A lot of AI discourse masks the fact that it is the result of a series of policy choices. Despite the government evoking Margaret Thatcher’s infamous “there is no alternative,” we do have a choice. And we should be serious about what that choice is.
A guide to standing up to book bans and beyond, and how to protect and strengthen public education in Canada
After 30 years of treaty talks, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission findings, and the adoption of the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, First Nations still face racism on a systemic basis. Can Indigenous People ever find justice in this province? John Price and Nicholas XEMŦOLTW̱ Claxton,…
First published in the Winnipeg Free Press Friday May 7, 2021 When it comes to the problem of racism in Canada’s education system, racism is built into the very system. So, what is “new” with the government of Manitoba’s Bill 64? If passed into law, it will further entrench systemic…
Last month the Commonwealth Fund – a United States organization promoting evidence-based quality health care in that country – published a study comparing the U.S. healthcare system with that of several other industrialized countries, including Canada. Entitled “Mirror, Mirror on the Wall”, it ranked the U.S.A. system last on accessibility,…
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL REPORT The federal government must move to implement ambitious and comprehensive legislation to support workers and communities in the shift toward a net-zero carbon economy, according to a new report, Roadmap to a Canadian Just Transition Act: A path to a clean and inclusive…
Neoliberalism a colossal failure — it mustn’t be continued Once upon a time there was a global economic crisis. It was followed by a World War. Once upon a time we realized that, if we could make that kind of a mess together, we might be able to get together…
The problem of equitable access to high speed Internet in Canada entered the election campaign on Wednesday, August 26, when Stephen Harper promised that a re-elected Conservative government would spend an additional $200 million to promote high speed access in rural and remote communities. Although the promise is short on…
As 7-Eleven applies to serve beer and wine in 61 stores across Ontario, spare a thought for alcohol policy experts. Around the world, scholars have done extensive research into drinking and its effects. It’s important work: Alcohol, while often enjoyable, is not good for us. It’s addictive. It’s linked to…
A year into the pandemic, there is a near-universal realization across Canada that the recovery must include large-scale public investments to build a quality, affordable child care system. This would enable parents with young children, in particular mothers, to return to work or pursue educational opportunities to support children’s healthy…
Preschool-age fees rise in 27 of 37 large Canadian cities while many sites face existential crisis READ THE FULL REPORT HERE. Full-time licensed child care in most Canadian cities is struggling under the financial burden of COVID-19—registering a dramatic drop in enrolment while revenue-generating parent fees remain unaffordably high, according…
In light of a surge in anti-racist uprisings, provincial legislators may want to take a moment to reflect upon what their predecessors did in taking “British Columbia” into Canada 150 years ago in 1871. When the legislature recently reconvened, we hope that MLAs paused and listened to the stories that…
Now that Canada is in the fiscal red, taxes appear to be coming back into fashion. A surprisingly broad swath of Canadians — and not your usual suspects — are musing aloud about the need to raise taxes to tackle the deficit and to pay for the things we care…
Lord Selkirk Park Recent events in Gilbert Park have cast Winnipeg’s North End public housing complexes in a negative light. An opposition politician has called Gilbert Park a “ghetto” and “crime incubator”. Some poverty ‘experts’, in statements attributed to them by the media, have implied that conditions in public housing…