Judy Rebick's Activism Ignited at Mcgill Daily
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Help Generations help kids generationsfoundation.com november 2011 www.theseniortimes.com vol. XXv1 no 2 Judy Rebick’s activism ignited at McGill Daily p 3 The Druze path to peace p 5 McKenty on Harper, a “benign dictator” p 11 Dailyites challenge the establishment p 43 Semi-annual Guide to Senior livinG pp 23-37 24 hours Weather permitting Airport reservations guaranteed Special Attention to the Elderly Pick-Up & Delivery [email protected] www.atlastaxi.qc.ca Faites le bon choix Make the Right Choice DIAMOND AWARD TOP 3% OF CANADA FOR 2009-2011 Courtier immobilier/Real Estate Broker SELLING YOUR HOME? LOOKING FOR A CONDO? Agence immobilère www.baudinet.ca NEED A RENTAL? Franchisé Indépendant et Autonome Editorial Tory candidate’s government salary a secret Saulie Zajdel has a new job. No, he was not The official also declined to supply an office elected last May to the House of Commons as phone number so Zajdel could be interviewed. the MP for Mount Royal. Back to the weekly newspaper. Zajdel said he’ll After a spirited campaign for the Conservative be working as a regional adviser for “commu- Party, the longtime Montreal city councilor and nity outreach and relations—going out into the executive committee member failed to unseat community, in Montreal, in the anglophone and incumbent Liberal Irwin Cotler. Several months allophone communities, ensuring that what the later, though, Zajdel was hired by the Conserva- government is doing is understood.” tive government to do some of the things he said He also was going to determine how his gov- he would do if he were elected. How do we know ernment can “help the communities and mu- he has a new job? nicipalities” apply for programs under Canadian We read about it in a Montreal weekly that sup- Heritage. ported his bid to unseat Cotler. We tried to find Sounds like Zajdel has been appointed to be out more about this reward to a losing candidate a privileged channel, supplanting the role that by contacting the office of Heritage Minister the elected MP and his staff should be able to James Moore, Zajdel’s new boss. do. Surely, Cotler, a distinguished law profes- Our questions were straightforward: What are sor, Stéphane Dion (St. Laurent), equally distin- his functions, salary and duration of his mandate? guished political science professor and former The answer, as supplied by Moore’s aide, Sébas- Liberal Party leader, and former astronaut Marc tien Gariepy: “We do not comment on internal Garneau, who has a PhD in electrical engineer- staffing issues.” ing, and their staffs are capable of understanding So much for transparency. which programs are available and communicat- ing same to city councils and community groups. ST. PATRICK SQUARE This appointment has every appearance of set- ting Zajdel up as a parallel MP, minus the public mandate, a patronage appointment that is a slap in the face to voters who rejected Tory candidates as they exercised their democratic rights. Of course, all governments reward their friends, 3 but that does not diminish the fact that it un- Fulfi lling Needs We are Cote St. Luc’s best kept secret dermines the will of voters in Mount Royal who for an active community apartment Senior Residence at Every Stage chose someone else. The Zadjel appointment lays building designed for autonomous bare the Harper government’s moral deficit. • Retirement lifestyle of distinction & quality • Round-the-clock individuals 55+ and young at heart. caregiving by full nursing staff • Quality service • Luxurious Essentially, Zajdel is being paid to make the kind A stone’s throw from bus lines, banks, of connections and obtain discretionary funding accommodations • Recreational programs • At-home atmosphere Cote St. Luc shopping centre, post office, and the CLSC. that can only help pave his path to Parliament if Visit us today! he decides to take another run at the riding. 4432 St. Catherine St. West, Westmount View our video at www.stpatricksquare.com 514 935-1212 Postscript: The Ottawa Citizen reported last email: [email protected] 514-481-9609 www.placekensington.com 6767 Cote St. Luc Road month that a federal government program to A DIVISION OF FAIRWAY MANAGEMENT CORP. entrance via King Edward help boost security at synagogues and mosques approved a far greater share of applications from ridings represented by Conservative MPs. Nearly half of all applications to the pilot pro- gram coming from Conservative ridings were approved, but only 28 per cent of projects in op- position ridings got the green light, funding re- cords show, the report said. The majority of the rejected applications came from synagogues and Jewish organizations in Mount Royal, represented by Liberal MP