[opirgyork] Upcoming Events + Office Closure for the holidays

[OPIRG York]

Hello Everyone!

This is probably the last DIGEST email you will receive until 2014! So
wishing you all a happy holiday and happy new year.
Check out below- a lot is happening in the next few weeks-- so hope to see
some of you out in the streets and at these upcoming events!

*Also a note about OPIRG Holiday Closure- OPIRG York will be closed from
Friday, December 13 through until January 5th, 2014*. The office will *re-open
on Monday, January 6th*, with regular office hours of 10-5pm. You can keep
in touch with us by emailing opirgyork at gmail.com, or our staff - Victoria
at victoria at opirgyork.ca, and Imran at imran at opirgyork.ca, but note that we
won't be checking our emails properly until January 6th, 2014.

We do have lots of programming already planned for the new year- We will
have two Media trainings- one on January 21st from 5-8pm (Media 101), and
one on January 28th from 5-8pm (Social Media and Advertising 101). As well
as a Social Justice Fair on Wednesday, January 29th from 10-4pm, where you
can check out our amazing Working groups and community partners. More
details will come in the new year.

Also thank you for the amazing semester- from the Board and Staff at OPIRG
York.
Have a great break everyone, and looking forward to seeing you all soon.

-OPIRG York

**************************

*Upcoming Events:*

*1. December 13: *Allyship at York University: by Queer and Trans Womyn
without Borders
*2. December 14: *Get on the Bus! End Immigration Detention! 24 hour
Solidarity Fast!
3. *December 14:* Holiday Action for $14 Now!
*4. December 14: *Who's Afraid of the Black Blocs?
*5. December 14: *Luxemburg, Lenin, Levi: Rethinking Revolutionary History
*6. December 15: *Campaigns, Movements and Cultural Resistance
*7. December 13-15: *TORONTO ANARCHIST FAIR!
*8. December 16: *STOP CLIMATE DISASTERS, STOP LINE 9
*9. **December 16-17: *Superqueero Holiday Potluck Show! consensual.
anti-racist. unapologetic. not your average burlesque.
*10. **December 17:* International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers
*11. December 18: *JFAAP End of the Year Celebration + Discussion
*12. December 18: *INTERNATIONAL MIGRANT WORKERS DAY
*13. ONGOING:* Incendies Submissions
*14. **ONGOING*: OPIRG's Community Research Exchange Program Survey
*15. **ONGOING*: NEWS NOW CHRY York's Community Radio Station- Positions
Available! (Deadline- January 6th)
*16. **ONGOING*: Save the Date & Call for Proposals! WPIRG’s School of
Public Interest 2014 (Deadline for Proposal- December 15)
*17. **ONGOING*: Please Donate to OCAP This Year's End & Help Us Fight
Austerity and Poverty
*18. UPDATE*: Opposition growing against indefinite immigration detention
in Canada

**************************
*1. **Allyship at York University: by Queer and Trans Womyn without Borders*

*Friday, December 14th*
*4-6pm*
*Rm 322 Student Centre, Centre for Women and Trans People*

As many of us know, most organizations and activist groups rely a lot on
the work of allies, but what does it mean to be an ally? How do you
incorporate allies into a group/organization/movement seamlessly and most
importantly... respectfully. How do we build bridges amongst each other as
women/womyn?

At this group meeting we are inviting all womyn/women who are interested in
having an intersectional dialogue on this subject. For lgbtq immigrant
identified women/womyn this is a great time for you to make clear and tell
our allies what we need, want, and expect from them. For allies this is a
great time to come and learn from each other and get a new understanding of
causes and issues you can help support. For those who are partly
representative this is a great time to do both! Share your experience but
also learn something new! Come and help us build bridges!

**************************

*2. **Get on the Bus! End Immigration Detention! 24 hour Solidarity Fast!*
*Facebook*: https://www.facebook.com/events/704517489572228/

Call for 24hour solidarity fast with immigration detainees: In response to
our call for a demonstration on the outside, immigration detainees in
Lindsay will be initiating their own 24hr fast inside on December 14th,
2013. Because of this, we are now calling for a 24hr global solidarity fast
to accompany the protest at Lindsay Jail. Details follow.

On September 17th, 2013, 191 migrant detainees began a hunger strike in
Lindsay, Ontario’s Central East Correctional Centre. This was the largest
immigrant detainee hunger strike in Canadian history. Representing 600 or
more people held by Canada immigration on a given day, and representing up
to a hundred or more held on a long-term basis, these men began fighting
back. Demanding that they either be removed or released within 90 days of
being detained, they inspired people on the outside to create the End
Indefinite Immigration Detention Network.

