Cortes Currents

Manda Aufochs Gillespie/ Folk U - Stephen Jenkinson is an author, activist, worker, creator of the Orphan Wisdom School, and co-creator of the Night of Grief and Mystery project with singer/songwriter Gregory Hoskins: which brings him to Cortes Island (see below) and to Folk U Radio live this Friday September 24th from 1 p.m.

Stephen Jenkinson is known for his work with living and dying and as a master story-teller. He says of his tour: "These nights have the mark of our time upon them, and they’re timely, urgent, alert, steeped in mortal mystery. They’re quixotic. They have swagger. They are nights devoted to the ragged mysteries of being human, and so grief and endings of all kinds appear."

This starts a series of Folk University offerings: Radio, in person, and co-created on the topic of What Is Essential for living in these times?

Who knows where Friday's show will go: but what is assured is that we will talk about things as essential as life itself and death. And how we can tell stories that prepare us for doing both well. We will discuss what it means to witness, to be an orphan, and to create safety in these times. It should be great. I hope you will tune-in.

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - After a strong showing in 2019, the 2021 election seems like a step backward for the Green party, but Jessica Wegg is already talking about the next election.

“There is too much at stake for us to loose hope or lose sight of that the goal is,” she said. “I think Vancouver Island is uniquely situated for Greens to do very well.”

This was shown in 2019, when both 338Canada and CBC’s Poll Tracker showed them leading in four Vancouver Island ridings throughout most of the campaign and at one point the Greens were within 5% of the leader in North Island-Powell River.

What went wrong this time?

internal divisions within the Green party, which could not be resolved in time for this election.

COVID made direct communication difficult – everyone is tired of virtual conferencing and people do not have the emotional space to process what is still happening.

Wegg says people should vote Green because none of the other parties are taking the Climate Crisis seriously enough. She pointed to the NDP’s failure to commit to cancelling the Trans Mountain pipeline, a project the Liberal government is supporting.

“If you are not ready to commit to bold measures like that, then you should get out of the way and let the Greens come in because we are taking this seriously,” said Wegg.

She said one of the most concerning results of the election was how well the People’s Party of Canada did: “It shows that people are getting more polarized.”

“We need to keep talking to each other,” Wegg stressed.”This is the only way we are going to solve any problems. I think one of the strengths of the Green party is that we do try to remember to hear all the sides of the story because you cannot bring people on board with you to really affect change if you are only bringing the people who would come anyway.”

(The Liberal and Conservative parties have also been asked for post election interviews, but have not responded.)

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - NDP candidate Rachel Blaney said she is honoured to represent North Island-Powell River for a third term.

“I’m just incredibly grateful for the opportunity to continue this work that I really love,” she said.

As of September 25th, the offical count shows that 39.5% of the riding's electorate voted for Blaney.

That number is higher in a preliminary tally of Cortes Island’s election day results published in the Cortes Marketer. 51% of the votes went to Blaney. This number will probably change when the final results are in, but is also to be expected from an Island where Elections Canada data shows the NDP consistently receiving the most votes in every election since at least 2004, regardless of which party was chosen by the riding.

“I still feel frustrated that we had to go through such an expensive exercise for something that largely returned parliament back to the same pattern it already was in,” said Blaney.

She added the message seems clear, “Canadians want us to work together.”

Once again, the NDP are holding the balance of power in a minority Liberal government.

Blaney said that during the past two years they leveraged this to ensure Canadians receive a wage subsidy during the pandemic and more disability funding for seniors.

Going forward, she wants to see the ultra wealthy pay their fair share of taxes, a national Pharmacare system and Canada address climate change.

“For me, another top priority would be the reality that we are in a housing crisis and our rural and remote community is experiencing it at a very high level. We want to see more resources coming to communities to support more affordable housing,” said Blaney.

Part of her job is building relationships and collaborating with the stakeholders in her riding.

Some people believe it is better to have an MP from the ruling party, but Blaney says the opposite can be true.

