Toronto awash in sights, sounds and scents of Vaisakhi

 Matthew Cohen/Toronto Observer

Nathan Phillips Square was awash in colour Sunday as Sikhs from all over the Toronto area celebrated the festival of Vaisakhi.

Tens of thousands of people converged on downtown Toronto Sunday to honour the Sikh celebration of Vaisakhi.

Nathan Phillips Square was packed with people paying tribute to their religion through song, hymn, food and prayer. Held on April 24, the Vaisakhi commemorates the beginnings of Sikhism which began with philosophies of Guru Gobind Singh born April 14, 1699, in India, the 10th and final Guru (teacher) of the Sikh faith.

Sikhism is the fifth-largest organized religion in the world. Sikhism originates from the word Sikh, which derives from the Sanskrit root ’sisya’ meaning ‘disciple’ or ‘learner.’

The day marks a special occasion for many Sikhs living in Toronto like Deljeet Singh.

“The significance of today is honouring Guru Gobind Singh for giving us our identity, it was with him the foundation of our faith was laid,” said Singh. “So it’s important that we can come out here and show our kids and the rest of Toronto what our faith is all about.”

Rama Sibhu is a mother of five and for her it’s imperative that her family come out every year to support the Vaisakhi festivities. She talked of showing her kids the importance of their religion and explained the historical meaning behind the vast display of food offered at the festival.

“I love seeing all of my people here enjoying themselves. Its part of the Sikh culture to be with family and friends first to eat, then to pray as our Guru taught,” said Sibhu.

“I’ve been honouring the festival for the past 30 years and to see how much it has grown in Toronto is really important to me because it shows our strength in unity.”

Federal NDP leader Jack Layton was in attendance and said he was there

NDP federal leader Jack Layton posing with members of the Canadian Armed Forces at the Vaisakhi Festival.

 to show his support and to recognize the positive contributions the Sikh community has made to Canada.

“They’ve been here for 100 years, building the railway, starting up the

 forestry industry and contributing to our society in so many ways,” said Layton.

“So I’m here to say thank you and to encourage us to recognize human rights for all of us with diverse backgrounds in our country.”

US War resister pins hope on Bill C-440

 Matthew Cohen/Toronto Observer

US Iraq War resister Kimberly Elaine Rivera and her daughters Katie, ten months, and Rebecca, five, are hoping to gain permanent resident status in Canada thanks to Bill C-440. Rivera is Canada’s first female war resister openly speaking about her opposition to the Iraq War.

During two weeks of a leave-of-absence from her work, Kimberly Rivera, 27, a married mother of three, made a life-changing decision. She left her home for good.

“Everybody has the right to feel safe, secure and have things that they need… I made the decision morally to follow my heart to Canada,” Rivera said.

She is Canada’s first female war resister and is currently living in Toronto.

Rivera, born in Mesquite, Texas, enlisted in the U.S. Army on July 14, 2001 at the age of 18 after taking an aptitude test out of “curiosity” and later signed up to be a mechanic.

She was given enlistment date following her high school graduation for the Army Reserves. In March 2006, she was sent to Ft. Leonard Wood and after passing her truck driving course she was assigned to 2-17 Field Artillery, 2^nd Brigade Combat Team and 2nd Infantry Division.

In October, her reserve unit was deployed to Iraq. Some of her duties included vehicle and civilian personnel searches as well as inspecting military convoys.

On Dec. 21, 2006, when 24 mortar rounds landed just metres from where she was standing, she started to question whether “the Iraq war was worth ultimately giving her life for.”

During that two-week leave, Rivera and her husband, Mario, decided it was in their best interests not to return to active duty in Iraq. They decided to move to Canada.

Rivera’s initial pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA) the process in which Citizenship and Immigration Canada evaluates the risk claimants’ face if they’re deported back to their home country was denied.

In March 2008, she was granted an 11th-hour stay of removal, after her order of deportation was made public.

In August, she was granted a new PRRA after Justice James Russell found the PRRA Officer didn’t properly assess the risk that Rivera would face harsher prosecution based on her opposition to the Iraq War. The final decision on the new ruling can take up to four months to determine.

On Sept. 17, 2009, MP Gerard Kennedy tabled Bill C-440 in the House of Commons. It would grant permanent resident status to U.S. war resisters living in Canada on humanitarian and compassionate grounds.

The bill states that foreign nationals in Canada who, based on a moral, political or religious objection, left the armed forces of another country to avoid participating in an armed conflict not sanctioned by the United Nations, the right to remain in the country.

Kennedy said he initiated the legislation because he believes the current minority government’s view of war resisters doesn’t represent the beliefs of average Canadians.

“It was a matter of a basic sense of fairness, the conservative government is basically imposing its own personal opinion in the place of a real Canadian consensus on this issue,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy also noted that two recent Parliamentary committees called on the government to halt deportations of conscientious objectors and put in place a program to allow them and their families the right to apply for permanent resident status.

“If Parliament initiates a debate on the subject and resolves it… the government of the day has to take note of that. They’ve refused to do that on two occasions now,” Kennedy said. “They’re railroading the people who are affected in ways that are very unfortunate.”

During the 2008 Conservative convention in November, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney referred to Iraq War resisters as “cowards” and “bogus refugee claimants.”

Kennedy pointed out that in the 1960s and ’70s, during the U.S. involvement in Vietnam, Canada became a safe haven for U.S. military personnel who conscientiously objected to war.

“He (Kenney) said we didn’t accept anyone from the Vietnam War, when in fact, we accepted over 10, 000 people who came out of service during that war,” Kennedy said.

“He (Kenney) has a responsibility to stay objective, because his officials are the ones the war resisters have to appear in front of hoping to get fair treatment.”

Kennedy said the bill is meant to remedy this issue and that he would amend the legislation to compel any minister to take this category of eligibility into account as grounds for staying in the country.

While Rivera awaits a decision on her case, she believes she made the right decision and is grateful for the sanctuary she’s found in Canada.

“I wanted to live in a society that makes its own choices and does what they think is best for their people…that was more heartening for me,” she said.

“Being able to live here day by day, thankful for everyday I have with my kids, being healthy and happy is the blessing that Canada’s given me.”

Filed  by Matthew Cohen

Toronto invests in green technology with biogas digesters

Imagine a streetcar running on orange peels, the traffic lights running on leftover dinner scraps and your home powered by cow manure? One day the city of Toronto hopes to be sustained by renewable energy from the organic waste we throw in our green bins, with the use of biogas digesters.

A biogas digester (also known as anaerobic digester) is technology that converts organic waste into methane gas. It has two primary components for it to work at its highest efficiency. Most typically biogas digesters are equipped with cogeneration systems, the reciprocating motor fuelled by biogas which turns the generator to produce electricity.

Biogas digesters aren’t new in fact, the first commercial biogas system originated in1850 in Bombay, India. Most commonly you’ll find home versions of digesters in developing countries such as China where there is presently six to seven million single home biogas systems in use.

Brian Van Opstal, of Toronto’s Solid Waste Management Services, says the city collects 120,000 tonnes of green bin waste each year. That’s enough waste to produce 15 million cubic metres of biogas, enough energy to power up to 2, 000 homes for a year.

In 2002, Toronto commissioned its first anaerobic digester at the Dufferin Waste Management Facility. Its large septic tank 17 meters in diameter and 20 meters tall presently processes 30 to 35 tonnes of green bin waste each year. That’s enough to generate seven million kilowatt hours of electricity a year. According to Toronto Hydro, the annual electrical consumption of an average home is 10, 000 kilowatt hours a year.

The city has a $69 million plan to build two more anaerobic digestion plants by spring of 2011. One will be replacing the existing plant at the Dufferin site; the other will be built at the Disco Transfer Station at 120 Disco Road in Etobicoke. According to Van Opstal, the new biogas digesters will have conversion devices able to refine the gas into reusable energy, no different from the natural gas that flows through the present distribution system.

