On November 25, people around the world commemorated the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Violence against women is a complex cultural issue that can be examined from different angles. To be changed it needs the compromise of all social sectors to end it. This year the Latino community proposed to remember this day in a different way; with the proposal to examine violence against women in the form of songs, music and art from a variety of languages, cultures and artists.The event’s purpose was to examine art and culture and interpret what the lyrics in songs were really saying or what art was really expressing. The exercise unveiled what those apparently sweet songs or art pieces really mean to say, and how these words or art were the expression of violent men with aggressive intentions toward women. And in the process, discovering a hidden violent message in artistic expression, included looking for empathy for the aggressor and blaming the victims. Gender violence is not only physical, and it can take many other forms to devalue women, to instil fear, to limit their autonomy, to isolate them in the family and in the social wider context –as per example inequity at work. These different forms of violence have negative consequences on women’s physical and mental health, and have a negative impact on their children, who are witness of the violence against their mothers These are not issues usually examined in a fun and interactive manner, but this was the proposal of Latin@s en Toronto, (with the support of the Counsil of Spanish Heritage, Colectivo 65 and Ashtor). Using the tools given by music, sense of humour and poetry, the audience and organizers lost the fear of looking for new meanings in words and songs. The meeting was at 1265 St. Clair Ave. West (Evoke Gallery). The participants only needed to bring a good sense of humour and be willing to smile.
The separation is in the preparation
When the weather starts to turn and nights grow colder, you know it’s time to button down your coat and also time to button down the homestead. There are some very inexpensive and simple tasks that one can do to prepare for winter, and be better prepared for spring. Most people are under the impression that they need to spend large sums of money or devote several hours to their yard to achieve desired results, however this is not true.The first thing you do is get a rake and collect all leaves, sticks, and debris from your lawn and place all items in a bio-degradable yard bag. After placing said bag at the curb, and maybe taking a small break, start over by raking your entire lawn, don’t be afraid to pull up some of the grass. This process is called dethatching and its purpose is to let your lawn breathe by removing dead grass or weeds from your perennial ground cover. Rake all dead grass and whatever was uprooted into a pile and place in same or new yard bag. A 750 sq. ft. yard should not take more than 25 minutes to dethatch. The time it takes to rake leaves before dethatching will obviously vary based on the amount leaves or debris that has fallen onto your property.The next thing you’ll want to do is walk around your house to check your downspouts. Do this by examining the opening of the downspout and make sure there are no objects blocking where the water will come out. At around waist level, start to knock on the downspout and reaching upwards until you can’t reach any further. You are checking to see if there are any obstructions in the downspout. The other step of this involves ladder work so if you can afford to have your eaves trough cleaned professionally I would suggest that. It ranges in price averaging from $100-$200 which will include the cleaning of your eaves, and the clearing of any clogs your downspout may have. This part of fall/winter maintenance is very important because of the potential for flooding as well as icy walkways where water might freeze in the winter. Although the eaves are important to clean at least once a year (twice a year would be best) if you ensure your downspouts are clear and flowing you will not have any flooding issues and water will still be carried away from your house where you want it.Last is something I call basic practical planning. And all it entails when it comes to fall/winter maintenance is thinking about the worst case weather scenarios and how they may affect your home and property. What could you maybe do in order to prevent some or all of these things from happening? For example, if you have kids and those kids have lots of yard toys, basketball or hockey nets etc., on the property then those objects may present a problem if it gets really windy. Ask yourself if things I have outside get wet, or dirty, or covered in snow, will they survive? Are there any tripping hazards that will be made more dangerous if covered in snow? Basically you have a walk around your property and just look at what you have out there and weigh the pros and cons of bringing things inside or leaving them to brave the elements.There you have it! I’ve shown and explained a few basic things that you can do to prepare the outside of your home for winter, and the New Year. You’re ready to do some maintenance now, please remember to wear a pair of supportive shoes and gloves for protection while doing any work on your home. Be careful and enjoy your beautiful property.