“As an opposition member, I can stand in the House of Commons and speak truth to power: talk about what isn’t working and why it isn’t working. Often that shames the government into doing the right thing. we use that tool,” she said. “When you are a backbencher on the government side, you don’t have a lot of power. You aren’t a part of cabinet and you certainly can’t stand up and tell the government they are doing a poor job.”

She pointed to her list of accomplishments, compared to those of the previous Conservative MP that represented this area for 20 years.

That was prior to the 2015 election, when the NDP first swept Vancouver Island and she was first elected.

Photo credit: screenshot of Rachel Blaney taken during the interview

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - The injunction to stop protesters from interfering with logging in what is commonly believed to be the last intact old growth ecosystem in Southern Vancouver Island ended at 4 PM on Tuesday, September 28th, 2021.

Last April, the Court granted Teal Cedar Products a six-month injunction in the Fairy Creek watershed.

The logging company applied for a one year extension, but this has been denied.

“The factors weighing in favour of extension do not outweigh the public interest in protecting the Court from the risk of further depreciation of its reputation,” wrote Justice Douglas Thompson in his reasons for judgement. ”It goes without saying that unlawful measures imposed by those given authority to enforce the Court’s order does no credit to the rule of law or the Court’s reputation, especially when those measures trench on civil liberties in a substantial way.”

Cortes Currents asked Saul Arbess, spokesperson for the Rainforest Flying Squad, “What does this mean tomorrow, what happens?”

“It would seem to me that, two things: it provides significant opportunity for people to continue non-violent direct action in opposition to the logging that is going on in the critically endangered forests that the government of BC has said that it is in the process of deferring - but hasn’t,” said Arbess.

He also pointed out that logging should not be going on in areas where the government is considering establishing protections.

“It is a principle of fundamental justice,” said Arbess.

Justice Thompson criticized the RCMP decision to block public access to the roads in Teal Jones’ Tree Farm License, “which are on public land” and “may be used by the public.”

He had previously ruled that “the RCMP’s expansive exclusion zones, and associated checkpoints and searches, were unlawful because it had not been established that these measures were reasonable and necessary to carry out their duties,” but “they continue to enforce exclusion zones that are more expansive than the law permits.”

Thompson was also concerned that the methods of enforcement of the Court’s order have led to serious and substantial infringement of civil liberties, including impairment of the freedom of the press to a marked degree.

As regards the protesters, Thompson wrote that he found them to be “respectful, intelligent” and “good citizens in the important sense that they care intensely about the common good.” The videos and other evidence showed them to be “disciplined and patient adherents to standards of non-violent disobedience” with only “occasional lapses from that standard.”

For the most part, Thompson found “the police have generally used reasonable force” but “some of the videos do show disquieting lapses in reasonable crowd control.” He cited a video in which police pulled COVID masks off protesters’ faces and then spayed them with pepper spray.

“The problem, of course, is that these incidents of excess are widely broadcast, and they are seen as the methods by which this Court’s order is being enforced.” he added.

This was reinforced by the nearly daily police updates containing words like “Police enforcement of the BC Supreme Court injunction order in the Fair Creek Watershed area continued today . . .”

In the last update, published Monday, September 27th, it states “Since enforcement began, the RCMP have arrested 1101 individuals.”

Photo credit: RCMP spraying protesters with pepper spray - from the Rainforest Flying Squad video

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - One of Cortes Radio’s volunteer DJs, who broadcasts under the name ‘Hiway Hippy’, believes that a clip of semi automatic ammunition he found at Fairy Creek belongs the RCMP.

Cortes Currents reached out to the RCMP for confirmation.

“This magazine likely belongs to a Smith & Wesson model 5946, which is the semi-automatic pistol issued to most members of the RCMP,” replied RCMP media officer Sgt. Chris Manseau.

While there have been multiple allegations of police brutality at Fairy Creek, none of them to date have involved firearms.

Manseau stressed the fact that the magazine was RCMP property and must be returned.

Hiway Hippy has every intention of doing this, provided mainstream media, a legal team and Pacheedaht elder Bill Jones are there to witness the hand over. He will lead the RCMP to where the clip is stored.

