This coming Thursday, Sept. 30th, is Orange Shirt Day and the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Although it is a statutory holiday for all federally regulated employees, it is unfortunately not a statutory holiday for provincially regulated employees. As the overwhelming majority of workers are employed in sectors that are provincially regulated, relatively very…
Category: British Columbia
Don Davies has my vote!
I am devoting my blog this week to Don Davies, member of Parliament for Vancouver Kingsway. Don has long been my very favourite MP. I first came to know him before he was elected to Parliament in 2008. Before he was an MP, he would always very graciously support COPE fundraisers I was organizing. At…
Unprecedented heat wave demands unprecedented action
Wow, has it ever been hot! Past temperature records throughout the province are being surpassed. The town of ‘Q’əmcín (also known as Lytton, BC) has broken temperature records three days in a row, reaching an all-time high of 49.6°C on June 30, which was the highest ever recorded anywhere in Canada since record keeping began. In…
The legacy of residential schools is not history
Content warning: This story has disturbing details about Indian residential schools. Survivors and their families can call the toll-free National Indian Residential School Crisis Hotline at 1-866-925-4419. On Thursday, May 27, Chief Rosanne Casimir of the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc Nation announced that they had located the unmarked burial sites of 215 children on the site…
RIP the NPA!
The Coroner just arrived at NPA headquarters. She could find no pulse! The death certificate will be issued any day. On April 21 three of the four remaining NPA city councillors, Lisa Dominato, Colleen Hardwick, and Sarah Kirby-Yung left the NPA. Those of you who have been reading my blog over the last few months…
David Eby: A big heart and no fear when it comes to housing
In the past, I’ve been very critical of the provincial NDP with regard to housing, with one notable exception — NDP Premier Dave Barrett’s 1972-75 administration. I still remember the day, while on a high school field trip to Victoria, I had the good fortune of running into Premier Barrett outside the legislature. In a…
Pinpointing what’s possible when it comes to vaccines
On the COVID-19 front, I’m delighted to share some great personal news! Out of the blue the other day, I got a call from Pacific Spirit Community Health Centre, which is part of Vancouver Coastal Health. Would I like a nurse to come to my home the next day to give me the vaccine? Of…