The detainees are also demanding an end to maximum-security incarceration
and an overhaul in the detention adjudication process. Join us on December
14th in Lindsay, ON to support these calls – buses depart from all over
Ontario.

> Get on the bus! Register at
http://endimmigrationdetention.com/2013/11/26/dec14/

>Join the 24hr solidarity fast, 12:01am – 11:59pm, Sat Dec 14. Take a photo
committing to participate in advance and email it to migrantstrike at gmail.com.
See
http://endimmigrationdetention.com/2013/12/06/solidarity-fast-with-striking-detainees-dec-14th/

*BUS DETAILS*
Toronto: Depart 11am, return 4:30pm from Christie Pits Park
Kitchener: Depart 9am. Duke Street behind Kitchener City Hall.
Guelph: Depart 9:45am, return 4:30pm from City Hall

The fences that surround these detainees are dividing them from their
communities, their families and their lives. It is time for these fences to
come down.

Most countries in the world have a limit to how long they can hold someone
in order to remove them, including the United States and the entire
European Union. However, Canada is a rogue nation. Despite the United
Nations directive stating that every country must have such a limit, Canada
continues to hold migrants in jail for as long as ten years!

Detainees are separated from their families, children and communities with
no release in sight. These people are serving time on administrative
grounds, namely their removal. If they have convictions, they have served
their time. Deporting people after they have done their time is double
punishment. Unlike people being held until a criminal trial, or serving
time once sentenced, these detainees do not know when they will be released
and face a bail or release process where they have to prove that they
should be released.

These detainees have said enough is enough. Release us after ninety days so
we can return to our families, our jobs and communities.

Many of the detainees stopped hunger striking (two remained on hunger
strike for more than 60 days) after Canada Immigration placed strikers in
the hole and removed organizers to other jails. However, the detainees
remain defiant and plan further actions in the near future. They continue
to demand that those in jail past 90 days be immediately removed, that they
be moved to lower security facilities (at the CCEC they have a poor diet,
little access to medical or legal or cultural specific services, little
outdoor time and are on lockdown much of day) and that the entire
adjudication process be overhauled.

Join us in a show of support and solidarity on Saturday December 14th.
Bring your friends, your families and your voices.

For more information on the strike and detention of migrants in Canada, see
www.endimmigrationdetention.com.
Email: nooneisillegal at riseup.net // migrantstrike at gmail.com

**************************

*3. ** Holiday Action for $14 Now!*

*When: Saturday, 14 December -- 11am until 1pm*
*Where: Eaton Centre (meet at SE corner of Dundas Square), Toronto*

Help make 2014 merry and bright with a $14 minimum wage!

Join us for a holiday action outside Eaton's Centre as we collect holiday
cards to send to Premier Kathleen Wynne. Hot chocolate, candy canes and
lots of holiday spirit for $14 now.

Help us win a raise for 2014!

Organized by the Campaign to Raise the Minimum Wage in collaboration with
the OPSEU Provincial Young Workers Committee

For more info: raisetheminimumwage at gmail.com | (416) 531-0778, ext. 221 |
www.raisetheminimumwage.ca

---

*Dec 14, 2013 - Raise the Minimum Wage*
*When: Saturday, December 14 -- 1pm*
*Where: Malvern Town Centre, outside McDonald's*

On November 14, the Campaign to Raise the Minimum Wage spearheaded a
province-wide day of action where students, labour activists and community
members visited over half of Provincial Parliament (MPPs) urging them to
support a $14 minimum wage for all workers.

Across Scarborough, community members met with their MPPs, presenting
cheques for $5 billion – the amount a $14 minimum wage would put back into
workers’ pockets. The results were encouraging, but show that there is much
work to be done to convince the Scarborough caucus to put working people
first. Together, the residents of Scarborough can keep their elected
officials accountable to the needs of their constituents.

If you have any questions, please call Jennifer at 647-466-0112.

List of events in Ontario raisetheminimumwage.ca


**************************

*4. **Who's Afraid of the Black Blocs?*
*When: Saturday, December 14 -- 6pm*
*Where: Another Story Book Shop, 315 Roncesvalles Ave, Toronto*

Join author Francis Dupuis-Déri for the launch of Who's Afraid of the Black
Blocs? Anarchy in Action Around the World

"Dupuis-Déri cuts through the crap, taking the Black Bloc tactic seriously
as both a political tool and a manifestation of the rage and joy that are
part of the struggle for a better world." -- Lesley J. Wood, Professor of
Sociology, York University, and author of Direct Action, Deliberation, and
Diffusion.