“Mainstream media needs to know what has been going on there up on the mountain, and they don’t know.”

Fairy Creek is believed to be the last intact old growth watershed in Southern Vancouver Island, outside of parks.

Hiway Hippy says he has a video showing one of “the green men” (the RCMP Emergency Response Team) taking his motorcycle away. He claims they smashed the ignition of another of his vehicles, then hot wired it to drive 7 miles. On Tuesday, Sept. 7, Hiway Hippy says the RCMP destroyed a the van occupied by an elderly woman.

This account was confirmed by two other protesters, Jan and Bill Marshall, who wrote, “yesterday, they smashed a van window, dragged out the elderly woman sleeping inside then ran over her vehicle with a backhoe.”

Sgt Manseau responded, “The RCMP is not responsible for the moving or towing of vehicles. All vehicles that are found obstructing the travel portions of the roads, are removed at the decision of industry. The vehicles are then transported to a secure compound where the owners can make arrangements to have them released,”

“The RCMP has not recommended or given direction to “flatten” any vehicles with any machinery. I have been in contact with the media relations officer on site who said that yesterday, Tuesday September 7th, an abandoned vehicle was moved by industry and it was later towed away.”

The RCMP press release issued on Tuesday, Sept. 7, mentions 16 arrests, as well as a helicopter being used to bring the protesters supplies. The total number of people arrested reached 882.

Top photo: Logging at Fairy Creek - courtesy Rainforest Flying Squad Facebook page

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - Though they believe vaccine passport violate Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, anti-vaxers will find this very difficult to prove in court, a lawyer with UBC’s Peter A. Allard School of Law says.

The key question in this debate is whether vaccine passports are mandated or an option.

The key passage in the Charter is #7: “Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.”

Salima Semnani, a lawyer, co-litigation director and lecturer with UBC, told CKTZ News, “there is no mandatory vaccine requirement.”

She explained that British Columbians are given a choice. For example, people who have vaccine passports can eat inside restaurants and go to sports events. Those who refuse will have to be satisfied with take-out and watching sports on television.

A recent Insights West market research poll found that 13 per cent of the British Columbians respondents are strongly opposed to a vaccine passport.

This statistic was echoed in the Sept. 16 BC COVID-19 update, which states that 86.3 percent of the population were given their first dose of the vaccine and close to 79 per cent have received two doses. The vast majority of Cortes Island’s adult population was vaccinated at Gorge Hall, or the Klahoose village, earlier this spring.

Chart from the Insights West press release: The Vast Majority (79%), Of BC Residents Support The Idea Of Proof Of Double-Vaccinations In Order To Participate In Many Public Activities In BC, And Even More (over 8-in-10) Support Mandatory Vaccinations For Certain Professions. Photo courtesy of Insights West.

Nancy Beach is one of the Cortes Island residents who opposes the passport’s perceived violation of the Canadian constitution. She has written her MP, Rachel Blaney, her MLA, Michele Babchuk, and the local public health office. Beach was also one of the people who recently protested against the vaccine passport in Campbell River’s Spirit Square.

She cited Alberta-based Justice Centre for Constitutional Reform (JCCF) statements that the shots “are experimental” and clinical trials of the vaccine will not be complete until 2023.

JCCF opposes the vaccine passports, arguing that the government should make the vaccines available to Canadians who want it, but their involvement should end there.

JCCF did not respond to a CKTZ News request for an interview on Sept. 6, but two days latter issued a press release stating, “BC’s vaccination requirement infringes Charter rights and freedoms. To be constitutional, vaccine passports must be ‘demonstrably justified’ by the evidence.”

Meanwhile the number of COVID cases within the Greater Campbell River Health Area has risen to levels not seen since the pandemic arrived in March 2020.

Data from North Island Medical Health Officer Charmaine Enns’ June 16, 2021, address to the City of Campbell River and the BC Centre for Disease Controls Epi-Week maps- Chart by Roy L Hales

Semnani says there could be exceptional circumstances where someone could argue that their charter rights are being violated, for example when they cannot take the vaccine for medical reasons.

