Bloc bill seeks to protect Quebec seats as riding redraw gets underway
The Bloc Québécois has begun its push to protect Quebec’s share of seats in the House of Commons through a new private member’s bill from MP Martin Champoux, following leader Yves-François Blanchet’s vow to “unleash the fires of hell” if the province loses a seat through the now-ongoing electoral redistribution process. Tabled on Feb. 8, […]
Amid the tide of whitelash, we remain unmoored
OTTAWA—#MakeOttawaBoringAgain is closer to a reality after a weekend of arrests and removals of convoy occupiers. Only, we didn’t win anything. In fact, we lost. We are lost. As the waters recede, what is left is a white supremacist, authoritarian movement that has grown in strength, in support, in finances, and in political influence. For […]
‘We’re stronger together’: African Senate Group responds to protest, seeks ‘meaningful’ change in Red Chamber
Since Feb. 2, Ontario ISG Senator Bernadette Clement has gone to work on foot, walking from her downtown Ottawa apartment through the protest encampment along Wellington Street to her East Block office, and on to the Senate of Canada Building. Worried about the anti-lockdown occupation that took root in Ottawa on Jan. 28, friends and […]
‘Freedom Convoy’ a seditious campaign organized by those with more a dangerous agenda
TORONTO—The ability of a small group of anti-vaxxers, white supremacists, conspiracy theorists, anti-democracy activists, Nazi sympathizers, and others calling for the overthrow of the federal government to hold the country hostage and threaten then rule of law has shocked Canadians and created an ugly image of Canada that has amazed the rest of the world. […]
Facing labour shortages, Canada needs to mobilize all its talent
Despite having one of the world’s most educated populations, a gender gap in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) still exists in Canada. On Feb. 11, as we celebrate International Day of Women and Girls in Science, it is essential that we take the opportunity we have to move the dial to […]
Those who can’t hear must feel
OTTAWA—It’s so rare for political pundits to be right—just look at Stephen Maher. Or John Ibbitson. Or Jesse Brown. Or Jen Gerson. But I can assure you that this is not the case for yours truly. I’ve been telling y’all. We are now into Day 12 of the “Freedom Convoy,” which has turned into an […]
Veteran Hill reporter Joan Bryden retires, ‘Canadian politics is poorer for it,’ and Black History Month begins
Early in the morning on Feb. 1, long-time Parliament Hill and federal politics reporter Joan Bryden announced the beginning of her official retirement and an end to her time with The Canadian Press’ parliamentary bureau. “I am officially a retired person today. This will take some adjustment after 40 years in daily journalist, 34 of them […]
Comparing ‘freedom’ protest to other social movements is unfair and dangerous, says MP, activists
Activists and organizers of movements like Black Lives Matter and Idle No More say comparing their movements to the actions by protesters at this week’s anti-vaccine-mandate protest in Ottawa is “ludicrous.” In Question Period on Jan. 31, Conservative MP and deputy leader Candice Bergen (Portage-Lisgar, Man.), who has been criticized for engaging with the group […]
Work across the aisle to advance gender equality in the Arctic
I was raised by a single mother of four boys—not an easy task in the 1960s and ’70s. But she managed to keep food on the table and clothes on our backs and care for us all by working three to four jobs at the same time. After I was born, she needed to change […]
Alexa McDonough and the cost of blazing trails
Trailblazing isn’t easy, but those who knew her say Alexa McDonough had the character and resilience to do it with grace, earnestness, and always a sense of humour. Since her recent death, McDonough has been described as a “role model,” an “icon,” and the reason many women in politics who came after her were able […]
