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The NDP is complicit in imperialist violence in Bolivia
Canadian PoliticsThe NDP, Canada’s supposedly leftist party of labour and solidarity, cannot bring itself to issue a statement condemning the coup. Over the last four days, in spite of consistent demands from NDP membership and allies, the party has refused to even acknowledge that a coup has taken place, let alone issue a strong statement to draw the public’s attention to it.
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Canada is long overdue for universal dental care
Canadian PoliticsMany Canadians view the perfect smile as a sign of status rather than an indicator of one’s health, as the provision of dental care is based on one’s ability to pay rather than their need. In fact, six million Canadians avoid the dentist each year due to financial constraints and, as a result, many live with treatable chronic pain and a lower quality of life. There is a solution to this problem: a universal dental care plan.
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Canada backs coup against Bolivia’s president
Canadian PoliticsIn yet another example of the Liberals saying one thing and doing another, Justin Trudeau’s government has supported the ouster of Evo Morales. The Liberals’ position on the violent ouster of Bolivia’s first ever Indigenous president stands in stark contrast with their backing of embattled pro-corporate leaders in the region.
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SNC-Lavalin, Justin Trudeau, and ‘banana republic’ politics
Canadian PoliticsPrime Minister Trudeau holds the shameful distinction amongst prime ministers of Canada to be the first found guilty of ethics violations; and this is his second. Although he has also probably issued more apologies on behalf of Canadians than any other PM, Canadians are not getting an apology for this. Mr. Trudeau it seems, gets to decide when it is okay to break the law.
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Holding Pattern: The 2019 Canadian Election
Canadian PoliticsWhile the left needs to continue to work in and alongside social movements to advance concrete and winnable demands, we also need a vision that goes beyond immediate and disparate struggles and develop it together from coast-to-coast-to-coast, on the basis of mutual recognition of our ecological and economic interdependency and respective claims to sovereignty.
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Is representative democracy actually democratic?
Canadian PoliticsThe main difference between a participatory democracy and a representative democracy lies then in the distance between the people and the passing of government legislation. How great is that distance today in Canada? How truly representative is democracy?
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Open letter: Canada must stop backing Haiti’s repressive and illegitimate president
Canadian PoliticsIn recent months, Haitians have demonstrated their overwhelming opposition to President Jovenel Moïse. There have been massive protests and multiple general strikes demanding Moïse leave. The undersigned call on the Canadian government to stop backing a corrupt, repressive and illegitimate president Haitians massively reject.
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Winnipeg’s media are stoking a racist frenzy with coverage of alleged liquor store thefts
Canadian PoliticsWinnipeg’s media outlets are salivating at the chance to create a moral panic over alleged liquor store thefts. Nearly non-stop headlines regale readers with seemingly horrific stories of brutal crimes: an old man has his hand slashed while trying to prevent a robbery, guns and pepper spray are wielded, and businesses face the “darkest time in Winnipeg history” (according to the CEO of a security company).
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Breach of trust, not contract: Why politicians are allowed to lie
Canadian Politics“How can you tell when a politician is lying? His lips are moving.” It’s an old joke, but exactly why do politicians lie so often? The truth is that politicians lie because it is perfectly legal to do so. While common sense may suggest that broken campaign promises represent breach of oral contract, the courts have consistently held that holding politicians legally liable for breaking campaign promises would have a “chilling effect” on government.
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Victory in defeat
Canadian PoliticsSingh went from being written off completely by the mainstream media—due in no small part to tacit racism and the ‘soft bigotry of low expectations’—to being the person many Canadians believed would make the best prime minister. This is no easy task, particularly for a brown man with a turban in a country where the majority believe the federal government should limit or reduce the number of immigrants it accepts.
