Ola! November 2009

Welcome to the November edition of the email newsletter for Citizens for Public Justice. Read about our latest happenings below, and join with us in preparing for the reflective and anticipatory season of Advent.

Joe goes to High School

The Ottawa Catholic School Board’s theme for the next two years is “We Care for God’s Creation.” CPJ executive director Joe Gunn was invited to speak to high school chaplains and school board officials on this theme in September. Wanting more, they invited him back to address their annual Youth Ministry Institute in the first days of November.

Held at a comfortable location on the bank of the beautiful Ottawa River, over 100 students from 15 area schools gathered to hear Joe make three presentations on “Ecology, Justice and the Sacred.” In the afternoon, Becky Mason, renowned canoeist, also gave a talk to the students about the beauties of pristine nature as seen from Canada’s rivers. The students were challenged to see creation as a gift from God, a gift worthy of our efforts to preserve and use well.

In addition, the need to see the connectedness among all things in nature was emphasized, with a special challenge to relate public justice efforts to ecological justice. Joe engaged the students in reflection on three suggested responses to the ecological crisis: contemplative responses which bring us closer to nature, ascetic responses which help us simplify our lifestyles and lower our ecological footprint, and prophetic responses which influence public opinion and government policies on structural changes to benefit the poor as well as the earth.

On the Hill

It has been six months since the launch of Dignity for All: The Campaign for a Poverty-Free Canada. In that time, over 235 organizations and almost 4000 individuals have signed on in support of the campaign! A major campaign initiative has been building a dialogue on poverty in Canada with an expanding number of MPs.

This past month was no exception. CPJ policy analyst Karri Munn-Venn and Kelly Masotti from Canada Without Poverty met with Conservative MP and Chair of the HUMA Committee, Dean Allison. The HUMA Committee, or the House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities, is the parliamentary committee that is currently studying the federal role in addressing poverty in Canada. They talked about Dignity for All, HUMA, and how initiatives inside and outside of government can improve the situation of poverty and social exclusion. In an animated and engaging discussion, Mr. Allison stated that while he may not agree with us on how to address the issue, he certainly believes that doing something about poverty is important. Overall, it was a promising initial discussion that is likely to be the first of many.

Karri and Kelly also met with Liberal MP Frank Valeriote who spoke about his riding-level engagement with the Guelph Poverty Elimination Committee. Mr. Valeriote endorsed the Dignity for All campaign and praised our efforts to provide national coordination for work towards poverty elimination.

Language Matters

On October 22 policy intern Rebekah Sears participated in Language Matters, a conference about the issues of language skills relating to newcomer integration. It was hosted by Metropolis Canada, a network for policy research on immigration, diversity and citizenship, and Citizenship and Immigration Canada. Panellists and participants included public servants, academics and practitioners.

One of the conference’s the major themes was the importance of language within community development and citizenship. Often employment and civic participation come to mind when language is discussed within topics such as immigration. However, language is also essential for building relationships within communities, from joining clubs and grocery shopping to visiting the doctor. As Metropolis Canada’s Executive Director Howard Duncan put it, "if immigration is about nation building, then language is at the foundation".

The sessions discussed the various barriers to language acquisition and integration, some possible solutions, and the benefits of integration. Some highlights included Kenise Kilbride’s presentation on the specific challenges for women, Citizenship and Immigration’s proposals for developing standard benchmarks for language training, and sports commentator Parminder Singh on CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada Punjabi initiative.

See Rebekah’s blog post for more highlights and the Metropolis website for links to the presentations.

The Catalyst is online!

Our latest issue of the Catalyst is up on our website – you can view it in its online magazine format, or check out the individual articles. This issue goes in-depth on the Dignity for All campaign, getting into the issues behind the campaign and exploring what it would really mean to address poverty in Canada.

• The reality of poverty: growing up working poor and invisible is a first-hand account of what it is like to grow up in poverty, written by Sharon Murphy.
• Joe Gunn explores the high rates of immigrants living in poverty, arguing we need to get into the deeper concerns to get to the heart of the issue in Does arrival in Canada doom newcomers to poverty?
• Chandra Pasma and Mariel Angus go in depth on community service agencies across the country. Read about their interviews with people who work on the ground in Pillars of support: Community groups across Canada.
• In Living the heart of the law, Sylvia Keesmaat thoughtfully explores what it would look like if all Canadians lived as faithfully as Boaz.
• Karri Munn-Venn and other staff lay out what eliminating poverty in Canada would really take, in articles about a federal poverty reduction act and the Dignity for All campaign. The article Reduce? Eliminate? Make it history? explores the language we use when advocating against poverty.

This issue of the Catalyst will be our last for 2009 due to financial constraints.

Web features

With November 24 upon us, and the November 20 anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, CPJ board chair Kathy Vandergrift recently wrote a web feature emphasizing the importance of caring for our country’s children. Read her web feature and others below.

Can Canada change the climate in Copenhagen?

