Briarpatch articles from September 2002

Briarpatch archives from September 2002

Openers.(brief notes)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... "Safe" for Whom? On June 28th, the Liberal government put into effect several changes to immigration legislation. These changes will greatly increase the state's powers of detention, bar those on social assistance from sponsoring spouses...

Letters.
September 1, 2002... Dear Briarpatch Daryl Wiberg, Saskatchewan Party MLA from the Saskatchewan Rivers Constituency (Rural Prince Albert) took a parting cheap shot at Saskatchewan Federation of Labour President Barb Byers on her recent election as Executive...

Teaching Pride.
September 1, 2002... Before I was invited to Regina to speak at the Gay Pride Parade, I had read about the city's fundamentalist Christian, anti-gay and anti-abortion activist in the Star Phoenix and thought to myself. "Ah yes, another person who gives religion a...

Chemical warfare in the school zones: concerned parents are working to replace poisons in the schools with safer, child-friendly alternatives.(Abstract)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The children and employees at our schools all deserve to know when they are exposed to toxic pesticides and to what pesticides. They also deserve to be exposed as little as possible so they can learn, teach and live to their potential. ...

A letter from Barb Byers.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Dear Sisters, Brothers and Friends in the Social Justice Movement. For the past 14 years I have had the privilege of being President of the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour. I am leaving that position to take office as Executive...

Beyond factory farms.
September 1, 2002... Livestock farming in North America has changed drastically over the last few decades, utilizing an industrial model that concentrates animals in confined areas throughout the duration of their lives. Ownership of the production of these...

Women's prisons are unfit for bears.
September 1, 2002... Three months after Kingston Penitentiary (KP) was first opened for men in 1835, the first three federal women prisoners were led inside its cold grey walls. They were originally held in the infirmary because there was no place else to put...

Pope Squat: when the government refuses to build housing, people have no choice but to take it themselves. Patricipants say, "give it or guard it!".(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP) has occupied an abandoned building in the Parkdale neighbourhood in Toronto. The "Pope Squat" (so named because the building was taken while the Pope was in town, "squat" being slang for occupying...

Millionaires: BC's most precious resource; a satirical look at the distribution of Canadian millionaires.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Forget all those doom-and-gloom articles about BC being a have-not province. BC leads Canada in the only number that counts - we have the most millionaires per capita! It's time to banish once and for all Toronto's...

Abracadabra Presto! They're gone!(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... It was an unfortunate choice when someone at Nike decided to market their new Presto sneakers to an alternative, "indie youth" crowd. To reach the target market, Nike opened a music venue called Presto in Kensington Market, Toronto in June....

Odetta: the mother goddess of folk and blues shines her ever-lovin' light on regina fans.(Interview)
September 1, 2002... In August Saskatchewan was honoured with a visit from Odetta, one of the most influential artists of the past century. Prior to her performance at the Regina Folk Festival, I was given the opportunity to speak with her about her life and her...

Stupid White Men. (Reviews).
September 1, 2002... Stupid White Men (and Other Sorry Excuses for the State of the Nation!) by Michael Moore HarperCollins Publishers New York, NY, 2002 Stupid White Men is a refreshingly critical look at the current state of affairs in the United States....

Well, colour me surprised! (My Opinion).(Canadian Labour Congress conference in Vancouver)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... A first time delegate to the convention of the Canadian Labour Congress shares his impressions. Before I went to the Canadian Labour Congress convention in Vancouver at the beginning of June, I was pretty excited. They had sent me about...