Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, March/April 2016 You’ll want to hear this. HELP US SHED LIGHT ON THE ISSUES THAT MATTER TO YOU. (we’ve got some bright ideas) MAKE A DONATION Tax receipts are issued for contributions of $15 or more. I would like to make a monthly contribution of: I would like to make a one-time donation of: $25 $15 $10 Other ____ OR $300 $100 $75 Other ____ PAYMENT TYPE: I would like to receive my I’ve enclosed a cheque (made payable to CCPA, or void cheque for monthly donation) subscription to The Monitor: VISA MASTERCARD I’d like to make my contribution by: By e-mail CREDIT CARD NUMBER: Mailed to my address No Monitor, thanks EXPIRY DATE: SIGNATURE: CCPA’s brand new podcast alt.policy has arrived. CONTACT INFORMATION Hosts Davis Carr and Alex Hemingway demistify the Name Return this form to: big policy questions of the day and share their 500-251 BANK ST. interviews with the CCPA’s intrepid research team. 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REGISTERED CHARITY #124146473 RR0001 March/April 2016 18/ Registering truth, performing reconciliation Perspectives on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s final report and calls to action, and our shared responsibility to correct historic and current injustices done to Canada’s First Peoples. 32/ The 5,000-km diet Amy Wood on how Canada’s planned trade deal with the European Union (CETA) threatens public support for local food and farmers. 41/ Sizing up Trudeau in the post-Harper era Ed Finn explains why his 2015 anthology with Ralph Nader, the fortuitously named Canada After Harper, is an even better read today than it was before the election. 2 /CONTRIBUTORS 3 /EDITORIAL 4 /LETTERS 6 /NEW FROM THE CCPA 8 /IN THE NEWS 13 /BEHIND THE NUMBERS 16 /INDEX 31 /GOOD NEWS PAGE 41 /BOOKS Contributors VOL. 22, NO. 6 Jeremy Appel on several HIV and other Drew Hayden Taylor ISSN 1198-497X is a Toronto-based journalist public health awareness Originally from the Curve CANADA POST PUBLICATION 40009942 with a focus on Canadian, campaigns. He previously Lake First Nations in Central U.S. and international politics. managed communications for Ontario, Drew has spent the CCPA MONITOR IS PUBLISHED SIX TIMES He has a master’s degree the B.C. Centre for Excellence last two decades travelling A YEAR BY THE CANADIAN CENTRE in American Studies from in HIV/AIDS. the world and writing about FOR POLICY ALTERNATIVES. Western University. it from the Aboriginal Dennis Howlett perspective. An award- Jobb Arnold is Executive Director of THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED IN THE CCPA winning playwright, author, is Assistant Professor of Canadians for Tax Fairness MONITOR ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHORS columnist, filmmaker and Conflict Resolution Studies and a co-author of the AND DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT lecturer, he has managed at Menno Simons College Alternative Federal Budget’s THE VIEWS OF THE CCPA. to bridge the gap between in Winnipeg. He is involved chapter on equitable taxation. cultures by tickling the funny PLEASE SEND FEEDBACK TO in the SSHRC-funded Affect Asad Ismi bone. Project, which explores [email protected]. writes about international the role of public emotion Karen Lok Yi Wong affairs for the Monitor, EDITOR: STUART TREW (affect) on social and is a research assistant and specializing in the destructive SENIOR DESIGNER: TIM SCARTH political mobilization, and is student in the School of impact of U.S. and Canadian LAYOUT: SUSAN PURTELL researching, with scholars Social Work at the University imperialism, and resistance to at the University of Alberta, of British Columbia. EDITORIAL BOARD: BRUCE CAMPBELL, it, in the Global South. the ethical and cultural KERRI-ANNE FINN, SETH KLEIN, KATE MCINTURFF, Amy Wood implications of large-scale Erica Violet Lee ERIKA SHAKER, EMILY TURK is a PhD student in political industrial projects like the tar is an undergraduate science at the University CCPA NATIONAL OFFICE: sands. student at the University of of Toronto. Her research 500-251 BANK ST., OTTAWA, ON K2P 1X3 Saskatchewan in her final Andrea Auger examines the political year of a philosophy and TEL: 613-563-1341 | FAX: 613-233-1458 is Reconciliation and economies of trade and political studies degree. She [email protected] Research Manager at the First climate change, and pathways is an activist and organizer WWW.POLICYALTERNATIVES.CA Nations Child & Family Caring toward decarbonization. with Idle No More and the TWITTER: @CCPA Society of Canada. #ReadTheTRCReport project, Robin Yassin-Kassab FACEBOOK.COM/POLICYALTERNATIVES Frank