**************************

*5. **Luxemburg, Lenin, Levi: Rethinking Revolutionary History*
*When: Saturday December 14 -- 7pm*
*Where: Beit Zatoun, 612 Markham St. Toronto*

Speakers:

* John Riddell, editor of Toward the United Front: Proceedings of the
Fourth Congress of the Communist International.

* Paul Kellogg, author of "The Only of Revolution is the Crowd: The Limits
of Žižek’s Leninism", International Journal of Zizek Studies.


**************************

*6. **Campaigns, Movements and Cultural Resistance*
*When: Sunday, December 15 -- 3:00pm to 7:00pm*
*Where: Steelworkers’ Hall, 25 Cecil Street*

An afternoon of education, resistance and celebration as we gather to
reflect on current campaigns, solidarity movements and cultural
interventions in resisting colonization, racism, genocide, apartheid and
exploitation. This panel discussion and cultural performance is being
organized in commemoration of the annual International Human Rights Day
(December 10).

Join us to learn about upcoming events at information tables, gather
materials, meet and speak with community organizers and activists, attend
the speakers’ panel and discussion, cultural performance, food and
refreshments. All welcome!

Moderated by: Ilian Burbano – Colombia Action Solidarity Alliance (CASA)
Presentations by:
* Aidan MacDonald – Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid (CAIA) -- Boycott
‘SodaStream’ Campaign
* Chris Sorio – Vice-Chairperson, Migrante Canada -- Supertyphoons, Climate
Change and Mining
* Krisna Saravanamuttu – Coalition for Tamil Rights (CTR), Building a
movement against Genocide of Tamils
* Nausheen Quayyum – Graduate Student at York University -- Exploitation
and Struggles of Garment Workers in Bangladesh
* A Locked Out Worker from Richtree -- Attack on Unionized Workers in
Toronto

Cultural Performance

Event organized by: Coalition for Tamil Rights (CTR), Co-Sponsored by:
Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid (CAIA) and The Philippine Solidarity
Network – Toronto (PSNT)

**************************

*7. **TORONTO ANARCHIST FAIR!*
*TORONTO ANARCHIST FAIR!*
*Dec. 13th, 14th, and 15th, 2013. *
*For anarchists, and those curious about anarchism.*

http://torontoanarchistfair.noblogs.org/

It has been a very long time since Anarchists and their friends and allies
have assembled in Toronto to share our stories and ideas, connect our
struggles, build our movements, and deepen our affinities. In this absence,
the Toronto Anarchist Fair has been organized by a different collective
than the Toronto Anarchist Bookfair (which is rumoured to be reoccurring in
Spring/Summer 2014). We feel it is vitally important that anarchist
gatherings take place, while also being reimagined and reflecting a vibrant
multitude of anarchisms. We hope to keep expanding the horizons of
anarchism in this city beyond this fair and beyond this year.


For a more Anarchic Toronto and a freer, more joyful, and just world!

Toronto Anarchist Fair & Allied Events:

****FRIDAY*** *

Harvest Noon Community Holiday Potluck (16 Bancroft Ave)
Friday December 13th @ 6pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/1438511443039371/

Come celebrate the holiday season and share vegan-friendly recipes with the
Harvest Noon community!
Please bring one vegan-friendly dish; It can be anything from a side dish,
appetizer, main dish, bread, dessert etc.
RSVP & let us know what you're bringing: http://bit.ly/ImsGyD
*separately organized by Harvest Noon Café+Co-op*

Toronto Queer Zine Fair’s Winter Survival Tour at Unit 2 (163 Sterling Rd)
https://www.facebook.com/events/599960106736138
Friday December 13th @ 8pm
Readings by geoff, Amrit Brar, Maranda Elizabeth, Eric Levitt, and Eddie O.

$5/PWYC/No One Turned Away
Unit 2's entrance and bathroom are both physically accessible (though the
bathroom has no grab bars).

*separately organized by TQZF*

anarkink! … a kinky queer play party in cahoots with the toronto anarchist
fair! (studio ten, 135 tecumseth st)
Friday December 13th. Doors at 9pm. Doors close at 10pm
sex party etiquette and practices of consent worksshop + play party with
temperature play, rope bondage, fisting and impact play areas. this is a
sober space. there will be a chill-out space for non-sexual exchanges
featuring letter writing for prisoners through the toronto anarchist black
cross
$10/PWYC/No one Turned Away


****SATURDAY****


Performing Love Workshop at Videofag (182 Augusta Ave)
Saturday December 14th @ 10am
https://www.facebook.com/events/464800876972423