At the Dufferin site, pulped organics with a solids content of six percent are fed into the digester, a glass-lined steel septic tank with a working volume of 3,000 m3. Optimum temperature of the infeed material is 37°C (98.6 F), during colder months, a device known as a heat exchanger is used to maintain the optimum temperature.

Waste material is continuously withdrawn from the pulp and a screw press is used to separate the liquids and solids. Liquids are recycled back into a device in the digester known as a hydropulper. The capital costs for biogas utilization equipment can range from hundred of thousands of dollars to millions depending which gas utilization option is chosen. The operating costs can range from $48,000 per year to $82,000 per year, also depending on which gas utilization option chosen.

Although the anaerobic digester at the Dufferin site does produce large volumes of quality gas but there’s currently no cogeneration system installed to convert that gas into useable energy. Instead the gas is set ablaze. Van Opstal said this was due to the great deal of skepticism at the time regarding if anaerobic digestion would work to overcome the high costs involved with what was an “experimental” project.

“It’s a fact it was included in the original design but never installed…decisions were made between the design and construction phases of the project to remove it, said Van Opstal. “And that would have only been done to reduce project cost.”

Graemae Millen of CH Four Biogas, a leading developer of anaerobic digesters and biogas technology, believes biogas technology can supply whole communities with a viable source of sustainable energy from the volume of organic material the city generates.

“With the growing movement for green bin programs all across Canada, the applicability of community-based (biogas) systems is just exploding because a majority of that waste would be a viable feedstock, said Millen.”

Since 2005, all single family households – about 500,000 – in Toronto received curbside collection of organic materials. This represents tonnes of food scraps, soiled paper, disposable diapers, pet waste and other biodegradable residuals. Another 15,000 tonnes are being diverted from small commercial establishments.

Dairy farmer George Heinzle, owner of Terryland Farms in St. Eugene, has

George Heinzle's biogas digester at Terryland Farms, St. Eugene, Ontario.

 already seen the benefits. The manure from the 140 cows on his farm and his two anaerobic digesters each produce 180 kilowatts per hour generating 4,000 kilowatt hours per day. That’s enough electricity to power more than a 100 homes for a year and he says he’ll double that by Christmas.

Heinzle was the first of a handful of farmers generating renewable energy using biogas digesters and then selling it back to the province at a fixed rate. Heinzle has already invested $600,000 in his digester and said that figure could go as high as $1 million as soon as his second digester is “fully operational” by December of 2009.

One of the benefits of anaerobic digestion is once the manure is processed through the digester it becomes odorless, and can be reused as fertilizer. He also said the digestion process kills pathogens, reduces methane emissions, generates heat and electricity and is will always be a sustainable source of energy. He was the first in Ontario to sell energy back to the province under the Renewable Standard Offer Program (RESOP), but many seen that system as flawed with long queuing times and high fees for energy producers waiting to connect to the grid.   

Millen said the new Green Energy Act makes Canada “a continental leader when it comes to renewable energy development policy” and part of the new legislation would facilitate the development of renewable energy on a scale unseen anywhere else in North America.

Van Opstal said Toronto’s Waste Management Services initial focus was set on “waste diversion” which is processing the waste before it’s shipped to landfills. But says he recognizes the profitability of investing in projects such as biogas digesters that produce renewable forms of energy.

“One incentive for the production of electricity from renewable sources is the Feed-in Tariff program in the Green Energy Act by the Ontario Power Authority…it will pay an increased rate for producers of electricity from renewable sources,” said Van Opstal.

The electricity produced by biomass projects is purchased at 12 cents per kilo hour which is about double the base rate. The problem for biogas producers such as Heinzle is that they’re currently locked into a 20 year contract with the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) and are unable to reap the benefits that the new Green Energy Act has to offer. Although Heinzle believes the Green Energy Act is “a push in the right direction” he feels it’s time for the federal government to intervene.

“The problem is all the early adopters of biogas digesters, the ones who took the risks by signing with the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) we’re getting paid 12 cents per kilowatt an hour, now with the Feed-in Tariff program (FIT) everyone else is getting between 16 and a half to 21 cents,” said Heinzle.

Heinzle said if the government doesn’t quickly intervene to amend legislation of the Green Energy Act that the rising costs and inflation will put Ontario farmers out of business.

“I’m convinced that before the end of our 20 year term (with the OPA) we’ll have to shut down…unless the government admits they made a mistake,” said Heinzle. “It’s only fair that they allow us to be able to switch to the Feed in Tariff program…because with biogas digesters, we can produce electricity at a lower cost than other sources of renewable energy.”

Toronto East General Hospital Celebrates 80 Years of Service

By Matthew Cohen

Toronto East General Hospital’s new Oncology/Haematology Clinic has officially opened its doors as part of a redevelopment plan in honour of 80 years of service to the community of East York.

 

(Matthew Cohen/Cohen's Gallery) Toronto East General Hospital's new Oncology Clinic at 825 Coxwell Ave.

In April of 2007, the Ministry of Health approved the first step in the hospital’s $200 million multi-phased campaign designed to revamp the infrastructure. A $6.7 million investment was issued in 2007, $3.4 million of which was allotted to redeveloping the Oncology (Cancer) Clinic. The remaining $3.3 million went towards renovation plans of the ambulatory and emergency clinics, surgical units, 280 additional beds and a respiratory centre and cardiology diagnostic laboratory.

 

Toronto East General Hospital opened in 1929 as a community teaching hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto. The unveiling of the new clinic on Jan.12, marked the first phase of completion in a three-stage plan spanning over the next 25 years.

 

The purpose of turning the hospital into a state-of-the-art facility is to ensure that East York residents are provided with improved healthcare for future generations.

 

Health Minister Dave Caplan says he’s pleased with positive feedback about the project and acknowledges the importance of producing results for sustainable healthcare.

 

“I am happy to hear that East York residents will benefit from the redevelopment,” Caplan said. “Getting shovels in the ground to improve a hospital is always a cause for celebration.”

 

The hospital with its 2,500 employees and 400 physicians on staff, received national recognition in the fields of cancer treatment and community healthcare.

 

In addition to the new clinic, the redevelopment includes major renovations to accommodate the increase of patients in the past several years. Today, the hospital receives annually 240,000 patients, 60,000 being emergency visits.

 

Mikki Layton, manager of medicines of oncology at TEGH, felt there was a “desperate” need for redevelopment and as a result says patients now have access to more space and comfortability.

 

“With better facilities we’re able to receive an increased volume of patients in a more timely manner,” Layton said. “Reducing the wait times.”

 

Caplan said lowering wait times in Ontario is one of his priorities. His ministry has committed an extra $235 million to reducing wait times.

 

The new clinic was built to accomadate the rise in patients and to provide more efficient service. (Matthew/Cohen's Gallery)

“Our government is going to continue to look for strategies that will help us reduce wait times – whether it’s by redeveloping and expanding hospitals, hiring more doctors and nurses, or funding more strategies,” Caplan said.

 

This makes patients receiving care at the hospital feel they’re getting the best treatment possible.

 

In 2004 Rachael Smith was diagnosed with breast cancer. After nearly two years of expeditious treatment, in December of 2005, there was no more evidence of the disease. She believes it’s important for the government and citizens to show their support.

 

“I think it’s important for everyone to do what they can to ensure wait times, research and information on prevention is disseminated to people,” Smith said. “Anyone who’s faced with a life threatening disease can feel drained from their mental and physical resources. The less time you have to wait for treatment the better it is.”

 

To show support and appreciation for Toronto East General and Princess Margaret hospitals, Smith, along with her husband Andrew Howard, created the Yard Sale for the Cure charity in 2005 in their local area of the Beaches. The charity now spans across Ontario, raising money for cancer research with plans to expand nation wide. 

 

“When you’re there (TEGH) you’re treated with the love and respect that you would get from a family member,” Smith said. “I felt it was really important to try and support them.”

 

 

A living testament of gun violence in Toronto

By Matthew Cohen

Out of respect for the privacy of the victim and his family, names have been changed.

As Dave Anderson drove through his old neighborhood of Malvern he slowed down at the red light, pointed toward a mall, nodded his head and grinned, ”It’s good to be alive isn’t it?”

