Sign, sign, everywhere a sign

Religious groups join campaign to raise welfare rates

By: Brenda Suderman

Posted: 02/22/2014Winnipeg Free Press

Prepare to see an economic -- and spiritual -- sign of the times when you drive by a house of worship over the next few weeks.
Some of the city's churches, mosques, and temples and gurdwaras plan to display the same message on their outdoor signs: Love your neighbour as yourself -- raise welfare rates. "God calls us to love your neighbour," says Ken DeLisle, minister at Fort Garry United Church, which sported that message on its sign for most of February.

"If you have two coats, you give one away."
That same message of neighbourliness will also be posted at the outdoor sign of the Singh Sabha Sikh Gurdwarda on Sturgeon Road, says president Jagpal Johal.
Although this current campaign is directed at the specific issue of raising Employment and Income Assistance rates, people of faith have long advocated for justice and compassion for the less fortunate, says a member of Make Poverty History Manitoba, the organization running the sign campaign.

To read the entire Free Press article, click here.

And this is Augustine's contribution to the advocacy.

- Submitted by Nancy R.

De-Colonial Theology: Thought and Practice

 Canadian School of Peacebuilding

In June, Terry LeBlanc will be the instructor at the Canadian School of Peacebuilding at CMU.  The course is called "De-Colonial Theology:  Thought and Practice".  Here is the course descriptor:  Colonial imprints lie heavy on Indigenous “Christian” praxis and theology in North America. These imprints are a result of theologies  constructed within specific philosophical and biblical frameworks historic to European, Christian faith.  In this course, using several  Indigenous teaching paradigms, Terry LeBlanc will examine these philosophical and biblical foundations, asking whether a different  Indigenous theology and praxis of faith in the person, work, life, teaching, death and resurrection of Jesus might emerge if other  foundations were to be set in place.  

You can find more information about the School of Peacebuilding by clicking here.  Bob has suggested that our Just Living group be informed about this very relevant course.  Kathleen has already registered.

 Sojourners Magazine

The most recent Sojourners magazine has an article by Terry LeBlanc called "Reclaiming the Word".  The subtitle is:  In missionary hands, the gospel was too often a bludgeon used to divide and conquer Native communities. Today, Indigenous theologians are finding redemptive power in that very same gospel.

Here is an excerpt from the article:  For generations, Native North Americans and other Indigenous peoples have lived the false belief that a fulfilled relationship with their Creator through Jesus required rejecting their own culture and adopting another, European in origin. In consequence, conventional approaches to mission with Indigenous peoples in North America and around the world have produced relatively dismal outcomes.

You can read LeBlanc's article by clicking here.

NOTE:  Both this course and the article are likely very relevant to our planning for Faith in the City 2.

- Submitted by Bob and Kathleen

Holy cow! That burger just cost 660 gallons of water to make.

Every person has a “water footprint,” which is the amount of fresh water that we use daily, plus the water required to produce any goods and services that we also consume. The former gets more attention than the latter, since household water use is easier to track, thanks to the monthly water bill.

It’s common to think about water consumption in terms of how long you’re in the shower, how often you run the dishwasher, whether you left the sprinkler on, or someone forgot to turn off the tap.
But it’s important not to forget the water footprint of external goods and services, such as foods, because it’s probably larger than you suspect.

To read a disturbing list of how many gallons of water are needed to produce various products (via National Geographic, “The Hidden Water We Use”), click here.

- submitted by Gareth

Unionizing Bangladesh garment factory workers face intimidation, violence: Report

Garment factory workers in Bangladesh who try to start trade unions are being intimidated and threatened with murder to stop their efforts to organize, a human rights watchdog says.

 Read more here. 

 - submitted by Gareth

Growing Local 2014

Shelley (and the folks at Kairos) forwarded information about this event, taking place at the end of February.  You can find out more by clicking here. Note:  The keynote speaker, Michael Moss is also speaking Thursday evening, 7:30 at the Masonic Temple (Confusion Corner).

Check out inspiring presentations, enjoy delicious local lunches and the chance to network with hundreds of Manitobans working for healthy, sustainable and fair food for all. The Growing Local Conference offers over 40 food workshops, displays and discussions.

When: February 28^th - March 1^st

Featuring: Michael Moss, Lavonna Harms & Claire Meiklejohn

Register by: February 14^th

Questions? Call 204-943-0822.