A 2 hour workshop by Natalie Amber to help us get radically honest about
why/how/who we love. Too often communities (queer, radical and otherwise)
are torn apart by poorly handled relationships, on all levels. This
workshop is for anyone interested in deeply engaging with themselves and
their friends/partners in ways that look different from normative concepts
of Love and Relationship structures. PWYC ($10 suggested)

Sobriety as Accessibility: Interrogating Intoxication Panel Presentation &
Discussion at OISE (252 Bloor St W. room tba)
Saturday December 14th @ 1pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/502284296546500/
Alcoholism and addiction are primarily uncritically understood through the
medical model. Intoxication culture is rarely interrogated for its role in
producing the addict. Using a disability studies perspective and
intersectional framework we will explore how people's relationships to
substances work to produce the addicted and non-addicted body. We will
examine the construction of the addict as undesirable and disposable, the
gendered construction of the addict and intoxication culture as a tool of
colonization. Radical sobriety will be considered as a form of
accessibility and resistance. FREE!

GET ON THE BUS! TEAR DOWN THE FENCE! END IMMIGRATION DETENTION! at Central
East Correctional Centre in (Lindsay)
Saturday December 14th (Toronto bus at 11am; returns 4:30pm; demo from
1pm-2pm)
https://www.facebook.com/events/704517489572228
The fences that surround these detainees are dividing them from their
communities, their families and their lives. It is time for these fences to
come down. + Call for 24hour solidarity fast with immigration detainees: In
response to our call for a demonstration on the outside, immigration
detainees in Lindsay will be initiating their own 24hr fast inside on
December 14th, 2013. Because of this, we are now calling for a 24hr global
solidarity fast to accompany the protest at Lindsay Jail.

Get on the bus! Confirm your spot:
www.endimmigrationdetention.com/2013/11/26/dec14/ (snacks available for
people that aren't fasting)


Who’s Afraid of The Black Blocs? Booklaunch + Afterparty
Saturday December 14th @ 6pm @ Another Story (315 Roncesvalles Ave)
https://www.facebook.com/events/177348789132189
Faces masked, dressed in black, and forcefully attacking the symbols of
capitalism, Black Blocs have been transformed into an anti-globalization
media spectacle. But the popular image of the window-smashing thug hides a
complex reality. Francis Dupuis-Déri outlines the origin of this
phenomenon, its dynamics, and its goals, arguing that the use of violence
always takes place in an ethical and strategic context in his recently
translated in English book, "Who's Afraid of the Black Blocs? Anarchy in
Action Around the World". FREE. Mainspace accessible, but washroom in
basement.


****SUNDAY****


Toronto Anarchist Fair BookFair Tabling + Workshops (55 Gould St)
Sunday December 15th from 10am to 7pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/257485137738253

Toronto Anarchist Fair Mutual Aid Space for Caregivers + Child & Baby
Drop-In Care + Workshops (55 Gould St)
Sunday December 15th from 10am to 7pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/1378146859104479
We will have a drop-in space where kids, babies and adults who love them
can hang out and play during the Sunday of the fair. This space will also
have dedicated (& visibly marked) Anarchist Fair caregivers on shift so
that people can leave their kids/babies while they attend other areas of
the fair.There will also be workshops in the drop-in space for both parents
and caregivers such as DIY unschooling and baby wearing and for older kids,
movement activities, indy media, and puppet making etc.

Really Really Free Market @ Toronto Anarchist Fair (55 Gould St)
Sunday December 15th from 10am to 7pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/189421274584363
A market where everything is free.
Bring stuff, and/or take stuff.
No money, no trade.

Flash Mob Meditation at Toronto Eaton Centre (Meeting at the water fountain)
Sunday December 15th @ 1pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/1395947037313558

Tis the season for buying things we don't really need in the hopes to find
happiness. Lets bring stillness to the high church of consumerism, the
Eaton center, and make this an annual tradition!

Anarchist Fair AfterParty at THE DETOUR BAR (193 Baldwin Street)
Sunday December 15th, doors @ 9pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/661572097220638
Lee Reed, Unknown Mizery, L.S., Mother Tareka + special guests
$5-$15 OR by donation


**************************

*8. **STOP CLIMATE DISASTERS, STOP LINE 9*
*Monday December 16, 7pm at OISE - Room 8170*
*252 Bloor Street West (St. George subway)*

The tar sands--which exploit migrant workers and divert resources from
green jobs--are Canada's fastest growing source of carbon emissions,
contributing to climate disasters like typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.

Using the 38-year old Line 9 pipeline, Enbridge wants to pump tar sands
through Ontario (including running through highly populated parts of
Toronto and crossing all major tributaries into Lake Ontario), and the
provincial government has not even conducted an environmental assessment of
its impacts.

