Appointed: A Canadian Senator Bringing Margins to the Centre

On this mini episode of Appointed, we continue our discussion on guaranteed livable income with the Hassan Yussuff, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. Mr. Yussuff speaks about the importance of social programs for workers; his role as President of the Canadian Labour Congress; the intersection of workers’ issues and social assistance programs; and the role he believes a guaranteed livable income could play in the lives of workers, the Canadian labour movement, and improving overall quality of life for Canadians.

Hassan Yussuff is the President of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), the largest labour organization in Canada. CLC brings together unions , provincial and territorial federations of labour, and community-based labour councils to represent workers across the country. First elected as President of the CLC in May 2014, Mr. Yussuff is the first person of colour to lead Canada’s union movement. Re-elected for a second term in May 2017, Mr. Yussuff is a long-time advocate for worker’s rights, improved working conditions, childcare and family investment, and repairing Canada’s social, health and economic safety net.

Stay tuned for the next episode in the Guaranteed Livable Income series!

Resources mentioned during the show and further reading:

Read Senator Pate’s Guaranteed Livable Income perspective document here

https://www.toronto.com/news-story/10143187-advocates-welcome-ei-changes-but-say-they-should-be-made-permanent/

https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/2020/06/02/there-is-no-economic-recovery-without-adequate-child-care.html

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-covid-19-has-exposed-wide-gaps-in-canadas-social-safety-net/

On this next episode of our Guaranteed Livable Income series, Senator Pate speaks with Natan Obed, the President of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK), about how a Guaranteed Livable Income could advance Indigenous self-determination and self-governance. ITK is a national representative organization that advocates for the rights of Inuit in Canada. Senator Pate and President Obed talk about how Indigenous self-determination is a vital and sustainable solution in achieving socio-economic equality for Inuit in Canada.

Natan Obed is the President of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, the national representational organization for Inuit in Canada. Originally from Nain Nunatsiavut, he has devoted his entire professional career to helping improve the wellbeing of Inuit. As a strong advocate and negotiator, he works to protect Inuit rights, culture, knowledge, language, and environment in Canada.

Stay tuned for the next episode in the Guaranteed Livable Income series!

Resources mentioned during the show:

Check out Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami’s (ITK’s) poverty reduction report entitled “Inuit Perspectives on a Canadian Poverty Reduction Strategy.”

Read Senator Pate’s Guaranteed Livable Income perspective document here

Read the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Inquiry recommendations here.

On this episode of Appointed, we are taking a quick break from our Guaranteed Livable Income series to talk about Canada’s prison system. In recognition of Prisoners’ Justice Day, here’s an episode that focuses on debunking myths and sharing knowledge about prisons in Canada. I, Fregine, ask Kim the questions you sent us about prison.

Thank you to all those who sent in questions. Unfortunately, we were not able to answer all of your questions in this episode, but please keep an eye out for future episodes that might be inspired by some of your questions.

*Please forgive some of the audio problems. This interview was conducted over zoom.

Resources mentioned during the show:

Please find Senator Pate’s speech where she calls to decarcerate prisoners, in particular Black, Indigenous and other racialized prisoners, by committing to a release of 5% of those in federal prisons per year, here.

On this episode of Appointed, we are talking about guaranteed livable income (GLI). We talk about what this program might look like in Canada; about how the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) could evolve into a GLI; and about how such a program might play a role in creating a more equitable Canada. We speak with Dr. Evelyn Forget, an economist and professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the University of Manitoba. Dr. Forget is a recognized expert and authority on guaranteed livable and basic income.

Resources mentioned during the show:

Dr. Forget’s book : “Basic Income for Canadians: The key to a healthier, happier, more secure life for all”

Click here to access the Parliamentary Budget Officer’s “Costing a Guaranteed Basic Income During the COVID Pandemic” report.

Click here to access the Parliamentary Budget Officer’s “Costing a National Guaranteed Basic Income Using the Ontario Basic Income Model” report.

Read Senator Pate's Guaranteed Livable Income perspective document here

On this first episode of our Guaranteed Livable Income series, we speak with Chief Commissioner Marion Buller and Commissioner Qajaq Robinson from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. This episode discusses the impacts of economic marginalization on Indigenous women and girls and the need for a National Guaranteed Livable Income, which was one of their Calls for Justice in the Final Report. Stay tuned for the next episode in the Guaranteed Livable Income series!

Check out Inuit Tapirit Kanatami (ITK)’s report “Social Determinants of Inuit Health in Canada”, as mentioned in the interview.

Read Senator Pate's perspective on GLI here

On this episode of Appointed we’re talking about the child welfare system and how systemic discrimination plays a key role in determining who ends up in care. We speak with Natasha Reimer, the founder of the peer support group Foster Up and host of her own podcast, titled "The Disappearance of Natasha Lynn Starr" and Dunia Nur from the African Canadian Civic Engagement Council about the experiences of those who have lived in care and how the state falls short of advocating for youth's best interests.

On this episode of Appointed we're talking about challenging systemic marginalization by healing interpersonal harm. We ask what the role of transformative justice is in the work of decarceration and unpack the difference between restorative justice and transformative justice. We speak with James Favel, the co-founder and executive director of Bear Clan Patrol, and Rachel Herzing, the Executive Director of the Center for Political Education and an activist who has practiced transformative justice for decades.

On this episode of Appointed we're discussing the novel Coronavirus pandemic and its varied effects on each of us. Far from The Great Equalizer, COVID-19 is instead magnifying existing societal inequities. We speak with former Supreme Court of Canada Justice Louise Arbour, author and activist Robyn Maynard and epidemiologist Dr. Aaron Orkin about crucial measures we must take now and after this crisis to advocate for and fortify long term equity.

Read Senator Pate's statement on COVID 19 Measures in Federal Prisons here

Buy a copy of Policing Black Lives: State Violence in Canada from Slavery to Present here

Learn how you can help advocate for the release of immigration detainees here

On this episode, we're unpacking labels like "victim" and "criminal". We speak with Canada's Ombudsman for Victims of Crime, Margot Van Sluytman, a poet and writer whose father was murdered at his workplace when she was a child, and Shannon Moroney, a bestselling author whose husband forcibly confined and raped other women.

Click here to access Shannon's books and learn more about her story and here to find Margot's Master's Thesis: Sawbonna: Justice as Lived Experience