Dal faculty call for ‘an end to the scholasticide in Palestine’
Graduation season is behind us, in Halifax. But Students for the Liberation of Palestine – Kjipuktuk–or SLPK–are still on campus at Dalhousie University. In May, the SLPK’s calls for divestment and disclosure from Israel were joined by two motions passed by the Dalhousie Faculty Association–or DFA–to take a stand against the war on Gaza. “As…
HRM’s anti-slumlord bylaw—what is it and how does it work?
HRM’s executive committee voted in favour of a staff report detailing a communications strategy to let people in the city—especially young people—know about bylaw M-200 and other housing related guidelines. Well, what is bylaw M-200? It is, essentially, anti-slumlord legislation. Also known as Respecting Standards for Residential Occupancies, the bylaw sets minimum standards for…
Joel Plaskett stripping back his sound on his upcoming album, ‘One Real Reveal’
Halifax’s own Joel Plaskett is remaining tight-lipped about his newly announced album One Real Reveal, dropping on Sept. 13. However, what we do know so far is that it will be Plaskett’s most open, vulnerable, and stripped-back album to date. To top it off, it’s all been recorded on a four-track cassette machine using…
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Celebrating local our communities to bring people together: Atlantic Lottery’s sponsorship program is here to help
Each year, thousands of events take place across Atlantic Canada that celebrate the region’s unique identity. There is so much to look forward to, from cultural celebrations that showcase African and Indigenous art to exhilarating nature excursions like New Brunswick’s White Gold Odyssey Festival, each season filled with a ton of new and exciting events…
Peter Day wins presidency of teachers’ union Wednesday evening
The results are in and Peter Day has been elected as president-elect of the Nova Scotia Teachers’ Union–or NSTU–as of Wednesday, May 29. Day received just over 60% of the vote in his win over Shawn Hanifen, as 69% of the union voted in the electronic run-off ballot. Day has been teaching for 22 years and is…
Ian Janes blends genres with a soul-pop focus on new album ‘WeakNights’
After a music career spanning over two decades, Ian Janes is still finding new ways to craft a sound of his own. The next step in this evolution is Janes’ seventh studio album, WeakNights, where he blends his love of soul-pop with a vivid array of instrumentation—’80s style synths, Motown basslines, and even a…
Halifax to fix emergency response resilience
On Monday morning, the HRM’s Executive Standing Committee learned that Halifax’s municipal emergency management organizations are at risk of failing. The city hired KI Emergency Management to compare the HRM’s emergency response documents and plans to the best practices in the world of emergency management. They found that Halifax’s emergency management works well, but it…
The Halifax Independent Filmmakers Festival is a weird and challenging “gem-finder”
The Halifax Independent Filmmakers Festival (HIFF) began partially as a response to the Atlantic International Film Festival, or rather, a response to what the Atlantic International Film Festival wasn’t. It was a place to show cool, innovative films that were often left off the program of more mainstream festivals. Eighteen years later, it’s still going…
Singer-songwriter Laura Rae touches on isolation, stagnation in new single, “Lightspeed”
Laura Rae had a lot to balance during the pandemic lockdowns. Her father’s emphysema left her without a bubble outside of her household. Most of her family remained miles away in Ontario. Since then, the bilingual singer-songwriter has etched her feelings on a newly released track that’s both emotionally complex and subtly technical. Titled “Lightspeed”,…
Dalhousie has divested before, nearly 40 years ago
Tents spread in front of the administrative building on Dalhousie’s main Studley Campus are still standing into convocation week two. The zone of tents has been renamed Al Zeitoun University by the coalition of students occupying Dal’s front lawn. “Students for the Liberation of Palestine – Kjipuktuk (Halifax)”–or “SLPK”–is a coalition of students from Dal,…
Council decides on better future for Halifax
After a gruelling three-day council meeting that started on Tuesday morning and ended in the late afternoon on Thursday, Halifax’s city councillors unanimously voted to approve a suite of zoning bylaw changes that will allow the city to access $79 million of federal Housing Accelerator Fund money. These zoning changes have been in the works…
Mat Elliott delivers soothing soundscapes and sincere heartbreak in ‘South Endings’ EP
Lush psychedelic soundscapes. Funky melodies. Lyrics describing heartbreak and healing. Mat Elliott’s newest EP has it all. The Truro native has found inspiration across the musical spectrum for his debut record, from Tom Mirsch to Still Woozy. And yet, South Endings is truly all his own as the singer-songwriter reminiscences of a past relationship…
Halifax Harbour Grudges rollin’ out for their first internationally ranked home bout
The Halifax Harbour Grudges roller derby team will be taking the track by storm this weekend in a ranked match—the first on their home turf. The Grudges, associated with the Anchor City Rollers in Halifax, are an A-level roller derby team competing internationally against 139 teams in the North American Northeast division of the…