 

 For that mall holds a memory that he won’t soon forget. It’s the place where Anderson and his friend were shot a year ago as they were ordering a pizza, after leaving a basketball practice held at their high school only five blocks away.

 

 Anderson says, “It all happened so fast, just as I was placing my order I heard the first loud bang”. 

 

The first shot came as sudden shock, by the time he turned around three more shots rang out. He jumped over the counter, ran to the back of the kitchen, he then hid inside a large industrial freezer; it was then he noticed that something was wrong.

 

 “As I’m in the freezer, I’m thinking to myself, ‘How can I get out of here?’ and ‘Where’s Doug?’,” Anderson said. “At the moment I felt fine, just a little shook up, all of a sudden I felt a burning feeling, getting hotter and hotter, I looked down and saw blood all over my shirt.”

 

 Although witnesses were able to get a vague description of the suspect who eluded police, the 9-mm handgun used in the incident was later recovered and traced back to a gun show held in Richmond, Va.

 

The question remains: How did a firearm sold in the state of Virginia make its way across the border into Canada, to be used in a violent crime? Furthermore, what attempts are being made by both Canadian and American governments to strengthen the border taking into account concerns over border security post 9/11?

 

The Canadian Firearms Centre (CFC) is a government run operation created in 2003 to oversee the administration of the Firearms Act and the Canadian Firearms Program (CFP). The Firearms Act governs the possession, transport, use and storage of firearms in Canada. The main objective is to help reduce firearm-related deaths, injury and crime as well as to promote public safety. The program relies on its federal partners such as the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and international trade Canada (ITCan) to help combat the issue of the illegal trade and transport of illegal firearms.

 

In Canada, the CBSA is responsible for firearms seizures at ports of entry. This partnership is part of a federal government initiative called Investments to Combat the Criminal Use of Firearms (ICCUF), a multi-agency effort aimed at fighting gun crime in Canada by enhancing the national collection, analysis and sharing of firearm-related intelligence and information. The joint effort will operate until the spring of 2009 where then it’ll come under federal review to evaluate its progress.

 

Patricia Giolti, official spokesperson of the CBSA say her office recognizes the importance of ensuring the safety our borders and says the Canadian government has already spent millions of dollars on updating the current border security system.

 

“The CBSA works diligently to make sure our borders are safe. Especially since 9/11, government funding has aided this agency in implementing new technologies like an advanced version of the current Harrier Security Radar System made by DeTect Inc, Giolti said.

 

The new version of the Harriet Security Radar Systems applications includes advanced:

 

• Ground perimeter security
• Airspace monitoring and surveillance
• Marine surveillance
• Intrusion detection
• Collision and obstruction avoidance at border crossings

 

The actual number of firearms smuggled into Canada is unknown. What’s known is that most firearm smuggling attempts involve single firearms, and that seizures of multiple firearms (more than two) primarily involve confiscation of handguns. During a six-year period from January 2001 to December 2006, CBSA seized a total of 5,137 guns at the border averaging nearly 850 guns seized at the border yearly.

 

“I pray to God that the police find the guy who shot me but on the otherhand I’m aware it’s easier for society to point the finger at young, black males in “at risk” neighborhoods,” Anderson said. ”It would be comforting to know the police will take it a step further than just catching the shooter, I’d like for them to find out where the kids are getting theses guns in the first place.”

 

Constable William McKay of The Toronto Police said the police work dilligently to ensure that all of Toronto is safe and there’s no discrimination when it comes to policing.

 

“Officers work around the clock to combat gun violence not only in at-risk neighborhoods, but all across the GTA because violence happens everywhere to all types of people in all walks of life,” McKay said.

 

Ex-Toronto Police Constable Richard Noble has a different view on the issue; he believes there’s a bigger problem, more serious lying beneath the issue of violence in at-risk neighborhoods. Although he says there’s a meticulous method of registering firearms he believes criminals as well as a few “bad apples” in the police department should bare the brunt of the blame when dealing with the matter of “availability” of firearms on the streets.

 

“Anytime guns are confiscated their supposed to be processed threw the Canadian Firearms Registry Unit. From there the firearm is analyzed and tracked threw a serial number to see if there’s a registered owner or if there’s any connection  to any previous crime, then stored in lock up,” Noble said. “But even from the guns being locked up, there have been times simply where the guns just go missing.”

 

Panel says ‘Send NATO reinforcements, or we’re pulling out’

The Independent Panel of Canada’s Role in Afghanistan has told a news conference that unless NATO dispatches reinforcements to the area, Canada should pull out its 2,500 soldiers from southern Afghanistan by February 2009.

(Matthew Cohen/Cohen’s Gallery)Pamela Wallin answering questions at a Q and A session held at U of T regarding Canada’s role in Afghanistan.

The panel spent 10 days visiting Afghanistan this past November, members include former broadcast journalist Pamela Wallin, Derek Burney, former ambassador to Washington and one-time chief of staff to former prime minister Mulroney, Paul Terrier, former clerk of the privy council, and Jake Epp, a former Mulroney cabinet minister.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has promised that Parliament will have the final say with regards to the withdrawal of troops. He told the panel that he wants to keep Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan until at least 2011, despite disapproval from the three opposition parties who are opposed to the combat mission lasting beyond February of next year according to Reuters.

Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff told cbc.ca that he maintains his parties’ position, that Canada will withdraw its troops by Feb. 2011.

“We have a strong reason for that. We think it’s by far the most dangerous mission in Afghanistan. We have carried this mission for three years and it’s time for Canada to do something else in Afghanistan.”

NATO is having a hard time convincing other members to assist in the Afghanistan, leaving Canada, alongside the US to carry out the mission ensuring its success.

Manley has suggested that Prime Minister Stephen Harper to “hold off” on a parliamentary vote regarding Canadian troops in Afghanistan but Bloc Quebecois’ Gilles Duceppe told a news conference that Prime Minister Harper should call for a vote immediately, accusing him of delaying a decision until the next election.

Panel chairman, John Manley, a former Liberal deputy prime minister, told the Globe and Mail “Canada should insist that NATO send at least a 1,000 soldiers”. The panel proclaims extra NATO soldiers would allow Canada to gradually shift direction from combat, to training Afghanistan’s national security forces.

However, former broadcast journalist, panel member and now Canadian senator, Pamela Wallin, spoke at the University of Toronto last night giving a behind the scenes look at the work of the IPCRA. Wallin shed light on Canada’s dilemma with pulling out of Afghanistan, at the same time, averting focus from combat, to the training of the Afghan police and military to manage insurgency in the southern regions.

“I’ve heard people say we should just stop fighting and just engage in training, well… training is fighting, there are no practice rounds. There are no training grounds where we (Canadian troops) could do a mock military exercise,” Wallin said. “When were training them, were doing that in real time, in live combat.”

She said the panel’s report sent a clear message, from February 2008 to February 2010, “If we don’t get NATO assistance then were giving notice.”

TTC drivers suffer from post-traumatic syndrome

TTC drivers are pushing officials to put an end to the increasing violence occurring on the city’s public transit system.

Among the kinds of abuse TTC drivers have faced over the years, such as vicious beatings, death threats, and in one incident being shot at with an air rifle.

The Toronto Star reports nearly 200 TTC bus, streetcar and subway operators are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at a rate four times that of Toronto police officers, which is the second leading cause of lost time for TTC employees.

According to the Canadian Mental Health.ca, PTSD is often related to witnessing or experiencing a traumatic event involving threat of injury or death. Symptoms include a general numbing of emotional responsiveness, recurrent re-experiencing of the event through flashbacks, nightmares caused by reminders of the traumatic experience as well as hyper arousal, trouble sleeping, irritability, anger and difficulty of remembering things.

Dr.Alain Brunet, psychiatry professor at McGill University explained to The Star, “You live in an increasingly narrow life and, on top of that, (you) are in a kind of hyper-arousal state, ready to fight or flight.”

He added, “Sufferers don’t sleep well, they have problems concentrating, easily distracted, easily startled and they may have a short fuse.”

