Joining with peace groups across Canada and around the world, Peace Alliance Winnipeg marked the first anniversary of the war in Ukraine with an information picket in Winnipeg’s Osborne Village. Here’s a bit of video I shot at that less-than-toasty-warm action.
Archive for the ‘Nibbling on The Empire’ Category
Negotiate Peace in Ukraine
Posted: January 21, 2023 in Nibbling on The Empire, Peace, WarTags: NATO, Peace, Russia, Ukraine
Winnipeg, January 21, 2023: Members of Peace Alliance Winnipeg distributed literature in Winnipeg’s Osborne Village calling for an immediate ceasefire and negotiated peace agreement to end the Ukraine War. Following is the statement they distributed. Please share widely.
More war and weapons are not the way to peace!
Statement of Peace Alliance Winnipeg, January 21, 2023
On January 18 NATO’s secretary general said “Weapons are the way to peace” in Ukraine and this was echoed by Canadian Defence Minister Anita Anand as she announced Canada will send more weapons to Ukraine.
The world has been gripped by the dangers and repercussions of the war in Ukraine for almost one year. There have been disruptions to food and energy supplies and soaring inflation as a result of the war.
The cost of the war is mounting as Canada and NATO countries spend billions of dollars to fuel the war. Canada alone has spent $5 billion on this war, $1 billion of which has been for weapons. With NATO weapons and support for Ukraine there is the ever-present danger the war will escalate into a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia.
As the war has progressed various facts have emerged and none of them support this war or pouring more Canadian supplied weapons into Ukraine.
First, a peaceful, united Ukraine is not the goal of Zelensky and the reactionary Ukrainian nationalist ideology that predominates in the Kyiv government. One year ago, the Kyiv government was engaged in an eight-year civil war with its population in the Donbas that killed 14,000 and forced one million to flee the region. That conflict stemmed from the 2014 Maidan coup organized by the US to ensure Ukraine would be in its sphere of influence.
Second, as recently revealed by Merkel, Poroshenko and Macron, the Minsk Agreements, signed in 2014 to end the civil war in eastern Ukraine were but a diplomatic ruse to prepare Ukraine for war with Russia. This war, though maybe not to the timing of NATO and the West, was long in the works.
Third, the Canadian government is not interested in peace in Ukraine. One year ago, Deputy PM Chrystia Freeland described the lead up to the war as a battle between ‘democracy and autocracy.’ Clearly, this war is motivated by the ideology of the Cold War. Ukraine is the proxy to wage that war. Thus, Canada continues to pour weapons into Ukraine with recent announcements of $400 million for a US missile defence system and $90 million for 200 armoured vehicles.
This war could have been averted. Time to say enough is enough, drop the cold war ideology and end the use of Ukraine as a US/NATO proxy. The urgent need is for a de-escalation of the conflict, a ceasefire and negotiations for peace.
Canadian MPs need to hear this message. We urge you to contact your MP and urge them to support a ceasefire and peace negotiations.
No to NATO! Peace in Ukraine!
Posted: October 29, 2022 in Nibbling on The Empire, Peace, WinnipegTags: NATO, trudeau, Ukraine, War
Winnipeg, Oct. 28, 2022: Members of Peace Alliance Winnipeg picketed outside Winnipeg’s Delta Inn, site of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress conference, attended by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Defence Minister Anita Anand.
Canada’s ongoing betrayal of Haiti
Posted: November 13, 2021 in In Solidarity, Nibbling on The EmpireTags: Canada, colonialism, Haiti, imperialism
In this webinar, viewers discuss the film Haiti Betrayed with director, Elaine Brière, and the current Haitian situation with activist Jennie-Laure Sully. The webinar was hosted by Peace Alliance Winnipeg on Nov. 13, 2021.
Background
In 2004, Canada collaborated with the U.S. and France to overthrow Haiti’s elected president, Jean Bertrand Aristide, who enjoyed widespread support among the poorest Haitians. Since then, with Canada’s support, a series of right-wing governments have overturned Aristide’s reforms and violently repressed his supporters.