Come to a discussion about climate change and the recent typhoon in the
Philippines, the campaign for an environmental assessment for Line 9, and
alternatives that respect migrant workers and the planet.

With the decision about Line 9 coming out from NEB in early 2014, it's
never been so important to get informed and involved!

Speakers
-Connie Sorio from iWWorkers-Migrante, an organization of Filipino women
migrant workers
-Jonah Schein, MPP for Davenport and NDP environment critic

The event will include petition and letter signing against Line 9 to send
to MPPs, and donations for the victims of typhoon Haiyan.

Organized by Toronto West End Against Line 9
westendnoline9 at gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/TorontoWestEndAgainstLine9


**************************

*9.  **Superqueero Holiday Potluck Show! consensual. anti-racist.
unapologetic. not your average burlesque.*
*Date: December 16th and 17th*
*Time: 7pm*
*Location: *
*monday december 16 at the Gladstone Ballroom *
*tuesday december 17 at the Tranzac** Closed Captioning*

*FULL EVENT Details and ACCESSIBILITY
Details: https://www.facebook.com/events/460314097414619
<https://www.facebook.com/events/460314097414619>*

We unapologetically invite you to our…Superqueero Holiday Potluck Show!
consensual. anti-racist. unapologetic. not your average burlesque.
**More Info and Performers Below!!

TWO NIGHTS!
monday december 16 at the Gladstone Ballroom
tuesday december 17 at the Tranzac** Closed Captioning
Sliding Scale $5-25 PWYC ( No one turned away!)
Doors: 7pm
Show: 8pm - 10pm
All Ages, Both venues are Wheelchair Accessible.
Dec 16th with ASL interpretation and screen projection of text (performer
bios, song lyrics etc.)
Dec 17th with screen projection of text (performer bios, song lyrics etc.)
Active Listeners will be available on both nights
Please come to this event fragrance free (see Accessibility Information for
more details)

We are currently trying to figure out childcare for the Tues Dec 17 show.
If you are interested in having childcare on this day, please message
Matthew at matthewdc at gmail.com and indicate the age and number of the
children (as well as any other important information) you would like to be
in childcare for the night.


Both Nights Featuring:
Congenital Fabnormality
Zaid Ade
Sze-Yang
Maria Mete
Joy
Scholar De Baller
Franny Damian and Pablito Blue
Alvis Parsley
The Nunu
Black Eyed Floozy
Pandora Roxstar and River
Ebonee Darling and Raven aka Zaid Ade
Vivek Shraya and Catherine Legs Hernandez
micha cardenas
Chase and Joy
Scorpio Rising
Vena Kava


** Special throughline story that will make this night unlike any
unapologetic burlesque show you’ve seen yet!



**************************

*10. **International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers*
*When: Tuesday, 17 December -- 4:30 until 5:30 pm*
*Where: 519 Community Centre, 519 Church St*

Time: 4:30-5:30pm Speakers and performances
(closed group 3:30-4:30 open only to current and former sex workers)

Toronto sex workers and allies, please join us for a vigil December 17th on
the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers. Let us gather as
a community to honour the memories of those who have lost their lives as a
result of the stigmatization of sex work and appreciate those currently
navigating the margins of the sex trade—migrants, street based, trans
women, black, Indigenous and people of colour. We will continue to demand
an end to the stigmatization and criminalization that condones violence
towards sex workers.

Confirmed speakers include Audrey Huntley from No More Silence and Elene
Lam, Former Director Zi Teng, Hong Kong/Chinese sex worker rights org.

An altar will be created to honour victims of violence. Anyone is welcome
to contribute to in a way that is meaningful to their own spirituality.

Right before the event, from 3:30-4:30, there will be a closed group
discussion open only to current and former sex workers. We will discuss our
experiences and if we desire, develop a message to be delivered at the vigil

Food and tokens will be provided. Free, wheelchair accessible, ASL TBD

Sponsored by The Native Youth Sexual Health Network

Have you received this invite, but cannot attend? Please support sex
workers by spreading the word. Invite your friends so that they might
invite theirs. For more information: maggiestoronto.ca


**************************

*11. **JFAAP End of the Year Celebration + Discussion*

*Date*: Wednesday, December 18
*Time*: 6-8pm
*Location*: RM 218/219 in York U TD Community Engagement Centre- Seneca
College Entrance, Yorkgate Mall
*On FB:* https://www.facebook.com/events/255165247972974

This is the final JFAAP meeting for 2013! Come join us as we prepare for
next years events, and a holiday goodbye celebration! Jane and Finch Action
Against Poverty (JFAAP) is a resident-led grassroots coalition of community
residents, activists, workers and organizations working to eliminate
poverty in our community and in the world. JFAAP meets at 6pm on the 1st
and 3rd Wednesday of every month at the Black Creek Community Health Centre
in Yorkgate Mall or other locations in the community; new members are
always welcome! The next meeting (after Dec 18th) will be on January 8,
2014 (we won’t meet on January 1st)!