It's just six weeks until Canada joins other world leaders in Copenhagen to discuss the next global climate change agreement. Can Canada change its tone and support an environmentally just plan, or will we continue to be labelled as unhelpful participants? Read more…

Progress on poverty, one step at a time

It can be easy to get discouraged. We’re being governed by a precarious minority parliament, the economy is still in the tank, and despite a 20-year-old commitment to change, almost one child out of every 10 still lives in poverty in Canada today. All that, and the short, dark days of winter are upon us.

Still, there are reasons to be hopeful. Over the last few weeks we have witnessed a steady stream of small successes that encourage the belief that change is possible. Read more…

Is Canada welcoming the stranger?

Canada has always welcomed people from many different backgrounds through immigration. Newcomers have been instrumental in shaping Canada into the country it is today. However, as the economic goals of immigration take precedence, there are concerns that certain groups, particularly refugees and temporary foreign workers, are not being welcomed. It is time for decision makers to re-evaluate our primary purposes of immigration and the impacts of imminent policy changes. Read more…

Children’s rights: A tool for justice

On November 20, 2009 people around the world will mark the 20th Anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It is a time to celebrate progress made in respect for children as persons with dignity, worth, and value in society. The Convention is the most ratified of all human rights agreements – but implementation is very weak. Read more…

November 24 – Take action on child and family poverty

It’s time to act on child poverty – in 1989 Parliament unanimously agreed to eliminate child poverty in Canada by the year 2000. Nine years past this deadline, one in ten children are still living in poverty.

Today, November 24, 2009, marks 20 years since Parliament passed this famous motion. Several events took place on Parliament Hill this morning, including a breakfast with MPs at which the 2009 national report card on child and family poverty was presented. Commentators included the Hon. Ed Broadbent and Assembly of First Nations National Chief Shawn A-in-chut Atleo. Concerned citizens then gathered for a 9am rally at the Centennial Flame. Both events drew attention to the continued need for action on poverty in Canada. To download the national or provincial report cards, visit the Campaign 2000 website.

Later, the House of Commons passed the following motion: “That, with November 24th, 2009 marking the 20th anniversary of the 1989 unanimous resolution of this House to eliminate poverty among Canadian children by the year 2000, and not having achieved that goal, be it resolved that the Government of Canada, taking into consideration the Committee’s work in this regard, and respecting provincial and territorial jurisdiction, develop an immediate plan to eliminate poverty in Canada for all.”

This is a major step towards accomplishing the first goal of Dignity for All: The Campaign for a Poverty-free Canada, a comprehensive and integrated federal poverty elimination plan with measures to addressing critical issues such as income security, employment insurance, early childhood development, education and training, and social supports.

CPJ is a proud supporter of Campaign 2000 and is pleased to have their collaboration on the Dignity for All campaign.

Call for volunteers – CPJ’s telethon

It’s that time of year, when CPJ pulls out its phone book and gets in touch with CPJ members across the country to thank them for their support. We’re looking for enthusiastic CPJ members who are interested in connecting with other CPJers in their communities by making a few phone calls!

All materials will be sent to volunteers shortly – please email Darryl Exelby, CPJ’s membership and development officer at Darryl@cpj.ca or call 1-800-667-8046 x226 to let him know if you’re interested.

Call for board nominations

It’s also the time of year when CPJ’s board of directors looks ahead to the spring, when several board members depart. This year, the board is looking for nominations for four board positions. If you know an enthusiastic CPJ member who would be an excellent addition to our committed board of directors, or if you would like your name put forward, please email Joe Gunn at joe@cpj.ca. Deadline for nominations is December 31, so act now!

Goodbyes

CPJ recently said goodbye to two staff. Kevin Elder, the financial development assistant and data manager, just left on a worldwide adventure with his wife Heather. Congratulations to Kevin and Heather on their recent marriage, and bon voyage and God’s blessing on your trip! We look forward to hearing about your escapades.

Karen Diepeveen, CPJ’s communications coordinator, has accepted a position as policy analyst for the Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences. She’ll be working on advocacy issues that affect researchers, professors and students in these disciplines, including copyright, equity issues and open access. She’s sad to be leaving CPJ, but will stay closely involved in as many activities as she can! Karen would also like to thank all of the board, staff and members at CPJ – it has been a privilege to connect with such passionate and dedicated people.

CPJ would like to thank Kevin and Karen for their thoughtful and significant contributions to CPJ over the past few years. You’ll both be missed!

Walking from Jerusalem

this road to Emmaus is crowded
so many people carry
baggage of disillusionment

we had trusted he would
make everything safe
redeem Israel
prevent holocausts

dust hangs on the road
rising doubt
obscures the handwriting on the scrolls
the forgotten love songs
that carried us to Jerusalem

He meets us on the road
his scarred palms in the folds of his garment
questions past history lessons
the foretelling ultrasounds of Jesus
prophesies fulfilled

listen to the love lines again
rewritten on his palm
move closer
read his lips
watch the bread breaking
in the company of witnesses
until your heart burns
to know

burns with trust
even when you cannot see
the bigger picture

By Linda Siebenga, from Earth Against Your Cheek, Copyright © 2004 Linda Siebenga.

For all at CPJ, Karen Diepeveen. It’s been a pleasure being your Ola! editor for the past few years – stay tuned, because although I’m leaving, Ola! will continue on in its usual monthly updating fashion!