Released in 2019, Elaine Brière’s documentary, Haiti Betrayed, exposes the role Canada played in the 2004 coup. You can watch it here, in English or French.
Biographies
Elaine Brière is a Canadian filmmaker and photojournalist. Her first documentary, Bitter Paradise: The Sell-out of East Timor, won Best Political Documentary at the l997 HOT DOCS! festival and Production Excellence award at Seattle Women in Film in l998. Bitter Paradise aired on TVO, CBC Radio-Canada, CFCF-12 Montreal, BC Knowledge Network, SCN, WTN, PBS and Swedish National Television.
The Story of Canadian Merchant Seamen, released in 2006, aired on SCN and Knowledge Network and toured extensively in New Zealand, the UK and Australia.
Elaine’s photographs have been collected by the visual arts section of the National Archives of Canada. Her work has appeared in The Globe & Mail, the New York Review, Canadian Geographic, Carte-Blanche, and the Family of Women. East Timor, Testimony, was published in 2004. She is the founder of the East Timor Alert Network and received the Order of Timor-Leste in 2016 for her contribution towards the liberation of East Timor from Indonesian occupation.
Her current feature documentary, Haiti Betrayed, on the role of Canada in the 2004 coup d’état in Haiti, was released in late 2019. It was translated into French in the summer of 2020 and aired on TV5 in Québec and France.
Jennie-Laure Sully is a researcher at the Socioeconomic Research Institute (IRIS) and a community organizer at CLES, a center for sexually exploited women.
She studied anthropology and public health and has a master’s degree in biomedical sciences from the University of Montreal. She has worked as a research coordinator in hospitals and as a psycho-social caseworker in rape crisis centers.
Jennie is very active in the women’s movement and in the movement for the human rights of migrants. She was born in Haiti and moved to Quèbec with her family when she was 2 years old. Among the many causes she cares about, the fight against imperialism and for the sovereignty of Haiti is among her top priorities.
Speaking at the Ukrainian Labour Temple in Winnipeg, Professor Henry Heller discusses the state of the American Empire in light of its defeat in its 20-year war against Afghanistan and the rise of China. His talk was sponsored by the Winnipeg chapter of the United Jewish People’s Order.
Stop the Canada-US hybrid war against Venezuela!
Posted: September 12, 2021 in In Solidarity, Nibbling on The Empire, SocialismTags: Canada, imperialism, Venezuela
The lack of any discussion of Canadian foreign policy during this election is shocking and shameful — almost as shameful as Canada’s foreign policy itself. Take the case of Venezuela. For the past two decades the United States has been waging a war of sanctions and other dirty tricks to overthrow the democratically elected socialist governments of Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro. Ever Washington’s poodle, Ottawa has joined in with disgusting enthusiasm. Liberal governments or Conservative ones — it has made no difference.
To gain a deeper understanding of Canada’s foreign policy, Peace Alliance Winnipeg (of which I am a member) has organized a series of webinars that, so far, have looked at Canada’s international mining industry, Canada’s military deployments since 1867 and Canada’s policies with regard to Palestine.
Yesterday, Peace Alliance Winnipeg turned its attention to Venezuela by hosting a webinar with Venezuelan-born, Canadian scholar and activist María Páez Victor. Dr. Victor is a sociologist, educated in Caracas, New York, Mexico City, and Canada who taught the sociology of health and medicine as well as health and environmental policies at the University of Toronto for many years. Now retired from teaching, she writes and is a frequent commentator on Latin American history and politics. As well, she has her own weekly radio program about Venezuela in the Spanish language community radio of Toronto.
Here is video of the webinar.
UPDATE, Sept. 16, 2021: In an article published on Sept. 16, 2021 by Peace Alliance Winnipeg, María Páez Victor reports on positive developments in the peace negotiations being held in Mexico between the Venezuelan government and the major opposition parties. The opposition has agreed recognize the Venezuelan State, political institutions, and the legitimacy of President Nicolás Maduro and to work with the government to have the United States rescind the devastating economic sanctions that have caused such misery throughout the country.
Free Julian Assange!