Irwin Cotler. urgently needed call! Imagine The Grief Of Losing Your urgently needed call! Spouse or a Parent. call us urgently needed call! Funeral Pre-Arrangements Will Ease The Pain. Talk It Over With Your Loved Ones. FAMILYSIDE For Free information rainer Schmalhaus rschmalhaus@ lakeviewmemorial.ca 514 606-9426 2 THE SENIOR TIMES November 2011 www.theseniortimes.com www.theseniortimes.com November 2011 THE SENIOR TIMES 3 “You need a spark, and boom, it happens,” says Judy Rebick Irwin Block spurred on by Rebick and others, Special to The Senior Times Sandy Gage was reinstated. “We went from a handful of radi- They flew in from Los Angeles and cals on the Daily to big demonstra- Tel Aviv and places in between, tions and mass meetings. It had a about 170 McGill Daily veterans profound impact on me. It’s like and spouses, to celebrate the 100th we’re in that moment now: All of a anniversary of that venerable col- sudden something happens, occupy- lege newspaper. ing a park on Wall St. sparks a global Most were satisfied to renew per- movement. sonal ties and remember days of “You need a spark, and boom, it youthful commitments and aban- happens.” don, to reminisce, reconnect, reflect. In Toronto, Rebick freelanced for Not Judy Rebick. She was busy Fri- the CBC and the Star Weekly, where day morning taking part in her regu- she wrote a story about the then-rev- lar gig on CBC radio’s highly rated Q “When I say I’m going to do something, I do it,” Judy Rebick says. olutionary act, now commonplace, media panel, with Toronto Star pub- of young people living together lisher John Cruickshank and Globe biography, which she completed in fessor had been doing research for without being married. and Mail columnist Margaret Wente. eight months. the Pentagon. After a tough battle, Continued on page 4 The subject was media coverage of “When I say I’m going to do some- the Occupy movement and of course thing, I always do it,” she noted. It Rebick had gone to check out the will be her fourth book. scene first hand. Rebick found a like-minded com- Not the usual suspects, she noted— munity at the Daily. this was new and exciting—and “The Daily became my life, a bunch catching fire worldwide. of misfits who didn’t fit in anywhere Rebick was on the Daily staff from else. We really all connected, and 1964-67 while studying for her bach- (1965-66 editor in chief) Patrick elor’s in psychology. At 66, she is MacFadden was a big influence. known across Canada as an activist, “So was (managing editor) Joy journalist, feminist leader, writer, Fenston, because she was a woman new-media innovator, lecturer, cur- editor and I could see there were rent-affairs critic and indefatigable women who were doing men’s jobs campaigner for a more just society. successfully.” How the salesman’s daughter be- Rebick became involved with the came one of Canada’s best-known New Left, democratization and free activists and social critics will be told speech when a student editor was in her soon-to-be-published auto- fired after he revealed that a pro- 2 THE SENIOR TIMES November 2011 www.theseniortimes.com www.theseniortimes.com November 2011 THE SENIOR TIMES 3 We buy gold! Career marked by crusades and revolutions Broken Continued from page 3 happens, was more involved in sectarian issues & Unwanted “The idea then was that it was just hippies, weirdos than political action. jewellery! and freaks that were radical—things were changing The very next day, she recalled going to a found- We pay top $$$! among ordinary people, the people next door.” ing meeting of the Ontario Coalition for Abortion 8k - 24k But she soon realized that the media, with its Clinics when she was nominated to the co-ordi- Bijouterie 514-695-6527 “drunks and hypocrites,” was not where she nating committee. “I didn’t want to do it, but I 3705 St. Charles wanted to fulfill her ambitions. did it.” And that cause took over her life. Jewellery Kirkland After working as a researcher at York University, When Rebick started supporting Dr. Henry Rebick moved to New York City, where the 1960s Morgentaler, her leadership and communications “revolution” was flying off in many directions. skills again were noticed and she was invited to Yippies Abby Hoffman and Jerry Rubin were run for president of the National Action Commit- “crazy, unbelievably sexist,” a meeting of Students tee for the Status of Women. Suddenly her words for a Democratic Society ended in a fistfight, and were making the front pages. Caucasians were no longer welcome in the for- “Brian Mulroney organized these independent merly bi-racial civil rights movement. think-tanks around the Charlottetown Accord. “I lived alone and became very streetsmart, I realized that ordinary people are so smart, so never got into trouble, and partied all the time.