‘We must choose to not lose sight of the world we want to bring into being’
El Jones, doctor of letters. Advocate, poet, professor. On Friday, May 17 at Acadia University in Wolfville, Jones convocated with graduates from the Faculty of Professional Studies and the Faculty of Education. Jones is receiving an honourary doctor of letters for her teaching–she has taught at Dal, NSCC, King’s, SMU, Acadia and currently MSVU, where…
This Haligonian is asking the city to right its historic wrongs
Treno Morton grew up in Uniacke Square. He has witnessed the gentrification and displacement in Halifax’s North End communities. He has heard stories from his elders about the destruction of Africville by the city. Now, he’s asking the city to divest a section of the Cogswell district so African Nova Scotian roots can be…
Province planning better transportation in Halifax, maybe
Last Thursday, like many days in the HRM, traffic was brought to a standstill by a few people having a bad day. Congestion is not an occasional flaw of our transportation network, it’s the defining feature. Quite simply, the physics of cars doesn’t scale for mass transportation. If everyone needs a car to drive everywhere…
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There’s so much to look forward to in the next few months. From lively community gatherings and open-air concerts to exhilarating festivals and food crawls, Atlantic Canada explodes with hundreds of diverse activities every summer, ensuring there’s something for everyone to experience. Atlantic Lottery is Atlantic Canada’s only 100 per cent legal and government regulated…
New art show—’The Icehouse Architect’—envisions individual and collective responsibility in mitigating climate change
As you enter the Blue Building Gallery for Krista Leigh-Davis’ new show—The Icehouse Architect—the space feels cold but beautiful, just like you’d imagine the north to be. Crisp, white and sparkling. There is an undeniable sense of magic to it that sparks wonder and mystery. The gallery itself becomes a speculative future where remnants of…
Mexican novelist sets romance in Halifax—with major connections to the city’s history
Looking for a time-travelling romance set in Halifax during the ‘90s? Mexico-based author Rocío Castillo has you covered. Castillo’s latest book, Forward Rewind, follows a woman named Elaine Connors in the year 2021. After renting an office in Halifax, she discovers a secret door allowing her to travel to the past—1991, to be specific—where she…
New Road Safety Plan easily avoids toothless oversight
On Thursday, May 16, Halifax’s Active Transportation Advisory Committee met to hear city staff give a presentation about the HRM’s new Strategic Road “Safety” 😉 Framework. The new framework was sent back to the advisory committee by the transportation standing committee so that staff could change the plan because it’s the kind of road safety…
Halifax to consider reparations to African Nova Scotians
On Thursday, May 16, Halifax’s Community Planning and Economic Development committee met to hear two presentations and an update on Halifax’s municipal playing field strategy. The first presentation was from New Roots, an African Nova Scotian land trust in Halifax’s North End. In his presentation to council, Treno Morton, New Roots’ community engagement coordinator, reminded…
Dal and MSVU “Students for the Liberation of Palestine” release demands to divest and disclose at “Al-Zeitoun” university
Students from Dal and MSVU have released their own calls for divestment and disclosure Thursday, joining the student-led coalition with colleagues at King’s, SMU and NSCAD who have been camping on Dal’s front lawn since Sunday, May 12. They are calling for “Ceasefire Now,” “Free Palestine,” and to “Stop The War Machine.” Related Related On…
Tourist uses video game relic to capture Halifax in pixelated perfection
A Winnipeg-based artist has captured Halifax in a whole new light—all thanks to a toy from 1998. David Bosc, also known as pegcitypixels on Instagram, recently uploaded several photos onto social media of his most recent trip to Halifax, including shots of the nearby Peggy’s Cove lighthouse, the Halifax Citadel, and even a view of…
No start date for new child and youth advocate to review children in care
On Wednesday May 15, the Public Accounts Committee met to discuss the auditor general’s recent report released May 7, called the Health, Safety and Well-Being of Children Placed in Temporary Emergency Arrangements and Child and Youth Care Homes. Members of the opposition, the Liberals and the NDP, were given the morning to ask questions stemming…
New group art show A Matter of Time aims to showcase emerging artists, expand the art market
The artist will create ground-breaking work. The galleries will hear about the innovative emerging artist and will come in droves, bestowing their unique selling proposition upon them. The artist will choose its perfect match, display the work and the show will sell out on opening night. That’s the dream, right? Unfortunately, supply and demand is…
Nova Scotia children staying in temporary emergency care increased exponentially over six years, finds audit