Posted: September 9, 2021 in freedom of the press, Human Rights, Nibbling on The Empire, PeaceTags: freedom of the press, solidarity
Dimitri Lascaris is an accomplished lawyer, journalist and activist. Among his many achievements, Dimitri ran for the leadership of the Green Party of Canada in 2020, finishing second out of eight candidates and demonstrating that there at least 10,000 eco-socialists in the Green Party of Canada.
Dimitri spoke at the Sept. 7, 2021 launch of “Through Pluripolarity to Socialism – A Manifesto.” He chose to focus on the struggle of Wikileaks leader and political prisoner Julian Assange, who continues to be imprisoned and oppressed by the British government (at the behest of the American state.)
The launch itself was live-streamed and can be watched here. You can read and sign the manifesto here.
Just say “No!” to NATO
Posted: March 12, 2021 in Nibbling on The Empire, Peace, WarTags: NATO, NATO 2030, Peace Alliance Winnipeg, peace movement
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization has embarked on a dangerous plan to expand its reach and military strength by the year 2030. Not only does this increase the risk of world war, it promises to rob even more of the precious resources that member states would have available for social programs (or mitigating climate change, or heavens, tax cuts for working people!)
Speaking at a recent webinar organized by Peace Alliance Winnipeg, Tamara Lorincz detailed the magnitude of NATO’s plans and explained what this means for Canada. She also described some of the ways Canada’s peace movement is resisting increased military spending and other toxic aspects of Canada’s foreign policy.
Tamara is a PhD candidate in Global Governance at the Balsillie School for International Affairs (Wilfrid Laurier University). She is on the board of directors of the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space and on the international advisory committee of the No to NATO Network. She is a member of the Canadian Voice of Women for Peace and the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom.
The New Cold War, Canadian Foreign Policy and Canada’s Peace Movement
Posted: March 7, 2021 in Act Locally, Nibbling on The Empire, Peace, WarTags: Canada, imperialism, Peace, War
On Feb. 27. 2021, Peace Alliance Winnipeg hosted a webinar entitled “The New Cold War, Canadian Foreign Policy and Canada’s Peace Movement.”
It featured presentations by:
Radhika Desai, a Professor at the Department of Political Studies, and Director, Geopolitical Economy Research Group, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada. She is the author of Geopolitical Economy: After US Hegemony, Globalization and Empire and numerous other books and articles on political and geopolitical economy and world affairs.
Yves Engler, a Montréal-based activist and author who has published 11 books on various aspects of Canadian foreign policy. His latest book is titled House of Mirrors — Justin Trudeau’s Foreign Policy.
Tamara Lorincz, a PhD candidate in Global Governance at the Balsillie School for International Affairs (Wilfrid Laurier University). She is on the board of directors of the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space and on the international advisory committee of the No to NATO Network. She is a member of the Canadian Voice of Women for Peace and the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom.
The webinar was moderated by Glenn Michalchuk, chair of Peace Alliance Winnipeg.
While the quality of the presentations was first rate, the audio quality of Radhika Desai’s presentation was less than optimal. Don’t let that dissuade you from listening. What she has to say makes it well worth the effort.
GET INVOLVED
If you feel inspired to get involved in changing Canada’s foreign policy for the better, here are some organizations that could use your energy.
My 2019 in Videos
Posted: December 20, 2019 in Miscellany, Nibbling on The EmpireTags: politics, The Left, video, Winnipeg
This marks the 10th year of my YouTube channel. You can watch more than 350 videos here, but as it is the season to reflect on the past year, here is some of what I saw, through my unabashedly lefty lens, in 2019.
Winnipeg Central American Migrant Caravan Benefit Concert
Jan. 4, 2019: The Benefit Concert for the Central American Caravan was held on Friday, Jan. 4, 2019 in Winnipeg’s historic Ukrainian Labour Temple, with proceeds going to the Mennonite Central Committee (Canada) to support its work with Central American migrants.
Trudeau & Trump: #HandsOffVenezuela
Jan. 26, 2019: Members of the Venezuela Peace Committee and Peace Alliance Winnipeg rallied in Winnipeg outside the building the houses the United States Consulate to protest the actions taken by the Canadian and US governments to destabilize Venezuela.
Winnipeggers say: Hands Off Venezuela!
