Canada has now been under COVID-19 restrictions for three months and many provinces are starting to open up again, although the virus is not under control. Canada is not yet out of the first wave and is certainly not ready to deal with the inevitable second wave. The Liberal government has acted too little and […]
Continue Reading
Around the world countries are lifting the restrictions that were introduced to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. People are allowed to leave their homes, and workplaces, cafes and stores are re-opening. The sharp closures of society and economy were needed to reduce the level of infection and death from the virus, only because of the inadequate […]
Continue Reading
Julien Daigneault is a member of Alternative Socialiste (ISA in Quebec). Bill 61 project unmasks austerity to come The nationalist and conservative government of François Legault has failed its legislative tour de force aiming to “restart” the Québec economy. It was unable to get its Bill 61 approved; a bill that aimed to give it […]
Continue Reading
For months now, Canadians have been told over and over again that frequently washing our hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds is one of the best ways to prevent the transmission of COVID-19. For thousands of people living in First Nations communities without clean drinking water, this is easier said than […]
Continue Reading
Leslie interviewed a worker about her job in the time of COVID-19. Carol started at her company in a manual labour role. It was a full-time union job – a job she enjoyed. She’s now a sales representative, which is a more lucrative position. She needed to take on this non-union role to support her […]
Continue Reading
Written by a BC stepdad. Closure of BC schools due to coronavirus marked a sudden double transformation in lives of school-aged children: their homes became classrooms, and their parents became their teachers. During the last two months much has been written about the difficulties teachers and parents encountered since long-distance learning commenced in BC. In […]
Continue Reading
The internet has become essential for almost all Canadians due to COVID-19. Suddenly, millions of workers are told to work from home, via the internet. Education is forced online, with teachers discovering that many students don’t have access to computers, laptops or even the internet. People need to go online to contact banks, essential services, […]
Continue Reading
Tim Heffernan and Jim Sugiyama Cockroaches, rotten food, patients with ulcers left bed-bound, staff moving from unit to unit wearing contaminated gear, staff afraid to ask for supplies for fear of increasing the costs to the home. Those were just some of the disturbing conditions detailed in a Canadian Armed Forces report based on the […]
Continue Reading
The metaphors of war have been in abundance since the onset of COVID-19. In Britain, the Queen, in a speech, evoked the WW2 song, “We’ll Meet Again.” The Italian Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, also invoked WW2 when he used Winston Churchill’s words to talk about Italy’s “darkest hour.” Donald Trump has described himself as a […]
Continue Reading
Canada is opening up after varying degrees of restrictions due to COVID-19. Retail stores, cafes, bars and restaurants, hairdressers and many workplaces are restarting operations. Of course, many businesses and workplaces deemed essential (some rather dubiously, like building luxury condos or pipelines) never closed. Schools in most provinces are closed, apart from provision for some […]
Continue Reading