[Image-1] Today, on the short walk from Ecology Action Centre offices to the Carrot Co-op on Gottingen Street, I helped an older man with a cane, a middle-aged man on crutches and an older woman move from the dangerous sidewalk to the middle of the road. I held the hands of that woman as she […]
Voice of the City
Posted inNews + Opinion
It’s a new year!
[Image-1] We learn that our personalities are pretty much set by the time we are four or five and that the best predictor of future behaviour is our past behaviour. We are taught and learn early in our childhood about the challenge of change: Can a tiger change its stripes or a leopard its spots? […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
A city only does as well as its poorest resident
[Image-1] The movie 12 Years A Slave is the account of Solomon Northup, a free black man who was drugged and abducted from Washington, DC and sold into slavery in Louisiana. In one scene, a conversation takes place between Solomon’s slavemaster and another white man who is against slavery. The other man (played by Brad […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Fed up with winter Transit
[Image-1] Submitted to letters@thecoast.ca… I have been living in Halifax for the past five months and until yesterday, I’ve had nothing but good things to say about the city. Back in January I had read an article about Gerry Post who was sharing his opinion on issues he has had with Halifax Transit. I myself […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
I should not be limited because I am in a wheelchair
[Image-1] I am writing to express my frustration with the restrictive nature of the Access-A-Bus-service. This service is offered to persons with physical and intellectual disabilities who seek accessible transportation. My application for an extension for the Access-A-Bus service was initially denied on the grounds that I am “deemed able to utilize the conventional low-floor […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
I am an African Nova Scotian womanist artist
[Image-1] I was born in Halifax and raised in Uniacke Square (Squaretown or Squizzy for those who are familiar). I was always apprehensive about allowing society to determine what labels I should wear. Eventually, I would decide myself: middle class (I like it here), African Nova Scotian, womanist, artist. I choose to be known as […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Get informed for Eating Disorder Awareness Week
[Image-1] February 1 to 7 is Eating Disorders Awareness Week, an international event that encourages understanding of eating disorders. As psychologists and as scientists who study and treat eating disorders, we recognize eating disorders are often greatly misunderstood, and we want to raise awareness about these common, costly, and impairing disorders. Eating disorders involve serious, […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Why does Barrington Street remain barren?
[Image-1] In the TD bank at the corner of Spring Garden Road and Birmingham Street, there is a mural-sized photograph of nearby Barrington Street, taken on a warm spring day in 1944. It shows sidewalks crowded with civilians, uniformed CWACs and soldiers on leave. Bright red trolleys roll amongst the cars, flags and awnings hang […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Not in my backyard
[Image-1] Halifax has seen more than its fair share of live music venue closures in recent years. The reasons for closure are complex and diverse, ranging from regulations that can best be described as “hostile to business,” to economic factors revolving around people being unable to spend all night paying $6 per drink in a […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Drawing the line between freedom of expression and hate speech
[Image-1] The Dawgfather, a popular hot dog vendor who usually sets up shop outside of Dalhousie’s student union building, has recently come under fire for posting jokes on Twitter about the Holocaust and 9/11 attacks. He claims this was done not out of hatred, but as a response to the Charlie Hebdo Muhammad cartoon. He […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Comfort, safety and the politics of sexualized violence
[Image-1] After weeks of protest and public debate about gender-based violence, a high-profile public event took place at the Halifax Central Library last Thursday. Hosted by the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Public Affairs, it attracted hundreds of Haligonians concerned with the apparent increase in public displays of sexualized violence on HRM campuses. It was […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax Transit has a cost problem
[Image-1] Halifax Transit has a cost problem. Costs have increased dramatically, but ridership has not. Service hours went up 19 percent since 2007, but ridership grew just three percent. Between 2009 and 2012, the cost to transport one rider increased from $3.04 to $4.03. This month, Halifax Transit will release a draft of the new […]