Feb. 23, 2019: The Winnipeg Venezuela Peace Committee joined in an international day of action in solidarity with the people of Venezuela and the democratically elected government of Nicolas Maduro.
How you can support Venezuela
Feb. 23, 2019: Speaking at a Venezuela solidarity rally in Winnipeg, Alan Freeman, of the Venezuela Peace Committee, explains what you can do to support the people of Venezuela and their democratically elected government against foreign intervention.
Winnipeg Labour Solidarity with Palestinian Workers
March 16, 2019: Palestinian postal worker Imad Temiza, as well as CUPW and CUPE members who have recently returned from delegations to Israel and Palestine, discuss the challenges faced by Palestinian workers.
André Vltchek: NATO, Canada & Western Imperialism
April 3, 2019: The North Atlantic Treaty was signed on April 4, 1949, giving rise to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization or NATO. To mark the occasion, a public forum on the role of NATO was held featuring André Vltchek, a Russian-born American political analyst, journalist, and a filmmaker.
Peace Alliance Winnipeg Annual Meeting Report
Peace Alliance Winnipeg, of which I am a member, held its annual general meeting on April 13, 2019. PAW’s chair, Glenn Michalchuk, reports on some of the highlights and challenges of the past year.
Radhika Desai – How We Work for Peace in Venezuela
April 24, 2019: Radhika Desai wraps up a Town Hall forum in Winnipeg entitled “The West’s War on Venezuela” with an explanation of how and why the Venezuela Peace Committee contributes to peace in Venezuela.
Dimitri Lascaris – Manufacturing Consent to a Coup against Venezuela
April 24, 2019: Journalist Dimitri Lascaris speaks to a Town Hall forum in Winnipeg entitled “The West’s War on Venezuela” about the myths perpetrated by western governments and media to support a coup against Venezuela’s democratically elected Maduro government.
The West’s War on Venezuela – Why Canada is Wrong
April 24, 2019: Canada’s decision to seek regime change in Venezuela along with the US and other Western countries, the anti-Maduro bias prevailing in the mainstream Canadian and western news media and the potential for the confrontation between western powers and others, such as Russia and China, are the key issues that were discussed in a public forum at the University of Winnipeg.
Henry Heller’s Marxist History of Capitalism
April 29, 2019: Henry Heller shows that capitalism has always been a double-edged sword, on one hand advancing humanity, and on the other harming traditional societies and our natural environment. He makes the case that capitalism has now become self-destructive, and that our current era of neoliberalism may trigger a transition to a democratic and ecologically aware form of socialism.
Dennis Lewycky: Magnificent Fight – The 1919 Winnipeg General Strike
May 2, 2019: On the 100th anniversary of the Winnipeg General Strike, Dennis Lewycky launches his new book on the topic, appropriately titled “Magnificent Fight: The 1919 Winnipeg General Strike.”
Barbara Perry: Assessing the Far Right in Canada
March 14, 2019: Is Canada’s extreme right growing? How dangerous are they and where do they live? These and other questions are discussed by Dr. Barbara Perry, who has researched and written extensively on right-wing extremism.
1919: A Graphic History of the Winnipeg General Strike
May 12, 2019: One century on, the Winnipeg General Strike remains one of the most significant events in Canadian history. A new book, 1919: A Graphic History of the Winnipeg General Strike, marks the centenary of this epic struggle.
The Winnipeg Labour Choir celebrates the 1919 Winnipeg General Strike
May 15, 2019: One hundred years ago, workers in Winnipeg’s building and metal trades were negotiating with their employers for the right to collective bargaining, better wages and improved working conditions. Talks were going nowhere so, on May 15, 1919, the Winnipeg Trades and Labor Council called for a general strike. Within hours, 30,000 men and women, many of whom were not union members, left their jobs. Winnipeg was shut down and the shock waves were felt across the country.
38th Winnipeg Walk for Peace
June 22, 2019: Peace Alliance Winnipeg and the Council of Canadians – Winnipeg Chapter held the 38th annual Winnipeg Walk for Peace. The purpose of this year’s event is to call upon the Canadian government to promote peace and international cooperation and development, objectives that are sorely lacking in Canada’s foreign policy.
