At a time when gender-balanced cabinets are the norm in the House of Commons, it’s difficult to imagine a 52-seat provincial assembly with only one female member. But that was Alexa McDonough’s reality 40 years ago when she became the first woman to lead a political party in a Canadian legislature. In his stellar new … Continue reading ‘Alexa!’ is a compelling portrait of an influential leader →

Annual celebrations of working-class arts and culture in Halifax, Toronto, and Winnipeg will go ahead next month. But the ongoing pandemic means most events and activities will take place online. “We’ve planned events all along where we had contingency plans,” said Sébastien Labelle, festival director of Mayworks Kjipuktuk/Halifax. While organizers are hoping to have in-person participation … Continue reading Mayworks festivals to celebrate working-class arts and culture →

Delegates to the federal NDP convention were unfairly and inaccurately criticized by a Canadian lobby group yesterday. The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs swiftly condemned delegates for overwhelmingly approving resolution 04-10-20 (Justice and Peace in Israel-Palestine). According to the CIJA, the adoption of the resolution betrayed the NDP’s “toxic obsession” and “pathological preoccupation” with … Continue reading No, the NDP doesn’t have a ‘pathological preoccupation’ with Israel →

Canada should leave the North Atlantic Treaty Organization because the alliance has outlived its mandate, undermines international peace and cooperation, and is a major contributor to climate change. That was the message from panelists during an April 3 webinar hosted by the Canadian Foreign Policy Institute.    “Yes, Canada should leave NATO,” American author and … Continue reading Leave NATO to promote peace and fight climate change, panelists say →

Art Bergmann is on a roll. Fresh off his appointment to the Order of Canada, the former K-Tels/Young Canadians frontman is set to release his first studio album in five years. Late Stage Empire Dementia, an eight-song collection on Toronto’s (weewerk) label, contains some of Bergmann’s best-ever work. Written between 2016 to 2020, the music … Continue reading Art Bergmann is back, and better than ever →