On Tuesday, the auditor general of Nova Scotia, Kim Adair, released a report on how well children are cared for when they’re at their most vulnerable: when they’re taken into temporary emergency arrangements or child and youth care homes. How does this happen? The provincial Children and Family Services Act determines when and how children at…
Student encampment at Dal begins Sunday following release of demands over the weekend
T Updated May 14 with *** below. ents are up in front of the Henry Hicks administration building on Dal’s Studley Campus, organized by a coalition of students across four Halifax universities–NSCAD, SMU, Dal and King’s–using the name “Students for the Liberation of Palestine.” They have renamed the space of campus lawn “Al-Zeitoun” University, written…
Four universities in Halifax release call to school administrators: divest and disclose funding ties to Israel
*Updated with clarification: NSCAD’s student union and the NSCAD Student Action Group are separate student organizations within the university. The 12 demands released below, calling for divestment and disclosure, are from the NSCAD Student Action Group, not from SUNSCAD*On Friday, May 10, student groups from four Halifax universities–NSCAD, Dal, King’s and SMU–formed a shared group…
Halifax’s best cheap eats that are actually cheap—and tasty, too
This economy… it damn sure ain’t easy. With Canada’s inflation rate up 2.9% in March from the same time last year, a good number of Haligonians are finding it harder to scrounge up extra cash of any kind these days—let alone for a meal out. Bars and restaurants are feeling the pinch of higher costs,…
Homelessness to worsen as political failure continues
Tuesday’s council meeting focused on the leadership potential of young people in the HRM. In the evening, deputy mayor Cathy Deagle Gammon presented the city’s Citizenship Awards to Grade 9 students in the HRM. Each student was awarded for exemplifying “qualities of leadership in, and service to, their school and community.” Deagle Gammon spoke of…
Animated short film Salted shows how love and loss can live together in survivors of sexual assault
Him? No! He can’t be a pedophile! He’s always been so kind! How many times have we heard some version of that statement? We are desperate to put sexual abusers squarely into one box or another. Good or bad. Abusive or nice. Pedophile or polite. It feels like some sort of self-preservation tactic; a way…
NS teachers council talks upcoming presidential election, new tentative agreement and bringing back school boards
Over the first weekend in May, the Nova Scotia Teachers Union–the NSTU–held their 103rd annual council meeting in Halifax. Up for discussion over the three days was the upcoming election of a new union president, the need to raise awareness of rising levels of school violence, the new tentative agreement to be voted on, and…
From Broadway to Benedict
Mother’s Day is fast approaching, and we know you want to spoil the women and mother figures in your life who mean the most to you. Here are some offerings curated just for Mother’s Day that are as unique and special as she is. Salt + Ash Beach House Choose one of their Momma’s Smorgasbord…
Jenn Grant, Morgan Toney win big at 2024 East Coast Music Awards
After an album to remember, Jenn Grant just had a weekend for the books as well. The Lake Echo-based singer-songwriter is coming home to Nova Scotia with a pair of 2024 East Coast Music Awards, for “Song of the Year” (“Judy”) and “Songwriter of the Year.” She won both over the weekend in Charlottetown at…
“No Mow May” is a good start to rethinking bee health across our lawns
To mow or not to mow. That is the question. If you’re interested in helping spring pollinators adjust from winter hibernation into their busy flower season, you might have heard of the No Mow May campaign. It asks people to let the grass blades grow long and wild for a month, to help bees and…
The Wanderer Grounds podcast: The Halifax Wanderers are down bad right now
The Canadian Championship, like all good cup competitions, is a thing of magic: On any night, a plucky David is ready and eager to take down a Goliath. Potential Cinderella moments abound. Stars are born. Remember-where-you-were-when memories are etched in soccer lore. Last night at the Wanderers Grounds, in front of a crowd of 4,500…
Halifax plans to crack down on litterbugs
The Environment and Sustainability committee wants the city to beef up its littering bylaws and recommended council do just that. Since 2021 the city’s solid waste staff have been beefing up education while enforcing municipal dumping bylaws. As part of the education campaign the city has also been doing some learning. The city’s old bylaw…
Mother Mother announce Halifax show in 2025
Twenty years on from their origins in Heriot Bay, BC, indie rockers Mother Mother are still packing a punch. Back in February, the five-member band fronted by siblings Ryan and Molly Guldemond dropped their ninth album, Grief Chapter—and to mark the occasion, they’re embarking on a worldwide tour that stops in Halifax next March. On…
The Grand Parade podcast: Who wields the most power with Halifax’s Housing Accelerator Fund plans?
Some good news on Halifax’s housing front: Construction is booming across Nova Scotia—and the bulk of those new units underway are in the HRM. In the first three months of 2024, the province saw more housing starts—2,158 units—than in any other first quarter in its recorded history. It’s about time. Related Both Halifax and Nova…