- submitted by  Shelley

Monday, Feb 17: Mi'kmaq Warriors Speaking Tour

- Submitted by Karla

National Congress of American Indians: We do not call ourselves R--skins

In time for the Superbowl, the National Congress of American Indians released a PSA calling for the renaming of the Washington football team.  This article is from Salon.com.  You can see the 2 minute PSA by clicking here.

 

This intro is taken from Salon.com.

As football fans gear up for the Super Bowl, the National Congress of American Indians has issued a PSA to remind them that the Washington Redskins is still a team name, and that, yes, it is still offensive.

In October, President Obama said if he owned the football team, he would “think about changing” the name, which is a slur for Native Americans — an opinion that team owner Dan Snyder does not share.

The PSA lists several things that Native Americans call themselves, like “proud,” “underserved,” and “forgotten.” They do not, however, call themselves R--skins.

Other football teams that have Native Americans as mascots include the Kansas City Chiefs, the Atlanta Braves and the Cleveland Indians.

Question:  Do we give any thought to other names like "Edmonton Eskimos", when Inuit people don't any longer use the European-generated name for themselves (and nor do most other contemporary Canadians)? While it's clearly not as loaded as "R--skins", "Eskimos" is out-of-date, and harkens back to a colonial period we're working to get past.

You can find good information about issues such as these at the facebook site:  Decolonizing Forum-Manitoba

- Submitted by Gareth

 

Rebecca Belmore to Make Major Human Rights Museum Piece

This article appears in Canadian Art, and is written by Leah Sandals.

Anishinabe artist Rebecca Belmore doesn’t shy away from big projects. For her 1991 work Ayum-ee-aawach Oomama-mowan: Speaking to Their Mother, she created a massive wooden megaphone that she then installed in various locations across Canada, inviting members of the public to voice concerns to the land directly. In 2006, for Toronto’s first Nuit Blanche, she and Osvaldo Yero created the sculpture freeze out of a huge block of ice to pay homage to Neil Stonechild and other First Nations people who were injured or killed when left out in the rural cold by police.

Still, a project announced today may be Belmore’s biggest yet. In a commission for the Canadian Museum of Human Rights in Winnipeg, Belmore hopes to create a gigantic “blanket” out of 10,000-plus clay beads that will be shaped in part by members of the public including schoolchildren and elders.

“The piece will probably be 30 feet tall and 20 feet wide,” Belmore tells Canadian Art, noting it will hang off a hooklike structure, and drape in a manner akin to a textile. “I’m a little scared at this point, because it’s a lot of work…. You have an idea, and then you have to follow it through.

Here's where we all have a chance to participate!!

People who want to participate in the project by shaping some beads can visit Neechi Commons, a community co-op, in February and March. That is where Belmore will have a studio set up and be inviting people to shape beads on a drop-in basis.

You can read the whole article by clicking here.

- Submitted by Kathleen

Pipeline rupture report raises questions about TransCanada inspections

2011 report criticized TransCanada’s ‘inadequate’ inspections

 

A CBC News investigation has unearthed a critical report that the federal regulator effectively buried for several years about a rupture on a trouble-prone TransCanada natural gas pipeline.

On July 20, 2009, the Peace River Mainline in northern Alberta exploded, sending 50-metre-tall flames into the air and razing a two-hectare wooded area.

On July 20, 2009, the Peace River Mainline in northern Alberta exploded, sending 50-metre-tall flames into the air and razing a two-hectare wooded area. (Courtesy of Dene Tha' First Nation)

Few people ever learned of the rupture — one of the largest in the past decade — other than the Dene Tha’ First Nation, whose traditional territory it happened on.

In an early 2011 draft report about the incident, the National Energy Board criticized TransCanada, the operator of the line owned by its subsidiary NOVA Gas Transmission, for “inadequate” field inspections and “ineffective” management.
Final reports are typically published by the investigative bodies, either the NEB or the Transportation Safety Board, but this report wasn’t released until this January when the CBC obtained it through an access-to-information request.

The NEB said the delay was caused by an “administrative error” when an employee left without transferring the file over.

In a written statement, TransCanada said there's a combination of construction, coating and soil factors that have required an "active pipe integrity program" on this pipeline. The company said it instituted new technologies and new approaches after the rupture that have since prevented a reoccurrence.

You can read the entire article by clicking here.

- Submitted by Gareth