William Baker Park: now open to the public
An area North of Downsview Park, the former site of military housing for the former Downsview Air Force Base is now open for the public to enjoy.The area, North of Sheppard Ave. W, and East of Keele St., and its beautiful woodlot had been off limits to the public since the military base closed in 1996, has been converted into William Baker Park.“I am proud to have worked in opening up the beautiful space to the community by taking down the fences and improving access,” said Councillor Anthony Perruzza.The former housing has now been taken down, leaving only the greenspace, the city has also created nature trails and has installed park benches for people to enjoy the space.Perruzza said the park will be available to the community for years to come as it has been designated as a natural habitat and the city’s secondary plan and thus will remain protected.“I would like to see Canada Lands recognize and preserve this beautiful park and to see the greater community regularly enjoy and explore it,” Perruzza said.Have you been to the new park? If so, tell us what you think, send in your pictures or post on our social media pages.
Student pulled out of class at Amesbury Middle School due to hairstyle
Do we need rules regulating hair styles in schools?A black female student in grade eight, who attends Amesbury Middle School in North York, was recently admonished by her principal for wearing her hair in a natural style. The student was pulled out of class and purportedly told that she looked unprofessional and would never get a job looking the way she did. The most surprising thing is that the principal is also black. This story went viral on social media when the students’ aunt, Kaysie Quansah, took to Facebook to express her outrage at what had happened to her niece. Her post was passionate, she seemed hurt by what her niece had gone through. She stated, that the Principal “told my niece that she needs to put her hair up, gave her a hair band/scrunchie/ponytail holder (whatever you'd like to call it) and repeatedly told her to do something about her hair.” A principal is an educator and should be a strong leader, someone who provides a positive environment for our children. When we drop our children off at school in the morning, we leave them there in hopes that they will be cared for by the best people in the community. Educators have a big responsibility; to impact our children’s’ lives in the most positive way possible. The Facebook statement contradicts this notion, “My sister was then called and told that my niece's hair was *too poofy*, *unprofessional*, that *no one would hire her with hair like that*, and if *she were working in a store, no one would buy anything from her*”.This story hit home for me, as a mother of mixed children (of Latino, black and white background) and as another social problem that we ignore on a daily basis. We must teach our children self-love not self-hate, we must teach them that what is most important is what is on the inside, how we treat people and how to be respectful of others and their situations.It is sad to see self-hate, because it demonstrates that there is a bigger issue at play here. The student’s aunt states it well, “I would like to know what gives you the authority to be the decision maker on stunting my nieces' dreams by telling her that she cannot achieve careers based off her looks. (Principal) why are you projecting your SELF HATE onto my niece? (Principal) love yourself, and allow my niece to do the same.”Kuddos to the family for making this story known to the media, which led to an outpour of support for the family.
Let us know what you think about this story. Do you think physical appearance should affect the education we receive in our schools or job opportunities later in life?
Giving up the Vote
It was great to see that our recent federal election had one of the highest voter turnouts since 1993, at 68%. It also had the highest amounts of visible minorities being elected as MPs. But what about the specific turnout of visible minority groups? How did minority vote fair up in this last election? The First Nations community increased their votes so much that two ridings ran out of ballots. Thanks to social media, the youth vote also increased in this year’s 42nd election where the Liberal party won a majority. However these advancements for minorities can distract from the plight of other marginalized groups, such as Black Canadians, very few of which have been elected to parliament, and none chosen for Trudeau’s “diverse” cabinet. After interviewing several minorities in our Humber River, Black Creek riding, many minorities claimed that they voted and encouraged their children to vote. The few that did not vote claimed that their vote did not matter so they did not bother voting. Some even claimed, “All politicians are the same”. Others claim our existing democracy is too shallow. However, have we taken the time to really learn about our political system? Who were the 5 candidates running in our riding and what were their platforms? Who are the major Canadian political parties and what do they represent? What does left wing and right wing even mean? If you have not had schooling in Canada, all of this may be unfamiliar and there is rarely a crash course in Canadian politics.
