40 Years later, an academic conference in Vancouver acknowledges, honours and celebrates the first public protest to address gay rights in Canada
5 Protests That Shook the World (With Laughter)
Great moments in “laughtivism” from Yes Men Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonanno, the guys who duped the BBC, embarrassed Dow Chemical, and mocked Halliburton.
WikiLeaks’ Spoofs MasterCard Commercial
Here’s a great Wikileaks-supportive parody on the fact that major credit card and online payment companies have withheld over $15 million in donations to WikiLeaks.
The Big Society (or How to Really Solve a Recession)
Julia McLean reflects on “The Big Society” speech by British Prime Minister David Cameron and says it’s time to reawaken of community — being a good neighbour will help end the recession.
Politician: Why Do We Diss the Job?
“Who among us thinks they have the skills, character, resilience and social aptitude to do a spectacular job of being an elected official?” asks Lorne Daniel in a rare defense of of the world’s most unpopular profession — politician.
You Should’ve Stayed at Home
Just in case anyone is still under the impression that these kinds of mass violations of human rights only happen in dictatorships, it’s worth watching the Fifth Estate’s telling documentary “You Should’ve Stayed Home” which documents the story of “ordinary citizens on the streets at Toronto G20 Summit marching peacefully until the police closed in and shut them down.”
Arizona Attempts to Ban Karma, Sharia Law, and All Forms of Intelligence
Nathan Thompson says a bill being considered by the Arizona legislature is an attack by WASP racists on people of color, religious minorities, and anyone else deemed a threat.
The Triumph of Human Spirit in Egypt
Egypt, a country that has given the world so much in terms of ideas, art, science, medicine, philosophy and spirituality, has been given its greatest wish — President Hosni Mubarak has agreed to step down. We wish for the people of Egypt an end to poverty and abuse — and a new era of peace and understanding.
Egypt: Lessons in Democracy
The current struggle in Egypt—the center of Arab media, scholarship, and culture—has enormous ramifications for the region as a whole. The predominantly young secular activists who initiated the struggle reject not only the U.S.-backed dictatorship of Hosni Mubarak but also conservative Islamist leaders; they have put together a broad coalition of young and old, Muslim and Christian, poor and middle class to challenge a brutal corrupt regime which has held power for nearly thirty years. Like-minded civil society activists are organizing elsewhere. Indeed, 2011 could be to the Arab world what 1989 was to Eastern Europe.
A River in Egypt: Revolution in the Land of the Nile
A revolution in Egypt has been a long time coming, but its time has come.