By Julian Ichim On August 8th, 2015 people across the world will be joining in actions demanding the release of the Craigavon Two, Irish Republican prisoners unjustly imprisoned for the murder of a RUC (Royal Ulster Constabulary in Northern Ireland) police officer. In Kitchener and Toronto local organizers are planning demonstrations and a public event around …
by BASICS Kitchener-Waterloo On June 16, 2014, community members in Kitchener protested the gentrification of the downtown core by marching down King Street and constructing a “tent city” in Victoria Park. Victoria Park’s tent city — a temporary housing facility made using tents or other structures — was set up as a fully functioning community. Food …
by BASICS Kitchener-Waterloo After the recent closure of “The Hot Dog House” — a community outreach initiative that handed out hot dogs and coffee to downtown Kitchener’s poor community — the community came together to rectify the situation. On the afternoon of June 29, 2014, citizens of downtown Kitchener’s poor community handed out pizza in front …
And resistance has always been the cure by Julian Ichim A first person account on the history of fascism and anti-fascist resistance in Kitchener in the last two decades. This piece is an edited version of a commentary made by the author on his blog. “Congratulations, Kitchener-Waterloo, you are the hate crime capital of Canada! Despite …
by BASICS Team Kitchener-Waterloo On Jan 3, 2014, the Kitchener-Waterloo Spot Collective announced the relaunching and professionalising of their people’s programs. The people’s programs, which include the serving of free food, programs for those dealing with addiction, and literacy programs, have come out of the need to deal with the problems the community faces by …
By the Hugo Chavez People’s Defense Front As Venezuela faces yet another attempt by the Right-wing opposition to create political, economic and social turmoil in the wake of the upcoming municipal electoral process, the Hugo Chávez People’s Defense Front of Canada, organized a 5 City speaking tour with Katrina Kozarek from the Comuna Socialista Ataroa in …
by Kitchener-Waterloo BASICS In an attempt to reverse the flow of highly-corrosive tar sands bitumen through the Haldimand Tract (Six Nations land), the Calgary-based oil company Enbridge is using the ageing Line 9 pipeline. The company is moving forward without the consent from the indigenous peoples whose way of life is directly threatened by the …
by Kitchener- Waterloo BASICSNEWS “Ronald McDonald,” joined by approximately 30 other people, targeted a McDonalds located in Kitchener, ON, to demand a living wage for all workers. McDonalds is part of a larger lobbying group that wants to keep the freeze on minimum wage (which is currently $10.25/hr in Ontario), forcing workers to live in …
by Denise Cordova and Nicole Oliver The dedicated community organizer, Julian Ichim from Kitchener-Waterloo, appeared in court on September 30 facing charges held against him for blogging about his personal experiences with an undercover police officer in the year that lead up to the Toronto G20 protests. Arguments were put forward that the charges should …