Today is the day. The day I mute every thinkable combination of words and hashtags across all social media platforms. The day I turn off the television and radio and anything that could have advertisements. The day I wonder if I can detach my retinas by rolling my eyes too hard. Today is Bell Let’s […]
Voice of the City
Posted inNews + Opinion
Dear mayor and council, you can’t blame the protesters because none of you were there
I am writing to denounce the municipality’s complicity in the eviction enforcement that gave rise to the police violence around the old library on Spring Garden Road on August 18, 2021. I am especially outraged after seeing some post-protest comments from municipal elected officials and HRP spokespeople, which ranged from weak to odious. None of […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Why don’t we have access to our lake in North Preston?
Recently, my brothers and I bought some Jet Skis and kayaks. Mostly as an entrepreneurial investment, but also for our own enjoyment. Over the past month, we have been to about six different lakes and bodies of water across the HRM, enjoying the water ourselves or renting our boats out to folks. We reflected and […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Why I *still* choose not to celebrate Canada Day
Barbara Kentner. Colten Boushie. Tina Fontaine. Joyce Echaquan. Rodney Levi. Chantel Moore. These are the names of only a fraction of the Indigenous people who Canada and its systems have let down since 2015, when my first article about July 1 came out in The Coast. The magnitude of each of their names should weigh […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
The residential school legacy of Kamloops and beyond
When I heard the news that a series of unmarked graves containing the remains of 215 children were discovered at the former site of the Kamloops Residential school, I was shocked. But not surprised. My name is Bryson, I am the son of a Residential School Survivor, the nephew of Residential School Survivors and the […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Nova Scotia needs to do more to ensure its shelters embody harm reduction
Since COVID-19 arrived in Nova Scotia a year ago, we have been doing what we can to keep ourselves, our loved ones and others safe. We have masked up, social distanced and ensured our neighbours in isolation have what they need, ranging from grocery drop-offs to dog walks. We have shown Canada and the world […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax should follow Vancouver’s lead and decriminalize drugs
While the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic shows no signs of slowing, another Canadian public health issue is worsening: The opioid crisis. Across the country, we are experiencing record-high numbers of drug-related deaths. Last week, in a move to mitigate this crisis, Vancouver city councillors unanimously voted to request that the federal government decriminalize […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Voice of the city: A premier should consider housing a human right
Last week, after more than seven years as government MLAs, two wannabe premiers—Labi Kousoulis and Iain Rankin—proposed modest, provisional versions of the much-needed policy of rent control as part of their bids for the Liberal leadership. Given that my NDP colleagues and I have been advocating for rent control since 2017 when we first introduced […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Voice of the city: The show must go on
COVID-19 has had a devastating effect on the arts sector, especially for the performing arts. Now, two months into the school year, it’s time we take a moment to shout out public school music teachers. In September, music teachers returned to work under incredibly difficult conditions with dramatic disruptions on their teaching practices. There are […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Landlords getting the final word on heritage designation won’t work
By March 2020, Halifax had lost a full forty percent of its historic buildings in 11 years. Out of 104 buildings inventoried as heritage assets in 2009, 43 had been demolished. More have tumbled since then. And barring drastic action to save them, the remainder will fall to the wrecker soon. Halifax Regional Council finally […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Federal court rules that the US is not safe for refugees as per the Safe Third Country Act
In a federal court ruling that came down last week, the Canada-US Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA) was found to be unconstitutional. For those of us who’ve been organizing against this agreement for years, this decision could not come soon enough. And, still, we know that much work remains. Even as the horrors of modern-day […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
250 years later, the province is still trying to shirk its promises in North Preston
A decision came out of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia recently. The Downey v. Nova Scotia ruling affirms what pro bono lawyers and the grassroots movement of North Preston residents (that spurred the mobilization of those pro bono lawyers) have been telling the Department of Lands and Forestry for at least half a decade: the […]