Happy Pride Week!

Green Party Calls for Public Inquiry

The Green Party of Canada is calling for a public inquiry into the planning, security, and police conduct at the G8 and G20 meetings this past weekend.

Today, Green Leader Elizabeth May issued the following statement:

While all Canadians are aware that an invitation to world leaders requires of the host country a meaningful and effective level of security, the costs involved and the chaos on the streets of Toronto raise issues that deserve an impartial public response.  There is no question that, for the most part, the Toronto police displayed restraint.  Where we wish to raise questions, they are focused at the top of the chain of command and much less with individual officers. We cannot allow civil liberties in Canada to be further eroded.  

G20 Gay Youth Protester Recounts Homophobic Toronto Police

Respected Veteran Toronto Journalist Describes Police Abuse of Guardian Journalist at G20 Summit In Toronto

Oh Canada G20 Style

Pride Toronto to no longer restrict language in the Parade

Pride Toronto has announced that its recent resolution to restrict the use of certain language during the 2010 Parade has been replaced by the requirement that each participating group read, sign and agree to abide by the City of Toronto's Declaration of a Non-Discrimination Policy, and that all groups that uphold this policy are welcome to participate in the 2010 Pride Parade.

During a meeting between members of the board of directors, the executive director and well respected LGBT community leaders Pastor Brent Hawkes of the Metropolitan Community Church, human rights lawyer and Pride Lifetime Achievement award winner Doug Elliott, and 519 Executive Director Maura Lawless, the board unanimously voted in favour of a proposal presented by the three.

Please Sign This Handgun Petition

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/increase-age-of-handgun-ownership.html

When Prime Minister Stephen Harper recently discovered, three years after the fact, that convicted pedophile Graham James had obtained a pardon, he was concerned enough to interrupt the public safety minister on Easter weekend to discuss changing the pardon laws.


Here's another example of injustice that begs for prime ministerial activism: the case of Stephanie Hoddinott, a young, 20-year-old woman from Midland. Stephanie had a 4.0 GPA in her veterinarian technician program, was smart, beautiful and well-loved.


Full Article Here

Greenpeace - Tar Sands Mine Action

WWF - Help Save Canada's Arctic from Disaster

WWF - Help Save Canada's Arctic from Disaster

Let your voice be heard! Right now the US is using every tool at their disposal to respond to the Gulf oil spill crisis. In Canada, we need to call on every tool at our disposal to keep such a tragedy from happening in our waters. Now is the moment to rise to the challenge, and halt offshore drilling for oil until or unless we can safeguard our environment, our marine species, and our coastal communities.

WWF - Help Save Canada's Arctic from Disaster

People First! We Deserve Better!

So You Think You Can Council?

Get your tickets now. This will be a 'sold out' event (tickets are FREE)

The Price is Right: Candidates’ Row

How much does it cost to run this town? We will give each candidate a chance to guess the price of something related to city life — a piece of infrastructure, a line in the city budget, the cost of a city service — and the closest guess, without going over, wins. Click here for an example of the classic game.

Where in the Ward is Carmen Sandiego? 
International thief Carmen Sandiego is in Toronto with one of her henchmen — local landmarks beware! Carmen left clues of her whereabouts, and it is up to participants to track down her location, testing their knowledge of the ward and the city. The game will be multiple choice and similar to the original show, but won’t feature an a capella group, unless of course you know one who can perform for free?






Factional Family Feud 
We’ll divide the group into two (friendly) factions to guess the answers to fun surveys of local residents. Candidates will be tested on their familiarity with public sentiment. #VoteTOin27 attendees can participate in the game by answering the survey questions when they get a FREE ticket to the event here . We know that the candidates are going to be smarter than these contestants of Family Feud.






The $9,200,000,000 Pyramid 
How well can candidates work with others and as part of a team? We’ll pair off candidates to play a Toronto-themed version of the long-running game show. Candidates will have to prompt their partners into saying a word related to the ward. For a refresher of how Pyramid works, check out this clip of a contestant trying to prompt Betty White.

Oil Spill Cameras

Here is the link for the British Petroleum website with links to all the underwater cameras at the spill site in the Gulf of Mexico.

This is just one of several

St. James Town builds hope at Festival

St. James Town is once again celebrating pride in its community, hosting its annual Festival. This year’s Festival celebrates UN World Environment Day by acting locally, as the neighbourhood is joined by Live Green Toronto and local environmentalists and community advocates discussing how to revitalize apartments and neighbourhoods. The City’s Recipe for Community initiative and Live Green Toronto’s participation is signaling increased capacity to achieve continued community-building in the area.

The 2010 St. James Town Festival marks the return of its popular parade featuring local community leaders, organizations, children and cultural groups. The Festival is filled with stories of giving back, from artists within the community to festival organizers and volunteers. The Festival stage will feature local talent including King Ujah, Spirit of Jazz and the Homeless Band.

Co-Chair, St. James Town Festival Darcy Higgins says; “A politically and community engaged neighbourhood, St. James Town has the right ingredients to make positive change, harnessing the diverse backgrounds and skills we have here.”


St. James Town Safety Committee, the Festival organizer also coordinates neighbourhood safety audits, election debates, seniors’ events, an after-school program and an annual Christmas toy drive.
When: Saturday June 5, Parade begins 10:00AM, Festival Stage 11:00AM

Where: Parade begins Howard and Sherbourne St to Wellesley St, east to Parliament St, north to St. James Avenue. Festival and Stage at Rose Avenue Public School.