An 11 year TTC veteran, John, who wishes not to have his name revealed for fear of reprisal, is all too familiar with the on-going violence occurring on the transit system.

“When I hear stories from other operators, it’s sad, but I’m not surprised,” John said.

He continued, “For me there have been plenty of incidences. One time this guy tried to get on my bus using a fake metropass, I asked him if I could see it and he started cursing at me, before I could blink he punched me right in the face then took off. In the end all that matters is that I make it home safe to see my kids.”

TTC chair Adam Giambrone in an interview told the Toronto Star, “I think we have an obligation to do something, this is unacceptable. We have to take this seriously. This is about respect and safety for our operators. They didn’t sign up for this.”

As a deterrent, the TTC plans to install plastic shields which will cost $1,500 for each bus as part of a $34 million project to install cameras on buses, streetcars and subway stations. A TTC official says the commission will consider doubling the constables by 2011.

Bill 202 takes aim at pornography on public computers

East Yorkers have mixed feelings regarding a proposed bill dealing with the censorship of sexually explicit material in public schools and libraries.

Progressive Conservative MPP Gerry Martiniuk, tabled Bill 202 in the House of Commons requiring all Ontario public schools and libraries to install filtering systems on their computers to block sexually explicit material. The bill went through the second reading on October 8^th and has since been referred to the Legislation and Regulation Committee for further analysis.

“I think we should have a uniform system across this province but there are still steps to be taken before this bill becomes law,” Martiniuk said. “I urge parents to ensure that their particular library and school does use filtering equipment to protect their children.”

Martiniuk says approximately 30 per cent of libraries and schools across Ontario are filtering pornography on their computers but that still leaves 70 per cent unprotected by a filtering system.

David Moore, principal of Danforth Collegiate and Technical Institute in East York says he supports any bill that will protect children from exposure to pornographic material. But, he also mentioned the governments need to be careful that it doesn’t put in place protections that are subject to unreasonable restrictions on free speech.

“It really depends on what the details are…children need to be protected, the question is how that happens,” Moore said. “There is potential for complications when it comes to determining what constitutes as adult content and what’s not.”

The term “sexually explicit material” varies from country to country; in Canada it means any material of which the principle feature or characteristic is the nudity or partial nudity of any person.

Aaron Kapoulas has lived in East York for 15 years and is a frequent user of the Toronto Public Library at 701 Pape Avenue. He agrees with Moore that children need to be safeguarded from pornographic images and says it’s definitely “inappropriate” to use public computers to view porn. But he also says he’s concerned about the government’s role of “watchdog” when determining what should be censored.

“I can understand why the government would want to screen sexual content (on public computers), but where I’m from in Greece, there’s a lot of classical art that depicts some form of nudity…so in a sense, some nudity is OK,” Kapoulas said. “The question is…where would the government draw the line?”

Martiniuk said that there are some groups that consider it (Bill 202) a form of censorship, but expressed that he’s not suggesting that the Internet be filtered as it is in some countries such as China and Cuba, where there’s a harsher brand of censorship on Internet users, he reiterated that Bill 202 only pertains to public schools and libraries.

Lauren McNeil, an East York resident and mother of two daughters who attend Danforth Collegiate fully supports the bill and believes it will become a necessary tool to protect children from images she says can be “damaging” to a young mind.  

“I’m all for the government wanting to restrict the use of computers at school. We do the same in our home; we pay very close attention to what our children surf on the net because there’s so much stuff out there that can send the wrong messages.”

Liberals maintain control as Hoskins wins St. Paul’s

The McGuinty Liberals were able to hold on to their St. Paul’s riding in a by-election on Thursday that was widely presumed to be a close race but ended up in a rout for the opposition Progressive Conservatives and New Democrats for after defeating the Tories with a majority of the vote.

Liberal Dr. Eric Hoskins wins the recently vacant riding of St. Pauls's.

Liberal candidate Dr. Eric Hoskins was declared the winner after gaining 48 per cent of the vote (13, 192), beating the Conservative’s Sue-Ann Levy who tallyed only 28 per cent (7, 851).

Spirits were high as the large turnout of cheering supporters’ raised their glasses in honour of Hoskins much anticipated arrival at his campaign party held at the Sports Centre Cafe at 49 St. Clair Ave. West last Thursday night. Hoskins, 48, who party insiders told The Observer is being groomed for a future McGuinty cabinet post is filling the seat left by former MP Michael Bryant.

When asked what were some the major concerns he heard from constituents while campaigning Hoskins responded with a range of issues that he wanted “to get to work on immediately.”

“The people here love their community and want to protect the great things they love about it such as the community schools. They want to make sure their children are in safe schools getting a solid educational foundation that will serve them well in the future,” Hoskins said. “It’s also a fact that 65 per cent of the people who live in St. Paul’s are tenants … so rent control and tenants rights is also an issue I’m looking closely at.”

Hoskins said he’s had the opportunity to speak with thousands of people the past few weeks which has given him insight on the issues that are important to the people of St. Paul’s.

Referring to the controversial single harmonized sales tax of which both Progressive Conservatives and the New Democrats had concentrated much of their attention on, he believes that the by-election was a clear signal that voters have confidence in the direction that the McGuinty government is going.

McGuinty weighed in on the fact the HST may have been a concern but there are other issues that were important to the people of St. Paul.

“He (Hoskins) is a hard worker who campaigned very well…and the people recognize he was an excellent candidate who ran for all the right reasons which is to bring a better quality of life to the people of St. Paul’s, McGuinty said.” 

The Tory’s Levy, a former newspaper columnist, appeared to be Hoskins strongest opposition but was unable to break the Liberal lock on the riding. She congratulated Hoskins on his victory and said she hoped that he will be a “strong voice for the people of St. Paul’s” and at the same time warned Hoskins that she’ll be “watching him as a journalist…and will be holding his feet to the fire.”

Levy, who trailed by over 6, 000 votes said despite having minimal time to prepare coupled with a low voter turnout ran a good campaign. Also, she recognized St. Paul’s has been a strong Liberal riding for nearly the past ten years.

“With only five weeks to prepare we ran a very hard campaign…within that time frame. We were still able to get our message out to the small percentage of constituents that did come out to vote who were still unsure of how the HST will be affecting them in the near future.”

Among those in attendance at the Conservative campaign party held at Granite Brewery on the corner of Eglinton Ave. East and Mount Pleasant Road was PC leader Tim Hudak who introduced Levy to the podium to give her concession speech. He thanked the members of his caucus, volunteers and the efforts made by Levy and her supporters.

New Democrat candidate Julian Heller finished third at 17 per cent (4, 677) and Chris Chopik representing the Green party placed fourth with five per cent (1, 515).

http://www.elections.on.ca/en-CA/ElectionNightResults2009.htm

Flemingdon radio station vies for its spot on the FM dial

Four years after its launch, Flemo City Media continues providing youth with skills that create opportunities for future success, its still lobbying, however, for a space on the FM dial.

The radio station started as an idea of Hooley McLaughlin and Alex McDonald of the Ontario Science Centre (OSC) to build a low-power transmitter capable of broadcasting throughout their community. As the idea gained support from the OSC, Youth Challenge Fund (YCF) and private sponsors such as Foresters Insurance, the project was brought to the Dennis R. Timbrell Resource Centre, formerly known as the Flemingdon Resource Centre.

The Government of Ontario put the YCF in motion chaired by Michael “Pinball” Clemons, CEO of the Toronto Argonauts. The YCF invests in programs that provide opportunities for youth in Toronto’s 13 “priority neighbourhoods.” In 2006, the province invested $15 million to launch YCF matching private sector and individual contributions dollar for dollar, bringing the total to $45 million.

These contributions made Flemo City Media a reality, and its creation made it possible for youth to be trained in music production, studio engineering and web design. Flemo City Media can also be credited with building the self-esteem of youth in Flemingdon Park. 