Though the current political structure may not benefit the majority of people, refusing to vote makes citizens compliant to the current system. It says I agree with the decisions our government makes. As citizens our vote matters and we have the opportunity to promote positive values. Our one vote can help to change systems and reform policies. Collectively, we can promote long-term change, one vote at a time. So whether it be another federal election, provincial or the municipal election, get out and make your opinion matter by casting your vote!
Because I am a girl: changing how I view school
As a girl, sometimes it can be very hard to learn in school. I’ve struggled in school with my academics. In grade 6, I started going to tutoring at More Than Marks tutoring and they helped me to study more. I knew that if I was going to grade 7, something would have to change. Since tutoring, I’ve seen a drastic change in my academics as well as my socializing.I went from being a girl who was just getting by in school to getting A’s on my test and also being student of the month. I personally realized that it’s not just about doing the work or practicing, it’s really about taking the responsibility to say “Yes, I want to learn”. I can make my parents proud by achieving more in school and in life, which leads to success.
Some girls like me may think that they can’t get good grades and improve in school but if you try your hardest you will get to where you want to go. By simply asking for help when needed you can help yourself and others. For example, my family and friends have made me feel more confident about myself and they have made me feel proud. Tips that I’ve personally used are: hanging around responsible people and being respectful to others. Also, it’s very helpful to listen in class and pay attention so that you don’t fall behind. A quote I made up for myself was, “Fill up your car with hope, motivation and courage and then start driving and you’ll get to your destination!”
We will make every Vote count
It’s written right there on the Liberal’s Real Change website, posted during the 2015 election: “We will make every vote count.”Right before the 2015 election, the Liberals wanted to change our voting system, and they wanted it done ASAP. In fact, they stated they were “committed to ensuring that 2015 will be the last federal election conducted under the first-past-the-post voting system.”This is great news for our democracy.Our current system is called, first-past-the-post voting. In this system, if the candidate you voted for in your riding doesn’t win, your vote is lost. As a result of this, more than half of all votes don’t count in current elections and majority governments are elected with less than 50% of the popular vote.Thanks to our voting system, here are your options when the political party/leader you like best is in third according to polls:
- Rather than vote, stay home because your vote won’t count.
- Vote for the party you like most and accept that your vote won’t count.
- Vote for second best because you don’t want your vote to be wasted…
Option (c) is called “strategic voting” which means you just wait around and watch the polls to figure out what everyone else is doing so you can figure out whom to vote for to block the worse option. Yes, make up your mind based on what you think other people might do. Not very inspiring, is it?In the 2011 federal elections, and for the first time ever, the Liberals were a victim and not a beneficiary of strategic voting. It’s ironic, since Liberals always tell NDP and Green voters to vote strategically to block Conservatives. In the end, the Liberals ended up in third place for the first time ever. And man, were they bitter about it.Thanks to our first-past-the-post system, the Liberals ended up with almost 20% of the votes but only 11% of the seats in parliament. That meant almost half of all Liberal votes were effectively wasted and ignored. Another silly by-product of the election was that Harper got a majority government when 60% of people voted against him. A majority government means that one party has 100% of the power until the next election.So, the Liberals began talking about changing the voting system to make “every vote count”. It only took a historic colossal defeat for the Liberal establishment to finally talk about doing the right thing.Proportional representation makes every vote countLuckily, there is currently a voting system that counts every vote. That system is called proportional representation and it appears in far more countries than our system. In fact, 7 of the top 10 countries as ranked by the Legatum Prosperity Index have a form of proportional representation. Only one country, Canada (ranked 6th), uses first-past-the-post voting.In proportional representation, the percentage of seats a party receives in parliament is proportional to the number of votes they receive across the province or country. That means if your candidate doesn’t win the seat, then your vote still has an effect on the make-up of government. No more wasted votes.In 2011, under proportional representation, the Liberals would have received 20% of the seats because they received 20% of the votes. The Conservatives would have had a minority government with 40% of