August 21, 2016
by Cynthia
Morning doves, my sister brought a fresh human into the world this weekend and I was just generally distracted from reading the internet all week. So please add anything I’ve missed in the comments. ALSO! It’s that end-of-August time and we need a break! We won’t have links for you for the next two weeks but will be back in full force after Labour Day.
- Colten Boushie was fatally shot last week after stopping with four friends at a farm to ask for help with a flat tire. On Thursday, while Gerald Stanley pleaded not guilty to second degree murder charges, hundreds rallied peacefully outside the court house in North Battleford, Saskatchewan. Follow #justiceforcolton for updates on demonstrations and gatherings, and, if you can, help support his family.
- On Wednesday, the US Department of Justice announced it will end the use of private prisons, which is a really big deal! However, as Aviva Shen points out, the majority of private prisons aren’t run by the DOJ but by Homeland Security and therefore the private prison industry will still have access to its biggest cash cow: immigrants. If you want to learn more about private prisons, you should really check out this incredible and very long Mother Jones investigative piece: My Four Months as a Private Prison Guard.
- “It is almost exclusively white men who do not need to retreat from domestic disputes while on ground deemed ‘theirs’” Patricia J. Williams on “stand your ground” laws.
- What Does It Mean To Be A Muslim Woman In The Modern World? Over the next few weeks at Medium, Fariha Róisín will be hosting conversations with Muslim women and femme-identifying folks – be sure to check it out!
- “I unlearned the story of fat black womanhood and then wanted to share this liberation with others.” Activist and fitness instructor Courtney Marshall on changing the fitness narrative.
- “You’re right, I didn’t eat that” is an old one, but was making the rounds again this week and it’s well worth a (re)read: “I have become increasingly up-front that for me, it takes an enormous effort to stay small. That it takes up my time and energy and by extension, might end up taking some of theirs as well if we are together.”
- Zoe Todd on etiquette and settlers complaining about discrimination: “this couple didn’t have to dress up in their costumes to approximate the Victorian era because in Canada, in many ways, we are still living the Victorian era nightmare that won’t end.”
- After protesting the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline for months, the Oceti Sakowin (Sioux) have been served a court order to stop blocking construction of the pipeline. The project puts the Oceti Sakowin’s water and land at risk, and while the restraining order is now in place, protests will likely continue further from the construction site.
- Toronto Life profiled four workers employed by Ontario’s Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program, who are enduring 12-hour work days, low pay, and poor working conditions in order to support their families at home.
- Cléo released their latest issue, LOL this week! The ed note is wonderful as usual, and I cannot wait to dig into the rest of it.
- Jill Soloway’s pilot for her new show, an adaptation of Chris Kraus’s I Love Dick, was released Friday. Another thing I can’t wait to check out!
- “In my experience, I have noticed that men rarely steal women’s dreams by forbidding them outright. Instead, they take our dreams slowly, over time, by urging us to be practical, by appealing to common sense.” A difficult piece on three generations of women seeking financial independence from controlling husbands
- If you are a faculty member, administrator, or instructor at a Canadian university or college that has experience teaching Indigenous content, please fill out this short (10ish minutes) anonymous online survey for a study being done by Adam Gaudry and Danielle Lorenz.
- Tanya Tagaq announced her new album Retribution this week, saying this album will be more political than anything she’s ever done. Check out the trailer and tracklist here!
- Shut up kiss me hold me tight: the many lives of Angel Olsen
- FINALLY: Frank Ocean!
heya- its north battleford, saskatchewan. not battlefield.