FlemoCity Radio at the Dennis R. Timbrell Resource Centre. (Matthew Cohen/Cohen's Gallery)

Making music has been 20-year-old Michael Lee’s goal since an early age, an aspiration shared by many talented youth in Flemingdon Park.  He’s been an active volunteer at Flemo City Media for the past four years, since the production studio’s inception in November 2005. His dedication and leadership qualities have made him the unofficial spokesperson for Flemo City Media encouraging neighbourhood kids to make use of the opportunities available. “If the youth come here and want to work on positive songs, then we’re going to make them our priority,” Lee said.

Lee utilizes skills he’s gained at Flemo City Media by producing music tracks and planning production sessions for himself and other local artists but recognizes Flemo City Media still faces obstacles.

“It’s important to me because it (Flemo City Media) started off as a dream, and now it has made my dreams come true, but we need a bigger antennae and more funding,” Lee said. ”We have people with shows in mind, the only problem is we can’t get it (the signal) out.”

Besides music, Flemo City Media has also focused its attention on broadcasting live shows every other Wednesday from 7:30 PM to 9:30 PM on CPRK 92.1FM. Board member Ayesha Rowe explains the challenge of broadcasting its own frequency lies with finding a suitable spot on the dial, allowing them to broadcast past 100 square feet, the farthest they’re legally allowed to broadcast without a Community Development License.

Despite multiple attempts to secure a spot on the dial, the organization has received several rejections letters regarding furthering their broadcast capabilities.

“The other two spaces on either side of that dial have the right to deny or approve your application. This is before you get to go to the CRTC,” Rowe said. “Unfortunately you also have to hire a go-between (administrator) to fill out the application…which can cost anywhere from $5000-$7000 each time. And for a non-profit organization we can’t keep sending that money.”

In spite of these difficulties, members of Flemo City Media have still been able to acquire the skills needed to pursue their goals.

Wardah Sardar, 15, and Abdullah Ayaz, 17, hosts of radio talk show “Flemo City Entertainment” bring their unique brand of back and forth banter to Flemo City Media. The witty duo says the organization allows them to positively express themselves about issues happening in their community and the rest of the world.

“Through Flemo City Media I found out about the Royal Conservatory of Music and was given an internship there in the summer,” Sardar siad. “Right now, I’m working on my writing (lyrics), melodies and expanding my style through different types of music. Since I’ve started here I’ve gained confidence and been motivated to improve my skills.”

Groups push government for E.I. reform

The Good Jobs For All Coalition, in affiliation with the Toronto and York Region Labour Council, held its second of four town hall meetings to discuss fixing the Employment Insurance program, equal pay for equal work initiative and the protection of temporary workers under Bill 139.

The Workers Rights in Troubled Times meeting was held Mar. 23 at the Thorncliffe Neighborhood Office in East York. MPP Cheri DiNovo was in attendance and says her office along with the Workers Action Centre is bringing forth an amendment asking for equal pay for equal work and a limit to temporary (work) assignment. “If you’re working part-time you should be getting the same hourly rate as someone working full-time…and if you’re working for a year, you should be (employed) permanent automatically,” says DiNovo.”

Karen Dick, community organizer for the Workers Action Centre concurs with DiNovo that Bill 139 – a package of prospective amendments to the Ontario Employment Standards Act regarding temporary employment agencies – is a significant step in the right direction, but agrees that in order for the bill to be fully effective it still needs of further revision. She explains how Bill 139 fails to properly address the issue of termination and severance pay for workers employed through agencies. Currently, there’s a 17-week waiting period for severance pay for full-time workers who lose their jobs. For temp workers, the waiting period is more than double.

“Under Bill 139, a temp agency worker would have to wait 36 weeks before they’re eligible for termination and severance pay, she said.” “That would mean they would be out of work for nine months without finance before they receive any payment that every other worker (in Ontario) is entitled to.”

Guest speaker Julius Deutsch, executive assistant of the Toronto/York Region Labour Council says under Ontario law, an applicant in Toronto needs 665 hours to be considered eligible for unemployment insurance. He suggests lowering the qualifying period to 360 hours in every part of the country which in turn, would cover 78 per cent of the jobless in Ontario currently ineligible for E.I.

“The unemployment rate in Toronto now is 8.3 per cent and in the GTA it’s now at 9 per cent,” Deutsch said. “These numbers give you the sense of the magnitude of what’s happening in the unemployment levels.” He added, “This happened due to bad government policies back in the mid-1990’s with Jean Chrétien and Paul Martin. In order to deal with the deficit and cuts to social programs some harsh measures were put into effect, one of the things they done was raising the required amount of hours…in order to secure employment insurance.”

According to Deutsch, the federal government has done very little to deal with this particular problem. “In this recent federal budget the only thing the feds did was increase the duration of benefits by only 5 weeks, there should be an additional 13 weeks at the least, he said. He recommends that the federal government needs to change legislation to coincide with these difficult economical times. “There should also be a provision… if the national unemployment rate hits 6.5 per cent, then there should be mechanisms to increase the number of benefits for up to two years.”

Restaurants find bill to count calories hard to swallow

An agency representing restaurants in Canada thinks a bill to require the posting of calorie content in all Ontario eateries is regressive.

On April 9, MPP France Gelinas (NDP) presented a Private Members Bill at Queen’s Park. Bill 156 would amend the Health Protection and Promotion Act, mandating restaurants grossing $5 million or more to disclose the calorie content and limit the amount of trans fat in their food and beverages.

Stephanie Jones, vice-president of the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (CRFA), said that the food industry wants to come up with a long-term solution, but Bill 156 is “reactionary.”

“Provincial regulations would be a step back,” she said. “A step forward would be federal regulations of the removal of trans fat from the whole food supply…We need the suppliers to eliminate trans fats so that we can ensure it doesn’t reach the restaurants.”

Gelinas is not convinced. She said she has garnered much support for Bill 156 and received positive feed back from the healthcare industry as well as the McGuinty administration’s Ministry of Health Promotion.

She also quoted statistics that indicate 60 per cent of Ontarians are overweight and one in every four children is either overweight or obese. Gelinas hopes the bill will move the McGuinty government to action.

Gary Wheeler, special assistant to the minister of Health Promotion admits there is need for improvement but said his ministry is looking for a long-standing solution.

“We encourage those on all sides of the debate to find ways to prevent childhood obesity and promote healthy eating,” he said.

Gelinas said part of the CRFA’s negative reaction to the bill comes from the potential cost to hire nutritionists to provide the calorie information to eating establishments. She also said one of the reasons for the “push-back” from the food industry may be the potential for lost revenue if calorie-conscious consumers are presented with healthier choices elsewhere.

“Once they (restaurants) make that information (calories) available,” she said, “they know some menu items won’t sell anymore. At the end of the day it will mean change for them…forcing them to bring items on their menus with less calories.”

Mario Gregorriu, owner of several Friendly Greek restaurants in Toronto disagreed. He said Bill 156 wouldn’t have any significant effect on his businesses because his establishments already provide healthy choices for his customers. However, he doesn’t support the bill because of the expected added expense.

“In these economic times…it’s not a good idea to add any additional costs to any business,” he said.

Meanwhile, the CRFA’s Jones said while the cost may be significant, she believes the greatest concern is standardization.

“As an industry we have over 11,000 members in Ontario and one of the key things when providing nutritional information is the need for standardization,” Jones said. “If there isn’t, then accurate nutritional information is not going to be available because the menu offerings and ingredient information (for some) will change on a daily basis.”

Wheeler said the discussion will raise awareness about healthy eating, which will play an important role in Ontarians well-being.

“Preventing obesity through healthy eating and physical activity is a priority for this government… (and) we encourage the restaurant industry to share as much information as possible with their customers so that people can make healthy choices.”

Minorities mostly hunger in ‘food deserts’: Study

A GTA nutritionist believes that areas of Toronto are what some describe as food wastelands.

The theory of areas in Canada not having access to nutritional foods was the main focus of a lecture on April. 3 held at Ryerson University.

Dr. Samina Raja addressed a conference on Designing and Planning for Agriculture. She along with her colleagues from the University of Buffalo conducted a study of food environments in Erie County, New York. They defined some urban areas as “food deserts.”