Bayerl and was part of the Canadian is the author of the novel The CCPA BC OFFICE: writes book reviews for the Youth Delegation to the Road from Damascus and the 1400-207 WEST HASTINGS ST., Monitor and is a volunteer at COP 21 meeting in Paris this co-author, with Leila al-Shami, VANCOUVER, BC V6B 1H7 the CCPA’s national office in December. She writes about of a new book on the Syrian Ottawa. her experiences as a young revolution and war, Burning TEL: 604-801-5121 | FAX: 604-801-5122 Nehiyaw student navigating Country (Pluto, January 2016). Murray Dobbin [email protected] the worlds of academia on her He co-edits www.pulsemedia. is an author, commentator Moontime Warrior blog. org and blogs at www.qunfuz. CCPA MANITOBA OFFICE: and journalist whose writing com. UNIT 205-765 MAIN ST., WINNIPEG, MB R2W 3N5 appears regularly in The Tyee Clare Mian TEL: 204-927-3200 | FAX: 204-927-3201 and The Hill Times. He is a has been a teacher, [email protected] board member of Canadians department head, vice- for Tax Fairness and sits on principal, curriculum CCPA NOVA SCOT IA OFFICE: the advisory council of the consultant and principal at P.O. BOX 8355, HALIFAX, NS B3K 5M1 Rideau Institute. both the elementary and TEL: 902-240-0926 secondary level. She is retired, Ed Finn [email protected] and is a student again at has had a 70-year career in the University of Toronto in CCPA ONTARIO OFFICE: journalism, labour activism the department of Near and Julie Flett and politics. He wrote a 10 DUNDAS STREET EAST, Middle Eastern civilizations. This months cover artist is labour relations column for P.O. BOX 47129, TORONTO, ON, M5B 0A1 an award-winning author, the Toronto Star from 1968 Janice Newson TEL: 416-598-5985 illustrator and artist of Cree- to 1982, and was a founding is Professor Emerita in the [email protected] Métis descent currently editor of the Monitor, which department of sociology at living in Vancouver, B.C. CCPA SASKATCHEWAN OFFICE: he edited from 1996 to 2014. York University and the co- She received the Christie His latest book (co-edited author, with Claire Polster, 2ND FLOOR, 2138 MCINTYRE STREET Harris Illustrated Children’s with Ralph Nader), Canada of the CCPA book A Penny REGINA, SK S4P 2R7 Literature Prize and was After Harper, is available at for Your Thoughts: How TEL: 306-924-3372 | FAX: 306-586-5177 nominated for the Governor any local bookseller. Corporatization Devalues [email protected] General’s Award for Children’s Teaching, Research, and Kevin Hollett Literature for her book Owls Public Service in Canada’s is Communications Director See Clearly at Night (Lii Yiiboo Universities. at Pivot Legal Society, a Nayaapiwak lii Swer): A human rights organization in Michif Alphabet (L’alphabet di Vancouver. He has consulted Michif). Note from the editor olent victimization and homicide sta- tistics and of Aboriginals generally “A new way of living together” in the prison system, the number of communities under boil-water advi- sories, including Shoal Lake, which HE TREATMENT OF children in jority government passed several provides clean drinking water to the Indian Residential Schools new laws, including the Matrimoni- City of Winnipeg, and the list goes on. is a sad chapter in our histo- al Real Property Act, Safe Drinking Reconciliation will mean different ry,” said former prime min- Water for First Nations Act, and First things to different people; there will ister Stephen Harper in his Nations Elections Act, which under- also be remarkable similarities be- June 2008 apology. On be- mined enshrined Aboriginal and trea- tween otherwise disparate visions. “Thalf of all Canadians he acknowl- ty rights. The First Nations Account- For the TRC it is about mutual respect edged the schooling program, run by ability Act was “clearly designed to and building a framework in which the government and various Chris- embarrass First Nations leadership “Canada’s political and legal systems, tian churches for about a century and fuel allegations of corruption,” educational and religious institutions, beginning in the 1870s, was intend- he wrote. When, in 2012, two budget the corporate sector and civic society ed to “isolate children from the in- implementation bills (C-38 and C-45) function in ways that are consistent fluence of their homes…based on the rolled back land and water protec- with the principles set out in the Unit- assumption Aboriginal cultures and tions and gutted the Canadian Envi- ed Nations Declaration on the Rights spiritual beliefs were inferior and une- ronmental Assessment Act, the pow- of Indigenous Peoples.” For AFN Na- qual.” He blamed the “policy of assim- erful Idle No More movement