Call the Question

For the Call the Question finale, we welcome Indigenous leader, best-selling author and former Attorney General and Justice Minister, Jody Wilson-Raybould, back to the podcast to share her thoughts on democracy, leadership and the interconnectedness we all share. We talk about her bestselling book, Indian in the Cabinet, and about her conviction that the great challenges of our time - social and racial justice, the climate emergency, the pandemic and more - require us all to work together in new ways. And, Lesli and Maria sign off our final episode with a call to action on vaccine equity, and discuss how we're preparing ourselves for challenges of a world that is changing rapidly before our eyes.

This podcast was recorded in the unceded territories for the Tsleil-Waututh, Musqueam and Squamish peoples. This episode was produced by Collins Maina.

A warm thanks to all of the generous guests, patrons, friends, supporters and sponsors for making this podcast possible. Special thanks to our past producers Simone Hill, Ronnie Jones (also an amazing photographer for our pod), and Emma Renaerts for helping to make our vision a reality.

Jusqu'à la prochaine fois.

Maria and Lesli take a look at the 2021 Federal Election, which produced a new parliament...a lot like the old one. We take a look at the campaigns, the issues that did (or didn't) resonate with the public in this election, and how little the composition of parliament changed in this pandemic election. We also talk about what's next for the podcast.

Award-winning labour, employment and human rights lawyer Susanna Quail of Allevato Quail and Roy joins the podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on the state of workers' rights in BC and Canada. We take a deep dive into migrant workers' rights, exploitive working conditions, and the added complexity the pandemic presented in protecting the health and safety of seasonal migrant workers. We also talk about the legal rights of workers (including sick leave and vaccination leave) in the COVID-19 pandemic. And, we talk about some of the precedent-setting cases Susanna has led in the fight for workers' rights.

Lesli and Maria open the podcast with look ahead to a potential summertime federal election, and riff on the latest fractures in the Green Party of Canada (as one of their MPs crosses the floor to the Liberals), and the challenges Annamie Paul is facing as she attempts to unite and modernize her party.

We welcome the world's most famous OBGYN, Dr. Jen Gunter, back to the pod to talk about her new book, The Menopause Manifesto. Jen helps us solve one of the great mysteries of human health - that is, understanding menopause. She reveals how what we know (or don't know) about menopause is inextricably connected to the patriarchy, and its assumption that the value of a woman is somehow diminished when she no longer menstruates. Jen coaches women on owning our health "with facts and feminism," by learning more about menopause, our bodies, and how to address the complex array of symptoms experienced during menopause.

The good doctor also explains hot flushes and menopause hormonal therapy (MHT), and also debunks the "use it or lose it" myth around the connection between sexual activity and sexual function during and after menopause. And, we talk with Jen about some of the some of the increased health risks people face during and after menopause, and the steps we can all take to take to manage - and maintain - our health for the rest of our lives.

Check out Dr. Jen Gunter's podcast, Body Stuff with Dr. Jen Gunter, today: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/body-stuff-with-dr-jen-gunter/id1566425638

We're proud to welcome Kasari Govender, BC's first independent Human Rights Commissioner, to the podcast. In our fascinating discussion, Kasari walks us through the BC Human Rights Commission and its role as an indepenent office of the Legislature. We discuss our rights and obligations as both people and as citizens, and the need to recognize our political and economic rights, as well. Kasari tells us about "The grandmother perspective," her office's 2020 report calling for data that reflects the lived experiences of many, allowing their stories to be heard clearly by those in power to inform development of policy that effectively addresses systemic inequalities in our society. And, we talk with Kasari about UNDRIP and DRIPA, and the role her office plays in decolonization, and Indigenous rights and recognition, in BC.

Read "The grandmother perspective," the BC Human Rights Commission's report on the need for disaggregated data to addressed systemic inequalities: https://bchumanrights.ca/publications/datacollection/

Follow Kasari on Twitter @KasariGovender

Rachna Singh, MLA for Surrey-Green Timbers and BC's Parliamentary Secretary for Anti-Racism Initiatives, joins the podcast for a frank and open conversation about the need to change the laws, institutions and systems that help to perpetuate systemic racism in BC. Rachna tells us about how BC has moved away from the language of "multiculturalism" and towards "anti-racism," and in doing so, is acknowleding the lived experiences of Indigenous and racialized communities in BC. Rachna shares the work her government is doing to improve race-based data collection, while explaining the complexities of gathering and sharing data in a way that doesn't harm or stigmatize racialized people further. We also discuss on the rapid rise in anti-Asian racism during the pandemic, plans for the BC's first-ever Anti-Racism Act, what's happening with BC's all-party committee reviewing the BC Police Act, and more.

Call the Question welcomes the remarkable Mebrat Beyene - executive director of WISH Drop-in Centre and Society - to the podcast. Mebrat shares insight into her organization's support for women and gender-diverse people working in street-based sex work in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. She explains what sex work is, guides us through the differences between sex work and human trafficking, and shares her thoughts on the often-challenging relationship between street-based sex workers (and their advocates) and the police. And, Mebrat tells us about the steps WISH has taken during the pandemic to provide more access to services to sex workers (including basic sanitation and much more) that she doesn't want to see go anywhere after the current pandemic crisis passes.

Learn more about WISH and make a donation to suppor their work at https://wish-vancouver.net.

We're delighted to have Spring Hawes - entrepreneur, past municipal councillor, board director for a BC health authority, and a candidate in the BC election last October - join us on the pod. A tetraplegic, Spring talks to us about the experiences of disabled people in the pandemic, the implications of Canada's new medical assistance in dying (MAD) legislation, and about BC's highly anticipated new accessibility legislation. We also talk about disability justice, the ableism that's embedded in every part of our culture and built environment, and and the kinds of stories about disabled people she'd like to see and hear more in media and popular culture.

Check out the "10 Principles of Disability Justice" Spring and Maria mentioned in our interview here: https://www.sinsinvalid.org/blog/10-principles-of-disability-justice

Learn more about disability justice from this 2013 interview with disability justice activist, Mia Mingus: https://equitableeducation.ca/2013/mia-mingus-disability-justice

"We don't care about the votes - we care about the voters."

The extraordinary LaTosha Brown - musician, artist and co-founder of Black Voters Matter, an US voters' rights advocacy organization - joins us on Call the Q. LaTosha takes us behind the headlines for a closer look at voter suppression tactics in US states like Georgia, Alabama and more, and how BVM and many other community organizations are working with legislators to protect vote access for Black, Indigenous, and other marginalized communities. We also talk about intersectional feminism, the ascendant leadership of Black women and women of colour, and about BVM's organizing model - one that both puts people before politics, and delivers the vote. Oh - and she sings for us ;)

Mel Woods, Vancouver-based writer, audio producer, and a former viral/trending editor with HuffPost Canada, joins the pod to give us the scoop on what the f*** happened in early March when Buzzfeed suddenly shut down HuffPost Canada. Mel tells us how she and her colleagues heard about the closure, which took place just two weeks after HuffPost Canada employees voted to unionize. We also talk about "benevolent billionaires," the role of organized labour in digital media (and how CWA is supporting HuffPost workers now), emerging media models, and notions of journalistic "objectivity" in today's world.