the seats in parliament. A minority government means politicians have to compromise with other parties in order to table a budget and make things happen. This means that even if the party you wanted loses, they (and therefore you) still have a say on policy.Proportional representation makes every vote count, diminishes the need for strategic voting and only creates majority governments when they are deserved.Will the Liberals improve our democracy or simply help themselves?The results of this past election may in fact be a terrible blow to electoral reform. With a country-wide anti-Harper swing, strategic voting gave the Liberals a majority government (with only 39% of the vote!).We saw that the Liberals became serious about changing the voting system when they thought it could benefit them. Now that our unfair electoral system has benefited them again, will they change it?If they do, my bet is that they will go for preferential/ranked ballot because it is the system they believe will benefit them the most. In this system, you rank your first, second, third, etc. choice when you vote but it does not fix the fact that your first choice will likely get ignored. As such, millions and millions of first place votes will get wasted again. Ranked ballot systems are a terrible choice for creating multi-party democracy and easily create majority government even though the winner gets less than 50% of people’s first choice.The Liberals like this because they believe they are everybody’s second choice and thus ranked ballot will benefit THEM the most.In their platform, the Liberals said they would “convene an all-party Parliamentary committee to review a wide variety of reforms”. Sounds fair, right? They can easily stack the committee with politicians to get the result they want.The real way to make every vote count is proportional representation, a system of government that respect’s people first choice on how they believe their country and province should be run. What the Liberals do on improving our democracy above all will determine if they are serious about real change.
Can you believe?
When it comes to product labeling, the award for first place goes to Unilever for a product they dubbed, “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!” It isn’t; and to be truthful I’m not quite sure what it is. You know; it’s the white and yellow tub that sits on the margarine shelf in the supermarket; the one that is periodically put on sale for $1.It was the name of the product that induced me to try it and I have to admit that it’s the taste that keeps me using it. Although when I read the ingredients I can’t fully understand why I keep eating it.The package boldly proclaims “Made with Sweet Cream Buttermilk” but on the ingredient list, in tiny letters, says, “Buttermilk powder (milk)”. Product labeling regulations in both Canada and United States require ingredients on package labels to be listed in the order of their quantity from largest to smallest. They don’t have to give the quantities (ie. reveal their recipe) but they must provide you with the ingredients. In this product, buttermilk comes after salt so you can infer from this that the entire one pound (454 gram) tub of margarine contains less “sweet cream buttermilk”; err sorry, “buttermilk powder” than it does salt.What happened to the “sweet cream buttermilk”? In fact there is no milk at all. On the original package they did discretely mention, in small letters, that it was “margarine”, sort of in a whisper. Now it has become a “SPREAD” although they call it a “buttery spread” (whatever that means). It should be re-named; “Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter or Even Margarine Spread!” Wikipedia tells us that the product was developed in 1979 by the J.H. Filbert Company based in Baltimore Maryland before it was bought out by Unilever. Unilever is a multinational corporation. It owns more than 400 brands. They brought “almost butter” to Canada back in 1991.I love their commercial. A handsomely masculine bearded guy kneading dough at an outdoor market smiles and says to a couple of attractive women, “I love making the kind of food you really love putting in your body” 100% taste, 0% artificial preservatives, purified water (just like it comes out of your tap), “just a pinch of salt”. Oops…that pinch of salt is actually 90 milligrams per tablespoon, which is much more than the pinch in the Canadian product which contains 60 mg. of salt per two teaspoons.If the Canadian teaspoons are metric teaspoons and the tablespoon is a U.S. tablespoon the salt content will be even higher, 133 mg, that’s more than double! I telephoned the company to ask but the consumer representative didn’t know.Oh by the way, the fine print on their web site candidly confesses to unavoidably using some genetically modified oils (just a trace) but not to worry; there may even be less than the “sweet cream buttermilk” in their Canadian Product. Sorry but the healthier version hasn’t come to Canada yet. As their website proclaims, “Now that’s something you can feel good about.”The “can’t believe” website boldly avers: “We believe that what we take out is just as important as what we put into our buttery spreads”.Their commercial ends with, “It’s time to believe.”But is it?