We will have food, music and awesome discussions! Come celebrate the
amazing work JFAAP has done this past year of 2013, and eat some delicious
food!
**************************

*12. **INTERNATIONAL MIGRANT WORKERS DAY*
On December 18, 2013 Justicia 4 Migrant Workers (J4MW) invites you to our
annual vigil in recognition of International Migrant Workers Day. On this
day, we will pause, joining migrant workers and allies around the world in
reflection.

This short vigil will bring some of the experiences and actions that were
part of our work this past year, into focus.

In 2013, we saw horrific injustices: debilitating accidents, sexual
violence, and racial profiling perpetrated against migrant workers  – all
of which we would like to commemorate, because they have become catalysts
for action, and have deepened our organizing efforts.

In this spirit, please join us.

*Wednesday, December 18, 2013 (5:00 – 6:00pm)*
*Chinese Railroad Monument*
*Location: Blue Jays Way / Navy Wharf Court. This is one street south of
Front St., east off of Spadina Avenue.*

For more information, please contact J4MW
j4mw.on at gmail.com
www.justiceformigrantworkers.org


**************************

*13. **Incendies Submissions*

******OUR DEADLINE HAS BEEN EXTENDED******

Incendies is accepting submissions for our upcoming issue!  We are
accepting all forms of art including poetry, prose, opinion pieces,
photography, drawing, graphics, etc,

The theme for the January issue is 'memory':

Our memories shape us, define us, write the narrative of who we are, and
remind us how subjective our realities truly are. We distill our culture
and our identities through how we learn and interpret, and through what we
choose to remember. We distort and transform and agglomerate traditions,
mixing old and new, creating lenses and transforming our identities. How
have your memories shaped you?

We want your pieces about “memory” in any way you can imagine or interpret
it!

Send us your strongest pieces at incendies.publication at gmail.com. We accept
visual art, poetry, short stories, articles, essays and more. For
submissions guidelines visit our website at incendiesmag.wordpress.com.

**************************

*14. **OPIRG's Community Research Exchange Program Survey*
Are you interested in community based research? Please fill out this survey!

Proposing a Community Research Exchange Program (CREP)
OPIRG Toronto is researching and (hopefully) developing an exciting new
project called the "Community Research Exchange Program" (CREP), which
would match University of Toronto students with Toronto-based social and
environmental justice groups to complete community-directed projects for
credit. It is based on similar programs at other Canadian PIRGs, namely
SFPIRG's Action Research Exchange (ARX), OPIRG Ottawa's Community Research
Program (CRP), and QPIRG's Community-University Research Exchange (CURE).

CREP Goal
In keeping with OPIRG-Toronto's mandate to direct resources and research
towards anti-oppressive, social and evnivonmental justice projects, we hope
CREP will provide opportunities for students to engage in
community-directed research, and support for community organizations with
limited resources to create social change. Our goal is to help transform
the privilege and resources of the academy into socially relevant,
community-based research and political action.

We want to hear from you!
To help us develop a program that suits the interests, priorities, and
capacities of Toronto-based communty groups and student researchers, we've
developed three short surveys for students,faculty, and community
organizations.
If you're interested, please take a few minutes to share your
insight/comments/suggestions/concerns with us. This program is for you and
we want to do our best to tailor it to your needs.

Community Organization Survey:
http://fluidsurveys.com/surveys/opirg-crep/crep-community-organization-survey/
Student Survey:
http://fluidsurveys.com/surveys/opirg-crep/crep-student-survey/
Faculty Survey:
http://fluidsurveys.com/surveys/opirg-crep/crep-faculty-survey/

Questions? More comments?

If you have any further questions or suggestions regarding CREP, please
email the Community Engagement and Outreach Coordinator at
opirg.crep at gmail.com or call the OPIRG Toronto office (416-978-7770).


**************************

*15. **NEWS NOW CHRY York's Community Radio Station- Positions Available!*

NEWS NOW is CHRY’s community news program with a critical perspective; live
every Monday – Friday at 5-6pm broadcasting to the North Toronto region,
the campus of York University and on the web. CHRY 105.5 FM is looking for
critical and creative minds to join the only collective alternative news
radio program in Toronto. We offer FREE broadcast skills training in:
writing/voicing, interviewing, audio editing and sound design.

