us all thinking about getting out of our homes to head to the nearest salon, massage therapist or patio. But don’t be too fast. Before launching yourself into the economy on June 5 or after, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the regulations for living in a world where COVID-19…
June 5 isn’t a magic reopening day for everyone
Today’s the day: As of Friday June 5, the Nova Scotia government says COVID-closed industries like bars, restaurant dining rooms and hairdressers are permitted to reopen. Premier Stephen McNeil said this past Wednesday that it’s time to “get our economy moving again.” But for many restaurants across Nova Scotia, June 5 isn’t an instantaneous reopening day. Some…
RCMP provide an update on NS shooting, no inquiry yet
On Thursday, June 4, Nova Scotia RCMP provided an update on the shooting events of April 18 and 19 that shook the province to its core and left 22 people dead. “For Nova Scotians, there will always be a before April 18 and an after,” says assistant aommissioner Lee Bergerman, commanding officer of NS RCMP.…
Resources to start learning about racism in Halifax and beyond
S tep one in addressing racism and white supremacy is learning. Here’s a non-exhaustive list of local, national and international resources to watch, read, listen to and follow. Watch Ingrid Waldron’s book-turned-documentary, There’s Something in the Water, is required watching for any Nova Scotian or Canadian who thinks Canada “isn’t as bad as the US.”…
See you at the vigil
We’re all wondering what to do right now. Wondering what to say. (Remember that really, for non-Black folk, right now should be about listening.) Wondering how to be better. A good place to start? Educate yourself. Give money if you can. And show up, as often as possible, for those more marginalized. Here’s three ways…
You’ve got the power to shatter mysterious barriers, Scorpio
HAPPY BIRTHDAY GEMINI (May 21-June 20) “It’s OK to live a life others don’t understand,” writes author Jenna Woginrich. That’s a healthy attitude for an eccentric person like her, who taught herself by trial and error how to run a small farm with a meagre budget while all alone in the middle of nowhere. But…
N.S. alcohol laws mean most bartenders can’t deliver cocktails during COVID
Local bartenders are at home shaking drinks for themselves during the shutdown, but not many are mixing up cocktails for customers. And it’s hard to predict how that is going to change when businesses are allowed—but not required—to reopen this week. “There are bartenders that are sitting at home just like, so excited to be…
Blinders
QHere goes: I’m a 32-year-old gay male and I have trouble staying out of my head during sex. I feel like there may be many issues. The one non-issue is everything works fine on my own. When I’m single or “available,” I am OK. Let’s be honest: I’m a slut and I enjoy it. But when I invest in…
Nine local, Black-owned restaurants to support now (and always)
It’s always a good time to support Black-owned businesses, but with so many folks on social media looking for places to put their money where their mouth is, here are some of our favourites. 1 Jamaica Lee Style food truck may not stay long in one location, but owner Ludlow Lee’s jerk or curry chicken…
Where you can give money to support Black organizations and lives right now
G iving money to Black organizations in the wake of protests across North America is one of the most effective and tangible ways to actually bring about change. Giving money once is OK. Giving money every month is better, and most places make it really easy to set up recurring donations. Black Lives Matter Solidarity…
Thousands in Halifax take a knee to honour George Floyd and support Black Lives Matter
Just two days after the peaceful protest where hundreds showed their support for Regis Korchinski-Paquet, thousands of Haligonians gathered to kneel on Spring Garden Road Monday evening to protest the death of African-American man George Floyd, who died after a police arrest on May 25 in Minneapolis. The protesters knelt for eight minutes and 48…
Just the news on COVID-19 in Nova Scotia, for the week starting June 1
NOTE: This week is now over. For the very latest news, please go here. But for an informative look back at exactly how Nova Scotia responded to COVID-19 in realtime, keep on reading. Display problems with The Coast’s Nova Scotia COVID-19 case graph? For the mobile version click here. Editor’s note: In its 27 years…