Thirty years ago, Halifax’s YMCA collaborated with partners in Palestine on a bold outreach initiative, but a few months ago, the same Y caved to pro-Israel pressure to demean a peacemaker. Part 1 tells the shameful story of the Halifax YMCA’s capitulation in 2025. This is Part 2, thirty years…
Thirty years ago, Halifax’s YMCA collaborated with partners in Palestine on a bold outreach initiative, but a few months ago, the same Y caved to pro-Israel pressure to demean a peacemaker. This is a tale of two YMCAs in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Actually, it’s the same YMCA, but divided by…
Seventeen years ago, in the wake of the Green Movement’s uprising and its suppression – when Iran had once again drawn the attention of right- and left-wing analysts worldwide – I wrote an article titled “The Tragedy of Left Discourse on Iran,” in which I critiqued the mistaken views of…
EDUCATION UNDER SIEGE: New Strategies Against Austerity – Friends House, Sat 23 May 2026 - Ontario’s higher education sector is at a breaking point. From the systematic marketization of colleges and universities to the sustained attack on labour rights, the provincial government’s strategy is clear: treat education as a commodity rather than a social good....
The following is an excerpt from Peter Ives’ book Rethinking Free Speech, Fernwood Publishing, 2024. Also check out this video interview with Peter Ives. The analogy that free speech acts as a “marketplace of ideas” originated with Justice Holmes’s comparison to speech being valued like a consumer buys products, functioning…
CLC votes to cut ties with the Histadrut At the beginning of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) convention earlier this week, democratic debate was blocked on a resolution to declare all Israeli goods, services, and institutional relationships Hot Cargo. Despite this, Labour for Palesti
Soon after Education Minister, Paul Calandra dropped Bill 101 Putting Student Achievement First Act, parents met at a Toronto District School Board (TDSB) meeting room to talk about their children’s special needs. Parent after parent explained dire situations in which their children find themselves: a teenager with hearing loss deemed…