Guy Beaumont, a nutritionist who works with obese children, believes the same may be true in communities in Toronto.

“I used to live in Regent Park and when it came to groceries, it was hard to find foods with high nutritional value,” he said. “Instead there [was] pizza parlours, burger joints and corner stores…I had to shop outside of my own neighbourhood.”

Beaumont said he’s lived in both low-income city housing and in the suburbs. He recognized the difference when it came to shopping for fresh fruits and vegetables.

“It wasn’t until I moved out of the city (to Whitby) where I could get fresh foods and that’s exactly what I tried to instill in the families I work with,” he said.

Dr. Raja explained that the access to different types of food retail outlets, in primarily minority neighbourhoods, differs from that in predominantly white neighbourhoods.

Although her study took place in Fort Erie, N.Y., she believes this is a problem that goes beyond borders and can also include diverse cities such as Toronto.

“Access to fresh foods is worse for low-income and minority neighbourhoods,” she said.

“And when the quality of food in a community is poor, the residents are vulnerable to hunger and more susceptible to diet-related diseases like heart disease, obesity and diabetes.”

Kathy Thompson, 27, is a student at Ryerson University studying Urban Agriculture and its affects on modern society.

“Having the chance to listen to her speak makes one think of the many ways our health may be at risk simply by where we choose to live,” she said.

Dr. Raja said finally that there was an absence of supermarkets that produce fresh foods in neighbourhoods of colour when compared to white neighbourhoods.

However, her study also revealed a comprehensive network of small neighbourhoods of colour.  Supporting small, high quality grocer stores, rather than soliciting large supermarkets, she said may be a more effective strategy for ensuring access to healthy foods in neighbourhoods of colour in Toronto.

The Toronto-Danforth Riding – Forever Changing

By MATTHEW COHEN

 

For the past 44 years the NDP has been the political backbone of the Toronto-Danforth riding accumulating per cent of the votes shared this past election. The riding includes the areas of East York, Riverdale, Leslieville and the Leslie Street split.

 

Toronto-Danforth is mainly a blue-collared residential area with an average family income of $67,551 per year was originally created in 1976 as the Broadview-Greenwood riding. It’s consisted of 73 per cent Broadview and 27% East York ridings. In 1996, a section of Beaches-Woodbine was added-on. Four years later it was renamed Toronto-Danforth.

 

Laura Gomez, a Ryerson student who recently moved on the Danforth enjoys all the area has to offer.

 

“I really like the fact that the Danforth has everything I could want, whether it’s clothing boutiques to nice places to eat,” said Gomez. “More importantly, it’s an area I feel safe in.”

 

Culturally diverse, Toronto-Danforth includes large Greek (Hellenic), Italian and Arab and Chinese communities. The Chinese community averages 17 per cent of the ridings population.

 

The majority feel the NDP is best-suited for the job of finding solutions of residents’ problems with the environment, education, and property taxes.

 

Property taxes have always been an issue in this riding given the thin ratio between homeowners and renters which equal to 52 per cent to 48 per cent.

 

The hottest debate in this riding is Portlands Energy Centre and rumoured construction plans of transmission lines that would run across East York.

 

Re-elected MPP Peter Tabuns (NDP), who strongly opposes the transmission lines, promised his supporters he’s ready to work with the city to ensure that the people in his riding are given fair deal.

 

“Toronto is facing an energy crisis and its imperative that officials work together on coming up with alternative methods of producing energy for the city,” Tabuns said. “If not, we’ll be facing some real difficult times.”

 

For some, promises are as easily broken as they are made. George Boccioni owner of Sidewalk Café on Danforth Ave, gave his perspective on the riding and the changes he’s observed.

 

“I’ve lived in this neighbourhood for 40 years this December, I’ve seen the NDP make changes in this area and that’s good,” said Boccioni. “But for the most part, the neighbourhood is getting worse.” He adds, “Every four years these guys come around promising the people everything they want to hear, the truth is…NDP, Liberal or Conservative it doesn’t matter, as soon as their elected in office they seem to forget the promises that got them there.”

 

 

Access Granted

By MATTHEW COHEN

 

A major problem that people with disabilities have encountered is being able to integrate and fully function in society like everyone else. This is often a difficult task to do because those with disabilities are disadvantaged in regard to accessibility into the most common places “able-bodied” people take for granted such as malls, movie theatres, train/subway stations etc.

 

Cory Daniels, 31, has been confined in his wheelchair since he was in a car accident in 2001  that nearly took his life. Since then, he’s found it difficult to get around the city to continue to enjoy doing the activities he did prior to his accident.

 

“I used to go to the Harbor Front every weekend in the summertime, but now it’s simply not that easy,” Daniels said. ”I remember trying to take the TTC downtown for the first time after the accident, it was one of the frustrating experiences I ever had in my life.” He continued “I had to take the bus to a certain point  to get to the subway, only to have to get off either several stops before of after my intended spot because the initial station I want to get off on isn’t wheelchair accessible.”

 

Daniel is referring to the difficult time he endured maneuvering through Toronto’s transit system, and the lack of wheelchair accessible stations equipped with elevators and ramps oppose to a majority of stations that are only equipped with long flights of stairs and escalators.

 

Steps have been taking by the city to ensure that all Toronto residents are able to move freely through the city regardless of any disability by making Toronto more accessible to those with a disability which interferes with their mobility. Mayor David Miller says that the city has will continue to support and fund an “accessible” Toronto.

 

“Toronto City Council is committed to the goal of being a barrier-free city in which all people with disabilities can exercise their civil, political, social and cultural rights on an equal basis with other persons,” Miller said. “With continued support from the federal government, we will make all of Toronto available to everyone.”

 

The mayor said he understands the importance of accessibility in Toronto and vowed to produce results but hinted that money isn’t the only factor involved.

 

“This is an issue I feel strong about and our goal is attainable and will be accomplished,” Miller said. ”But there are steps that have to be taken when dealing with an issue of this magnitude. It’s going to take not only funding, but patience as well.”

 

The Disability Issues Committee advises City Council on the elimination of barriers faced by people with disabilities and liaises with external bodies to participation in public life and to the achievement of social, cultural and economic well-being of people with disabilities.

 

A primary role of the committee is to advise City Council about the preparation, implementation and effectiveness of the annual Accessibility Plan, as required by the Ontarians with Disabilities Act. The committee consists of several smaller organizations such as… 

• Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians
• Anne Johnston Health Station
• Bob Rumball Centre for the Deaf
• Canadian Council (AEBC) on Rehabilitation and Work
• Canadian Hard of Hearing Association (Ontario)
• Canadian Hearing Society
• Canadian Mental Health Association (Toronto)
• Canadian National Institute for the Blind
• Canadian Paraplegic Association – Ontario

The committee was designed to have 18 members; at least one from council, two-thirds of the committee should reflect the committee’s respective communities. The committee was also designed to have two co-chairs selected by members at the first meeting.

It’s this committees mandate to use their knowledge and expertise to provide advice to City Council, through the standing committees of Council, and act as a liaison with external bodies on barriers to participation in public life and to the achievement of social, cultural and economic well-being of the City’s residents.

Each Community Advisory Committee shall also address the specific issues facing particular communities, develop options for Council’s consideration and make recommendations for positive changes that geared towards improving the quality of the lives of the members of the City’s diverse communities.

Disability Issues Committee Administrator Rose Bettencourt, encourages Toronto residents to enquire about the concerns of the disabled in the city. She suggests that people get involved and come to the scheduled meetings if they have any questions or issue pertaining to disablism.

“The average person is unaware of the extreme hardships those with disabilities have, which is why this particular committee is so important to the city, she said.”

Guess Who’s in town?

(Matthew Cohen/Cohen's Gallery) Santa Claus is ready to start the festivites at Toronto's 2008 Santa Claus Day parade.