Hundreds of people lined up for the famous annual Turkey Giveaway at Downsview Park
Thanksgiving is the time of year when we reflect on our blessings and show gratitude for the little things. It is a great time to get together with friends and family to share food, drinks and laughs. For the ninth year in a row the Downsview Park Merchant’s Market gave away hundreds of frozen turkeys, bags of potatoes, cranberry sauce and/or pasta at their annual event on the thanksgiving long weekend. This event gives families, who normally wouldn’t be able to afford a big turkey dinner, the chance to enjoy this holiday stress free. It builds the community and ensures the inclusion of all during this time of year. The Merchant Market fully funds and oversees all costs associated with the giveaway and vendors from the Farmer’s Market donate hundreds of pounds of potatoes. Thousands of visitors stopped by the market on Sunday, October 11 to participate in the successful event. MPP Judy Sgro and Liberal candidate Michael Levitt participated in the lineups. There was fantastic entertainment by Naomi that sang while people waiting in line for their turkey. “It was truly wonderful to see so many smiles on so many faces as residents picked up their turkeys. We love the opportunity to give back to the community every year.”For more information on this event contact: bobborielly@gmail.com or dpmarket@msn.com.By: Maria Solis
An aspiring, 11 year-old, goalie with over 30 silver and gold medals
“Determined would be the best word to describe him, he believes this is what he’s going to do for the rest of his life.” Joseph Macri is not your average 11 year old boy; he’s an aspiring goalie with over 30 silver and gold medals. Since age four he’s been on the ice and loving every moment. He’s now a “top goalie, every year at every level” says his proud father, Pino Macri. From a young age he demonstrated passion for the game. Most kids don’t wake up in the morning wanting to get on the ice and learn to play hockey, but Joseph loves it. Although he’s had several Triple A offers, his father decided to hold off so that Joseph could focus more on his skill building. He is now playing Double A and also plays with the Toronto GT Capitols and on his school hockey team. Joseph takes hockey “very seriously” says his dad. “He’s on the ice 13 times a week; gets up at 6:00 a.m. every morning to practice and does an hour and a half of dry land training in the afternoon.” This past September, Joseph received a scholarship to attend PEAC, an elite school for athletes that specializes in hockey, lacrosse, figure skating, soccer, rugby and baseball. The schools mission is to further the development of student-athletes and to help them become respectful individuals, top level performers in their sport, and life-long learners who are career-oriented. When asked how he felt to be attending PEAC, Joseph said: “Good! I feel proud of myself.” Every kid in the school trains specifically to their sport. Goalie training includes an hour and a half Monday to Thursday and one hour of strength training per week. Fridays are used to catch up academically and for tournaments that also go through the weekend. The school has the highest ratio for athlete to coach and Joseph is the youngest goalie, training alongside two 16 year old goalies that have been drafted to the OHL. To Joseph, the hardest part of being a goalie is “the concentration in the game, it’s hard to stay in the game.” But when asked how he prepares for a game he says: “I think about it in my head and visualize the game and focus really hard.” His training includes a lot of learning to control the ice and speed intolerance. Robb Nelson, Managing Director at PEAC described Joseph as “hardworking, ambitious and hungry to get better and wants to be the best.” Joseph’s determination, dedication and passion for hockey has impressed many people he’s come to know. His coaches have nothing but great things to say about him and are so proud of his ability to take direction and defend the game as a goalie. "In all my years in hockey development... even at the NHL level... I have never met an individual with more courage than Joseph! As a net minder his passion to stop a puck is second to none. I would recommend Joseph to any coach looking for a goalie with a great attitude and willingness to battle every shot he faces!” Tim Turk, Goalie Coach Joseph and Pino Macri would like to give a very special thank you to: Tim Turk, goalie coach; Joe Venuto & Trisha Kalezic, of Impact Hockey; Robb Nelson from PEAC; and to Todd Miller of the OHL Barrie Colts and all coaches for their years of hard work with Joseph. Joseph’s favourite NHL team is the Montreal Canadians and his favourite player is Perry Price, goalie for Montreal Canadians. Watch out for this kid, his proven potential and good work ethic will likely get him into the NHL one day!By: Maria Solis