As an alternative news outlet, News Now works as a team to collectively
share skills and tasks among ourselves. We are committed to challenging
ourselves and analyzing our stories individually and at our weekly story
meetings using a consensus-based decision making model. For more on News
Now and the positions available, visit chrynews.wordpress.com

*To apply to any (or multiple) of the three available positions:*

Email the News & Spoken Word Coordinator at chrynews at yorku.ca with your
desired position, a statement of interest, and your resume by *Monday
January 6, 2014*. Statement of interest should specifically address your
interest in community media and the CHRY mission and mandate, which can be
found at http://www.chry.fm. This internship requires 8 hours/week and is
unpaid, but can be recognized as course credit or community work if
appropriate.

**************************

*16. **Save the Date & Call for Proposals! WPIRG’s School of Public
Interest 2014*



*Just Education?Bringing Together Social Justice and Student LifeFebruary
6-8, 2014*

The University of Waterloo is renowned as a premiere center of technical
and scientific learning, but its reputation as a hub for critical thought
and action is understated. Often overlooked is UW’s long and vibrant
history of student engagement on social and environmental issues.  Fuelled
by the passion of students and faculty, the campus has witnessed the birth
of environmental non-profits, the founding chapters of social justice
organizations, student activism, independent media projects, and
scholarship on anti-racist, feminist, and environmental issues, among many
other highlights.

In the wake of the Maple Spring in Quebec we have seen increased public
discussion about the role students can have in the broader fight for
positive social change. In an effort to bring this discussion home to the
University of Waterloo, and to foster this integral current of campus life
at UW, the Waterloo Public Interest Research Group is hosting its fifth
annual School of Public Interest conference around the theme of social
engagement on campus with the question “Just Education? Bringing Together
Social Justice and Student Life”

Taking place February 6th-8th at the University of Waterloo, the 3-day
conference will bring together students, activists, scholars, and community
organizers to recognize and celebrate the important work that has been done
to further social justice on the UW campus so far, and to build skills and
host challenging discussions to continue working towards a more just
education, campus, and society.


*Possible workshop and discussion themes can include (but are in no way
limited to):*

   -

   History of social justice work at the University of Waterloo
   -

   The impacts of co-op on student life, student community, and social
   engagement
   -

   Critical education at UW and alternative pedagogies
   -

   The history and role of student media at UW & elsewhere
   -

   Corporate sponsorship: critically examining the University of Waterloo’s
   relationship with external actors and the influence of the corporate sector
   on the pursuit of knowledge
   -

   UW and the Haldimand Tract: student activism on stolen native land


   -

   Accessibility of and access to higher education: whose academy is it
   anyway?
   -

   “Class struggle”: tuition, student debt and the rising cost of education
   -

   Student unionism: the history, present, and future of student unions
   -

   Gender and male domination of STEM programs
   -

   Responding to the “rape chants” scandal: expressions of misogyny or
   other forms of oppression on Canadian campuses


   -

   Connecting campus-based work to broader community
   -

   Campaigning for social justice on university campuses
   -

   Building an anti-oppressive institution
   -

   Writing for social change
   -

   Art and Activism


   -

   Ethics, politics and STEM
   -

   Activism from the academy: the connections between theory, research, and
   social action
   -

   Student workload and mental health and/or social engagement
   -

   Questioning the economic status quo on a business-focused campus


   -

   Impacts of the Maple Spring/Quebec Student Strike
   -

   Social Justice actions taking place on other campuses and cross-campus
   struggles and/or alliances
   -

   What is “the student movement” and who is organizing what? on which
   campuses and why?

We welcome proposals from everyone: current students, former students,
academics and community activists. We accept proposals on behalf of
individuals, groups, and organizations. From theoretical discussions to
artistic explorations, from strategy sessions to practical skill-shares, we
are striving to host a diversity of session formats to tackle these issues
for a critical and creative conference.

*Please submit proposals, including no more than a 1-page description and
facilitator bio, to spi at wpirg.org <spi at wpirg.org> by December 15th, 2013,
at 11:59pm. Travel subsidies will be available to cover travel costs for
conference presenters, and a modest honorarium will be provided. Contact
spi at wpirg.org <spi at wpirg.org> if you have any questions.*

**************************

*17. **Please Donate to OCAP This Year's End & Help Us Fight Austerity and
Poverty*

During 2013 OCAP made considerable progress in moving forward our
organizing work.  The Raise the Rates Campaign that we initiated grew
stronger with a growing alliance of unions, community organizations and
anti poverty organizations ready to fight locally for immediate gains
and combine resources for provincially focused long term work.  We took
up the fight to get benefits into the hands or poor people with local
benefits clinics and follow up actions.  We held a week of action
against impending attacks on ODSP and disabled people that culminated
in a powerful Provincial Assembly in Sudbury.