 

Crowds of people young and old, waited in anticipation for Santa, who arrived at the end of the parade proceeded by elaborate floats, marching bands and costumed characters all ringing in the festive season. One of this year biggest attractions was a 30 foot bubble-breathing dragon which left on-lookers in awe of the sheer size of the float not to mention the hundreds of bubbles that were being sprayed out of the dragons’ nose.

 

Although festivities started at 12:30 p.m., many arrived as early as seven in the morning to reassure a good spot for a chance to see the eclectic group of performers as well as Santa accompanied by his 12 reindeers.

 

“My daughter and I have attended the Santa Claus Parade since 92’ and now my son gets a chance to have fun, enjoy the scene and see what it’s all about, it’s become sort of a family tradition now. It seems to be getting bigger every year” said Susan Heitz accompanied by her daughter Sarah, 22, and younger son Jacob, 5.

The first Santa Claus parade took place on December 2^nd 1905 as a publicity stunt for the Eaton’s store to promote consumer shopping over the holidays. Over the years the parade became more extravagant. By 1970, more than 30 million people across North America were watching Eaton’s Santa Claus Parade on television with over 30 small and large floats and 500 marchers.

Today, the parade is the largest Christmas parade in the world with over 50 floats (25 of them animated), more than 100 celebrity clowns and 1,500 participants ranging in age from eight to 80. Along with being the largest Christmas parade, it’s also the longest running children’s parade raising $300,000 for various charities for children across the country.The parade broadcasts across North America as far away as New Zealand, Norway and Ireland.

“Canada’s Santa Claus parade is well known in England.” “I visited every year around this time to take my nieces and nephews to join the fun, it’s great, we love it” said John Rutherford holding his three year old nephew waving hi to Santa as he passes by.

 

Despite the gridlock traffic and dropping temperatures on Sunday, nothing was able to dampen the spirits of the thousands of people that gathered along the streets of downtown Toronto to be a part of this year’s parade.

 

 

 

 

NDP Victory for Toronto-Danforth

On election night residents of Toronto-Danforth riding spoke loud and clear about who they want to represent them at Queen’s Park, Peter Tabuns. He has been re-elected for his second term as MPP of Toronto–Danforth.

 

Spirits were high as the growing crowd anticipated Tabuns’ arrival at his campaign party held at the Fox & the Fiddle on Danforth Ave. and Carlaw Rd. last night.

 

Among those in attendance was NDP Federal Leader Jack Layton who introduced Tabuns to the podium to deliver his victory speech, praising the hard work of Tabuns and his ridings NDP supporters.

 

“Everybody’s out here to support Peter, Why? Because he’s the hardest working member of provincial government that anyone has ever seen,” Layton said. “Because no one is stronger on the environment than Peter Tabuns, and you can count on him to stand up for you, your family, and your neighborhood.”

 

Tabuns was greeted with cheers by supporters who raised their glasses in tribute to his campaign, he said, “Friends, my feet are tired, but my soul is rested,” in reference to the pair of running shoes he wore with his navy blue pin-stripped suit.He thanked those who supported him and the NDP as well as briefly discussing his plans to secure a fair property tax, take action on the environment by demanding the McGuinty government to abandon the issue of transmission lines that would cut through his riding.

          

Conservative rival Robert Bisbicis who finished third in the race, sat amongst a small group of supporters at Parisios Restaurant on Danforth Ave. Bibiscis focused his attention to the television set above the bar watching Conservative Federal leader John Tory address his campaign followers regarding the shortcomings of this election. Despite his loss, Bisbicis remained optimistic and confident the Tories will gain more support in the next election.

 

“Although I’m not sure that I’ll be running in the next election, I feel the voters of the Toronto-Danforth riding will see that the Conservatives platform is thoroughly planned out, and it’s going to take more broken promises to come to the realization that were best fit for the job.”

           

Liberals Joyce Rowlands who was Tabuns strongest opposition in the riding was unable to break NDP’s stronghold on the area. This being her last election, Rowlands made it a point that she’ll still be active within the liberal party.

 

Tabuns vowed to continue to secure a fair a deal to end Toronto budget crisis, mentioning that there are several main issues he would like to tackle.

 

“There are different levels of priority in this riding, were fighting against the power lines, fighting for a sustainable electrical system, right now Toronto is suffering because the province hasn’t paid its bills.” He added, “On a larger scale were fighting for a province that will do something about climate change, because if we don’t do something about that everything else we have is at risk.”

TTC burns a hole in student pockets

By MATTHEW COHEN

 

Everyday we wake up to start our early morning commute to work or school. Some of us walk, bike, drive, or take the bus. For those of us on campus unable to walk or bike to their campus because of distance or that they’re unable to afford a car, the most efficient and affordable solution is taking the bus. Unfortunately for us, TTC has raised there rates, again.

 

Andrew Nichollos, a member of the C.C.S.A.I. at the Progress campus explained the price increase for Centennial College students.

 

“We usually order around 2,500 Metropasses every month. Our contract with the TTC expires in December which means the rates given to students will increase by 10.52%, going from $87.75 to $96.98, Nichollos said.”

 

Based on the current volume of Metropass users, it is estimated that, on an annual basis, this will result in net additional annual fare revenue to the TTC of $10 million.

 

For the first 20 years the Metropass was sold, the price was equivalent to 52 adult ticket/token rides. Metropass riders have seen a “savings” of $15 per month in their costs of transit travel since 2003, while ticket and tokens users have been faced with increases of over 10%.

 

In light of the financial crisis which both the City and the TTC are now facing, and given that Metropass users have been “protected” from fare increases for almost five years. “John” (who asked that his name be with held in case of problems arising from talking to  the media without a union rep present) a 10 year veteran bus driver for the TTC considers it reasonable for TTC to add a “catch-up” in the price of a Metropass, on top of the across-the-board fare increase which is being recommended.

 

“Although I was unaware of the Metropass increase, I can understand why. I mean, c’mon, due the increase of counterfeit passes/tokens, the TTC loses out on a lot.” He adds, “It’s a business and the company has to find a way to make up for the loss. How else are they going to pay me?”

 

Jamiel Premji, a student from Centennial College’s Ashtonbee campus disagrees, in response he says the price increase isn’t fair to all ready cash strapped students.

 

“The TTC has been raising their rates for as long as I can remember and the city can’t do anything about it. Once talks of strikes pop-up, the city automatically caves in leaving users to bear the brunt of it by raising fees once again,” Premji said. “Now there’re even putting the squeeze on the wallets of cash-strapped students, as if we don’t have enough to pay for.”

Is the Signature Learning Experience working?

Faculty members at Centennial College say they disagree with the decision to phase out one-third of the post-secondary English curriculum at Centennial College.

It began with Centennial College President Ann Buller’s vision of the college’s identity. In 2004, Centennial’s Board of Governors (a counsel of civilian oversight vetted by Buller herself), endorsed the Signature Learning Experience (SLE) initiative. It was designed as an institutional model to promote a variety of sociological issues on what the college describes as “establishing identity within cultural diversity”. The name of the SLE course at Centennial is Global Citizenship (GNED 500).

Buller’s definition of Global Citizenship is “People understanding the world, how to connect to it and how they can give something back to it.”

“What we’re trying to do is give students a sense of who they are in the world, look at the world from a different perspective,” she said. Furthermore, “the social justice component of that is to have a sense within yourself that you can make a difference. The great thing about it is that you (the student) can then decide how you want to make a difference.”

Dave McCarthy has taught at Centennial College for 20 years. He served as chair of the advisory committee commissioned to research and assess the SLE initiative. He believes that it was a lofty plan driven primarily to increase enrollment, rather than being anchored in solid observations on the learning and teaching realities at Centennial.

“Replacing one-third of the post secondary English curriculum in the college in order to accomplish this (GNED 500: Global Citizenship), not only is very clearly destructive and dangerous, but the average consequences will be felt down the road,” McCarthy said. “What’s going to happen five years from now when we may have access to concrete data about just how less literate students are as a result of not being exposed to skill-building in the analysis of literature at the college level?”

