[Image-1] Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. I write this on behalf of all Canadians who voted anything but Conservative in 2011. And 2008. And 2006. And 2004. This election need only focus on a single issue: Canadian democracy is no longer functioning. By merging the Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative parties in […]
Canada
Posted inNews + Opinion
Meet the rest of mainland Nova Scotia’s federal election candidates
[Image-1] Look, there’s a lot of time between now and anyone casting a vote. Forgive us for stretching out some of this election coverage. That’s why earlier this week our breakdown of Halifax area candidates only featured the four federal ridings that make up the majority of the HRM. There are quite a few HRM […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Meet HRM’s federal election candidates
[Image-1] While you were busy soaking up a gorgeously sunny long weekend, Stephen Harper ruined everyone’s fun by officially kicking off an 11-week crawl towards October’s federal election. Harper’s gambit is a shrewd political maneuver that will empty out Conservative opponents’ pockets, tire reporters and generally make the public sick of democracy when October […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Chopped and screwed
[Image-1] We’ve all been taken aback by it while tuned into some FM radio station or another. There you are, gearing up to spit out Left Eye’s verse in TLC’s “Waterfalls” or priming yourself for Snoop’s verse in Katy Perry’s “California Gurls,” and…nothing. Like a tree shaken bare, you’re left with just a leafy skeleton […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Lessons learned on the Iranian Railroad for Queer Refugees
[Image-1] In 2005, Iranian queer activist Arsham Parsi became a refugee in Canada. Through his Iranian Railroad for Queer Refugees, he’s helped more than 1,100 other LGBTQIA Iranians escape a country where the punishment for having a same-sex relationship is death. In Halifax, LGBTQIA Iranians are supported by the Rainbow Refugee Association of Nova Scotia. […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
The Coast needs to do better
[Image-1] Last week, the Coast published an article by Michael Wood, entitled “Why I celebrate Canada Day with all my heart.” This article was in response to Killa Atencio’s article, “Why I choose not to celebrate Canada Day.” The Coast offers Halifax great event listings, horoscopes and sometimes supports important investigative journalism. But there is […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Why I choose not to celebrate Canada Day
[Image-1] Barbecues, fireworks, lots of beer and red and white all over the city. That’s what I see on Canada Day. Even when I’m not looking, I can hear the “Oh, Canada” chants from a kilometre away. But what are you really celebrating? Reflect on that for a minute. Patriotism? Pride? Freedom? Or maybe you […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Fifteen years of medical training and unable to work
[Image-1] Mahmoud Alkhatib is washing dishes at home in Clayton Park. A glass breaks and slices open his right hand, blood bursting forth. It’s a long cut, one that can’t be treated with a bandage and rubbing alcohol. He has to go to the hospital. Arriving at the emergency room, he gets in a line […]
Posted inLifestyle
Cycling’s not just for hipsters
[Image-1] Walking down Agricola Street on any given day, you’re sure to see anywhere from five to 47 vintage two-speeds either chained up or being navigated by charismatic, stylish and carefully dishevelled-looking twenty-somethings. Their modes of transportation are at least 30 years their senior—and the older, the better. But what about the folks who were […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Peter MacKay’s resigning and everyone’s losing their minds
[Image-1] Stellarton just became the hottest spot to be tonight in Canada. According to reports, justice minister and longtime Conservative superhero Peter MacKay will announce his resignation from federal politics in less than an hour, at a 5pm press conference in Stellarton. Prime Minister Stephen Harper is expected to attend. Sources suggest to the National […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Talking human rights, with Amnesty International Canada’s secretary general
[Image-1] The Canadian branch of international human-rights organization Amnesty International will gather this weekend in Halifax for its annual general meeting. Secretary general Alex Neve spoke about the never-ending battle for human rights. What will members of Amnesty International Canada be doing in Halifax? The simple answer is we will be gathering for our annual […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
“Diversity” initiatives may be popular, but they are failing
[Image-1] It’s easy to say that racism doesn’t exist in Canada or that it’s a spectacle only visible in America. Headline-grabbing cases of blatant racism are rarer here. But dig deeper, and Canadians can find what Christopher Stuart Taylor calls the “small nuances of anti-black racism.” Taylor, who works as the diversity and inclusion coordinator […]