   We spent the whole year fighting to force the City of Toronto to deal
with the incredible crisis of overcrowding in the homeless shelters. A
new women’s facility has been opened as a result and the City has been
forced to acknowledge the situation and begin to deal with the lethal
overcrowding in the shelters that is forcing people onto the streets.

   We fully expect that the coming year will see intensified, austerity
driven attacks on the unemployed, poor and homeless and we are
determined to raise the level of our resistance and take forward
Province wide organizing.  Coming out of the UK, a new brand of
regressive ‘welfare reform’ has developed and we will see moves to
adopt such a model here in 2014.

   As always, we carry on our organizing work with inadequate resources
and all support and solidarity that can be provided is of huge help. If
possible, we urge you to send us a voided cheque and give us an amount
we can deduct each month. If you do not feel able to become a monthly
supporter, however, any amount you can send us would be greatly
appreciated.

  Thanks and we look forward to playing our part next year to driving back
austerity and fighting for a future based on real justice and
solidarity.

Ontario Coalition Against Poverty,
206,157 Carlton Street,
Toronto, ON
M5A 2K3
**************************

*18. Opposition growing against indefinite immigration detention in Canada*

http://endimmigrationdetention.com/2013/12/11/opposition-growing-against-indefinite-immigration-detention-in-canada/

Naomi Klein, John Greyson, Council of Canadians, Canadian Union of Postal
Workers, Law Union of Ontario, Canadian Centre for Victims of Torture,
Public Services Alliance of Canada - Ontario, Shit Harper Did, are among 50
leading labour, civil society, grassroots groups and individuals who have
joined with migrant detainees in Lindsay, ON, and their families calling
for an end to indefinite detention, maximum security incarceration of
migrants and an overhaul of the adjudication process.

Full list of endorsers and demands:
http://endimmigrationdetention.com/endorsers/. If you're an organization,
please sign on.

Migrants in Lindsay, ON, have been on strike since September 17th. They
have gone on hunger strike (two of them for over 60 days), refused to
attend their detention hearings or enter their cells; and participated in
other political actions. Striking migrants have faced reprisals with many
deported, locked up in segregation, moved to other prisons and denied
access to legal counsel. Yet actions have continued. A demonstration is now
planned at Lindsay jail at 1pm on December 14th, with migrants on the
inside organizing a 24 hour fast.

*STATEMENTS OF SUPPORT*

Harper has been taking apart the immigration system, increasing temporary
workers and denying status to families and refugees. Too many of these
migrants are being held indefinitely at huge cost with no results. The
labour movement is united behind real immigration reform and an end to
unjust detentions and deportations. -- Denis Lemelin, President of the
Canadian Union of Postal Workers

Harper's laws are 'tough on crime' but soft on facts. Canada lags
shamefully behind other countries that limit detentions pending
deportations, resulting in the jailing of migrants indefinitely. This is
unjust and must stop. Immigrants shouldn't be held in maximum security
prisons and they surely shouldn't be held indefinitely. -- Brent Patterson,
Political Director of the Council of Canadians

Unlike the United States and the European Union, Canada has no limit on how
long migrants can be held pending a deportation. When Canada can’t deport
migrants because of lack of travel documents or due to the political
climate of home countries, these migrants become indefinitely detained.
Detained migrants are predominantly racialized people that are being denied
status wholesale, and then being punished for just simply living here. --
Margaret Parsons, Executive Director of the African Canadian Legal Clinic

It was very moving and upsetting to meet some of the Lindsay detainees a
few weeks ago. So much of what they described to us struck a chord, given
what we just went through in Cairo. For detainees and their families, to
suffer indefinite detention is to be consigned to a terrible limbo, not
knowing what the future holds, not knowing how long the ordeal will last. I
hope that people across the country join the detainees and their families
calling for their release and an end to this injustice. --- John Greyson
who was held in a jail in Cairo for 51 days


-- 

-OPIRG York
--
www.opirgyork.ca
416-736-5724
opirg at yorku.ca



*There are many ways to get involved at OPIRG. Apply to be a working
group: **http://opirgyork.ca/working-groups
<http://opirgyork.ca/working-groups>*
Contact victoria at opirgyork.ca for further information.

*We also have two collectives: *PrOPIRGanda Radio and the Radical Reading
Room. You can contact us about ways to get involved in these collectives:
opirgyork at gmail.com.

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