The one-third of the English curriculum McCarthy is referring to is Approaches to Literature (GNED 101) formally known as (COMM180), which was initially, a mandatory course composed of various literary-based themes. The themes include Genocide Literature, First Nations literature, Literature of the Holocaust, Asian and Caribbean Literature were designed to counter-balance widely taught European-based literature.

Although Buller agrees that literature plays an important role in students’ education, she also believes that they’re other aspects of a student’s education to consider that will produce successful graduates from Centennial College.

“If we can inspire students to read and be engaged by using literature as a tool then that’s fantastic. I also happen to think there are many different means and/or tools we can use to inspire students to learn,” she said.

Kristi Harrison, Dean of Organizational Learning and Academic Development explained the idea behind the SLE was to create a learning experience as definable as our signature. She said, “The SLE wasn’t just about diversity, it teaches that equality means taking the difference (in students) in order to create equality of opportunity.”

The idea was that students would graduate with a “Signature Learning Experience” uniquely from Centennial College which will be carried with them throughout their lives. Although Harrison believes the SLE will help students’ employability skills through listening and comprehension training, some argue the claim that the GNED 500 course won’t provide student graduates the necessary skills to be successful in the workforce.

Omar Mosleh is a second year student at Centennial College. Despite receiving an “A” in GNED 500, he disagrees with Harrison’s belief that the contents of the course will enable him to be successful in his chosen career path.  He says the course is “full of broad knowledge” and would have a more impressionable affect on students at the high school level.

“It shouldn’t be mandatory to have to take such a broad liberal arts course; most people are in college for the faster route to their careers, he said.”

When asked if he would have preferred literary-based GNED 101 which was mandatory before the introduction of GNED 500 Mosleh said, “I think the literature would have been better because the ability to write, articulate and present ideas in my opinion would be important to any employer.”

Dorothy Kelleher, co-ordinator of English at the Centennial East York Campus and Ashtonbee agrees with McCarthy. She says that the GNED 500 course fails to meet the same standards in regards to teaching diversity; she emphasizes the importance of a mandated English curriculum at Centennial College.

“The best way to understand diversity is through literature,” she said. “I believe we develop more humanity, more sympathy and understanding of people’s lives through literature, than we would reading about them from a sociological approach. We live in a society where we’re lucky enough to have leisure time, and because they’re economically available, we can use that time and can go to the library to pick up books.”

Trish Coles, head of the newly formed School for Advancement, a combination of the English/English as Second Language (ESL), English for Academic Purposes (EAP) and General Arts and Science (GAS) departments, objects to Kelleher’s statement regarding leisure time as “a very middle-classed attitude”.

“I don’t think the majority of our students have leisure time” Coles said. She considers the role of critical thinking of greater importance than literature in the success of student graduates.

When Kelleher was asked why she felt literature is important not only to students education but for success in the workforce she said, “The constant practice of reading and writing will benefit students’ careers in ways such as reading the newspaper more effectively and writing resumes for job interviews”.

In response Coles said “I don’t think people today read newspapers, I think a lot more reading is done on-line for a variety of reasons”. She believes reading for pleasure is “social and economic based” and that “we have to recognize who our students are. Not everyone grows up in a literate culture,” she said.

McCarthy believes that’s all the more reason why there should be mandated English curriculum at Centennial College. He says it’s not only to strengthen the reading and essay composition skills of ESL students, but for students who have English as their first language and still struggle with the basic literary skills needed in the job force.

At Centennial a minimum of three GNED courses are required in order to graduate from a chosen program. When the SLE program along with the GNED 500 course, according to McCarthy “phased-out” GNED 101, it was made into an elective rather than a mandated course. As a result, this meant the course was available only if a student’s program subscribed to it.

“Clearly, no one set out to axe the curriculum,” McCarthy said. “It’s just that GNED 101 occupied an ideal spot in most model routes. Before long, a new course, GNED 500, was designed to occupy this spot as a mandatory course to try to establish the college brand.”

McCarthy explains that since the introduction of GNED 500 as a mandatory course, very few programs have managed to retain COMM 180. In turn, he believes this inhibits one of the necessary skills needed for students to become successful graduates of Centennial.

“In sacrificing the college’s only literature course and lowering what we define as college-level English from COMM 170/171 to 160/161, we’ve dramatically reduced students’ opportunity to extend their literacy at Centennial,” McCarthy said. “Even in the short term, this is problematic, especially for students who struggle with the concepts and language of GNED 500, a credit they need to graduate.”

In one case, Khalid Magram, a 3^rd journalism student felt it was a bad decision on the part of administration to make GNED 500 a compulsory course. This decision will prevent Magram from graduating on time with the rest of his class.

“At the time I couldn’t handle the course load, we weren’t told (initially) we had to take this (GNED 500), we were just bombarded with it,” Magram said. “I’ll have to wait until next fall to take it which will hinder my chances of getting placement next semester.”

Matt Noble took the course in 2005, “I think the course had a great objective, but it suffered from students’ unwillingness to embrace it because it was mandatory,” he said “I knew we were guinea-pigs.”

Noble’s remarks support the notion that some students see potential in the Signature Learning class, and feel it provides a good forum where students can openly interact and communicate about relevant social topics. It points out as well that the educational value may not be the point of argument; rather how the initiative is being applied to the overall curriculum at Centennial College.

“The SLE is indeed an impressive plan, the issue is, I have some very serious concerns about how it’s being implemented so far, McCarthy said.”

The original textbook for GNED 500 which was required for every student to purchase for $30, was composed merely of a collection of photocopied essays, commentaries and short stories. Since then, GNED 500 has undergone changes. Besides being re-named Global Citizenship, Harrison said an estimated $400, 000 (funded by student tuition) was invested into a re-development team to compose new textbooks for the revamped curriculum.

Since the restructuring of the GNED 500 curriculum and the improved textbooks (selling for $80.00 each,) the college has received more positive feedback according to Joyce Robinson, a faculty member who teaches GNED 500 at Centennial’s Ashtonbee campus.

“We’ve had students who at first didn’t know what the course was about, but after taking it gave feedback to how great the course was.”

But Magram still feels differently about what Global Citizenship has to offer him.

“I don’t need the SLE to feel like a global citizen,” Magram scoffed. “I’ve learned that a long time ago.” -30-

My Riding – Toronto-Danforth

Due to increased gas prices, time, and the proximity from getting back and forth to work, I recently moved and became a registered voter of the Toronto-Danforth riding, Ward 29. It spans from the Don  River south-bound down to the outer harbor, bordering in between Coxwell Ave to the Don Valley Parkway. This is your average blue-collar riding, plenty of small businesses such as restaraunts, shoe/clothing stores. Cuturally diverse, this riding has a large Hellenic, Italian and Chinese, African and Middle Eastern population. According to a 2001 census, “the immigrant population is more than 41 per cent. Almost 17 per cent listed Chinese as their ethnic origin and seven per cent are Greek. Over 41 per cent gave a language other than English or French as their mother tongue. ”

Toronto-Danforth riding predominantly supports the NDP. Peter Tabuns seems to have strong support, but occassionaly you start seeing a few more lawn signs drumming up support for the Liberals and suprisingly enough, the Green party.

In my point of view, Danforth-area is  family-orientated, high home-ownership, meaning issuses that canidates this upcoming election are going to have to address will be matters such as property taxes and education. 

The NDP, who seem to be in the lead  in the Toronto-Danforth area have apparently taking heed to the voters in their riding and have promised to…

• Cap industrial hydro rates, residential prpoerty tax assesments and transit fares.
• Eliminate the healthcare tax for low-income families and reduce tax by $450.00 for middle-income families over the next 4 years.
• Freeze college and tuition fees at  2003 levels for four years.
• Help cover cost for textbooks, supplies and other school programs the students help funraise for.

The NDP has had a strong voice within Ward 29. Can it be that they’ve paid close attention to what’s important to the voters by strenghening their stance on education and taxes (as stated on their lists of campaign promises) or is it that the Toronto-Danforth riding can’t afford to go back to the previously Liberal-based platform as it was in 2000. In other words, do the people  of Ward 29 trust that the NDP will get the job done, or is it just picking the less of 4 evils?