The threat of the “New Antisemitism”
June 22, 2019: Speaking at the Winnipeg Walk for Peace, Harold Shuster, of Independent Jewish Voices, explains the threat posed by a new definition of antisemitism.
Women Strike Part 1: The Nawrockis in Concert
June 13, 2019: ‘The Nawrockis’ is Norman Nawrocki’s exciting new violin and ukulele duo with his sister Vivian. They play traditional, upbeat Ukrainian folk music. She’s a Vancouver-based singer and musician. They provide the warm up act that proceeded Norman’s play (see next item.)
Women Strike Part 2: The Play
Women Strike! 1919-2019 – The Winnipeg General Strike was recorded at the Ukrainian Labour Temple in Winnipeg, Canada on June 13, 2019. Written and directed by Norman Nawrocki, the play features Karam Daoud, Lorraine James and Marri-Lou Paterson. It was staged as a part of the Winnipeg Labour Council’s 2019 Mayworks Program.
Elizabeth May: Canada’s most important election ever
Aug. 15, 2019: Green Party of Canada Leader Elizabeth May was in Winnipeg to lend support to Greens contesting the Sept. 10th provincial general election. Speaking at WestEnd Commons in Winnipeg with Wolsley candidate David Nickarz, May described the upcoming federal election as the most important one in Canada’s history because it will be the one that decides whether Canadians will be able to act in time to meet our climate targets.
Inclusive Democracy & Proportional Representation
Aug. 27, 2019: Fair Vote Manitoba held a forum on electoral and other democratic reforms at the Park Theatre in Winnipeg featuring candidates from most of the parties running in the Manitoba provincial election.
ELECTION 2019: Manitoba Leaders Debate on the Environment
Winnipeg, Sept. 5, 2019: The global climate crisis has occupied centre stage in the Manitoba provincial election. Leaders from three political parties showcased their perspectives on climate change and the environment in a debate organized by several environmental organizations.
Winnipeg Lanterns for Peace 2019
Aug. 6, 2019: Winnipeggers held their annual Lanterns for Peace Ceremony to commemorate the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on Aug. 6 and 9, 1945. Their aim is to help keep the memory of these attacks alive so that current generations understand we must never allow nuclear weapons to be used again.
Maria Páez Victor: The Case for Venezuela
Winnipeg, July 20, 2019: Speaking at the Class, State and Nation conference, Dr. Maria Páez Victor describes the criminal nature of the United States-led campaign to undermine the government of Venezuela.
Arnold August on the US Canadian Attack on Cuba and Venezuela
October 3, 2019: There is no doubt that Canadian foreign policy has taken a hard turn to the right, especially with regard to Latin America. Arnold August provides the context and details the US led attacks on Cuba and Venezuela that Canada has been supporting so vigorously.
Bryan Palmer: The 1919 Winnipeg General Strike heard around the world
The 1919 Winnipeg General Strike was followed with great interest by people around the world, says Dr. Bryan Palmer, Professor Emeritus at Trent University. Professor Palmer was speaking at the 14th Forum of the World Association for Political Economy entitled Class, State and Nation in the 21st Century, held in Winnipeg July 19-21, 2019.
Winnipeg Chile Solidarity
Oct. 24, 2019 — People in Chile are dying at the hands of their repressive government. People in Winnipeg showed some solidarity this morning at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.
Michael Hudson: Resisting Empire
Renowned economist Dr. Michael Hudson spoke at the 14th Forum of the World Association for Political Economy, held in Winnipeg in July 19-21, 2019. The conference was entitled Class, State and Nation in the 21st Century.
Vanessa Beeley: Canada’s Dirty War Against Syria
December 13, 2019: Two successive governments of Canada, those of Stephen Harper and Justin Trudeau, have been an integral part of the US coalition for regime change and economic sanctions against Syria since 2011. Independent journalist Vanessa Beeley visited 7 Canadian cities in December to deliver a talk entitled “Canada’s Dirty War Against Syria: the White Helmets and the Regime-Change-War Billionaires.”
Paul S. Graham 