She added that even then, it would still be very difficult to make the argument that is was an illegal violation of charter rights.

“Section 1 says all of the rights and freedoms in the Charter are subject to reasonable limit as can be demonstratively justified in a free and democratic society,” explained Semnani. “So if we can say that the vaccine passport is reasonable, it’s proportional due to the fact we have a global pandemic that is killing many, many, many people, then asking for a passport is a reasonable limit on people’s rights.”

Photo credit: Posters used against the vaccine passport in Campbell River, Sep 1, 2021 - Nancy Beach photo

Anastasia Avvakumova/ CKTZ News - Good Libations winemaker has announced its annual apple juice fundraiser to support the Cortes Food Bank.

Cortes Island residents who want to share the apples on their trees are encouraged to call ahead and be prepared to bring the fruit as soon as possible after harvest. For purchasers, the juice needs to be pre-ordered and will come in plain or ginger-lime flavours in two- or four-liter amounts.

Loni Taylor, who is coordinating the project, works as both an apprentice at Good Libations and a board member of Cortes Community Economic Development Association (CCEDA).

Her passion for food security showed in this conversation, where she shared about:

overabundance of fall fruit and reducing food waste

minimizing propagation of apple maggot

Good Libations' succession plan and food programs

CCEDA's upcoming community outreach in regards to its downtown Manson's commercial space

Photo credit:Apples dehydrate quickly after being picked and need to be kept in cold storage and juiced promptly. Photo by Loni Taylor.

Immanuel McKenty/ Folk U - This Friday at 1 p.m. (Monday at 6:30), July 16th, tune-in for a special edition of Folk U Radio with guest-host Immanuel McKenty. This week will be all about local musicians! Featuring tracks by, and interviews with, local legends Josie Simpson, Jemma Hicken, and Back Eddy and the Procrastinators!

Folk U Radio is taking old school viral every Friday at 1 and Mondays at 6:30 @CKTZ89.5FM or livestreamed at cortesradio.ca or you can find repeats anytime at www.folku.ca/podcasts.

Immanuel McKenty/ Folk U - We invite you to join us on CKTZ 89.5 FM for another special episode of Folk U Radio featuring local musicians with guest show host Immanuel McKenty.

In last month's special edition we heard from local emerging artists Jemma Hicken and Josie Simpson. Today we're going to be speaking with, and hearing some music and stories by local music fixtures Bruce Hipkin and Rick Bockner.

Growing up and studying as a composer in England, Bruce Hipkin was the piano teacher here on Cortes for many years. He shares some stories and insights from his years teaching the youth of Cortes. And Rick Bockner, well, Rick hardly needs an introduction! But let's say, he's been a lot of places and done a lot of things. We'll be hearing about some of them, as well as his years in San Francisco rock and roll band Mad River.

Folk U Radio is taking old school viral every Friday at 1 and Mondays at 6:30 @CKTZ89.5FM or livestreamed at cortesradio.ca. Find repeats anytime at www.folku.ca/podcasts.

Manda Aufochs Gillespie/ Folk U - What really matters to you this election? What do you wish you could ask? Tune in this Monday at 6:30 on CortesRadio.ca or 89.5FM for the last of our Folk U election series where host Manda Aufochs Gillespie goes deeper with this year's candidates vying to represent North Island-Powell River in the federal government.

BUT FIRST: What do you want to ask the candidates? What matters most to you right now? What are the small town issues that aren't being asked? Send your questions to [email protected] in advance of Fridays show and help make this a meaningful conversation with today's candidates.

This week features the liberal candidate Jennifer Grenz. (To hear interviews with the Green Party candidate and the NDP candidate or for replays of any or all folk u radio shows visit cortesradio.ca/folk-u)

Folk U Radio is taking old school viral every Friday at 1 and Mondays at 6:30 @CKTZ89.5FM or livestreamed at cortesradio.ca. Find repeats anytime at www.folku.ca/podcasts.