Quote of the week

“There is no reason to call an election… except for crass politics.” —Federal Liberal leader Stéphane Dion, on the expected snap election call coming this Friday, Sept. 5. Canadians should look forward to voting on Oct. 14.

Truthers on the march

Nearly seven years on from that infamous September morning, conspiracy theories continue to abound about who was really behind the most stunning terrorist attack of modern times.

Some of those disbelievers of the official version of events will be traversing the country on the “9/11 Truth” bus this week, journeying from Vancouver to Montreal where they’ll regroup for a rally before taking their petition demanding a Canadian investigation of 9/11 to Ottawa.

“Colin Powell promised the Canadian government a white paper showing the links between Osama Bin Laden and 9/11 to justify our going into Afghanistan,” says Robert Lewis, a member of Montreal 9/11 Truth. “We never got that white paper.”

The Truthers congregate Sunday, Sept. 7, at noon, at the Cartier Monument on Mont-Royal (near the tam-tams) for a rally featuring hip hop group Conspirituality, before heading out for a march along Sherbrooke at 2 p.m.

On the anniversary of the big day itself, Thursday, Sept. 11, a bus leaves at 9 a.m. from the corner of Berri and Ontario for a demonstration in Ottawa, and returns at 7 p.m. The trip costs $20 and seats need to be reserved. For more info, visit marchonottawa2008.org.

Music for Bil’in

Local artists lend their talents to the Palestinian village of Bil’in’s struggle against Israel’s security barrier/apartheid wall this weekend, with Artists Against Apartheid IV: Bridges to Bil’in at la Sala Rossa (4848 St-Laurent).

The show will feature performances by Vox Sambou of the rap ensemble Nomadic Massive, the Kalmunity Vibe Collective, jazz saxophonist Matana Roberts and cellist Rebecca Foon, who will perform together, and spoken word artist Kaie Kellough. Activist Sarita Ahooja will also be on hand to talk about her experiences working with the International Solidarity Movement in Bil’in, and the film A Day in Palestine, by Montrealer Mary Ellen Davis, will be screened.

In July, lawyers acting on the villagers’ behalf filed suit in Quebec Superior Court against two Montreal-based companies for their involvement in the construction of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land. “We want to raise awareness of Canada’s role in supporting the occupation of the West Bank and Israeli apartheid, but also to raise awareness of the village of Bil’in and their struggle,” says Mostafa Henaway, a member of the Lebanese-Canadian social collective Tadamon!.

Artists Against Apartheid IV takes place Sunday, Sept. 7, 8 p.m., $5-$10. Info: tadamon.resist.ca.

by Christopher Hazou

Dribble, dunk and help

With gang violence and riots saturating news about areas like Montreal North and Little Burgundy, rapper/events promoter and former MusiquePlus VJ Malik Shaheed is looking for ways to bring positive vibes to the youth of those communities.

“I grew up in Little Burgundy, so I know how tough it is. If it wasn’t for sports and entertainment, I don’t know what I’d be doing,” says Shaheed.

Shaheed is working with DJ Sports, a club that organizes sports activities for low-income youth. To give those kids an alley-oop, they are setting up a basketball clinic for 100–200 kids aged seven to 21, featuring former NBA All-Star Cedric Ceballos.

“These kids don’t want to get advice from a guy in a suit. They’re too hip. They want someone who speaks their own language,” he says. One of the main problems is a lack of positive role models. “Often, when people succeed, they don’t come back or they’re not welcome back in the community.”

Ceballos and Shaheed will speak at a fundraiser for the clinic on Saturday, Sept. 6 at 1 p.m. at McGill University’s Sir Arthur Currie Gym (997 des Pins W.). Tickets ($50) are available from Admission.com for, or call (514) 866-8377 to make a donation.

by Matt Jones

Educated democracy

If you’ve been trying to flex your activist muscles but keep coming up limp, perhaps you might be due to spend some time in Democracy School, which will be in Montreal for one day only, Monday, Sept. 15, at the Thomson House Ballroom (3650 McTavish) between the hours of 6 and 10 p.m.

Appealing to activists, city officials, lawyers and all those concerned citizens out there looking to make a difference, the Daniel Pennock Democracy School, according to its literature, “teaches a paradigm shift, a dramatic new way of looking at our role as citizens in a democracy” and will get you straight with respect to the latest strategies community groups have been employing lately to successfully affect social change.

“It’s a really interesting project that helps people to understand how society, and how the power within society, works,” says Luc Rabouin of the Montreal Urban Ecology Centre, co-sponsors of the event. “It teaches people how to be active citizens and to defend their rights.”

Enrolment will set you back $50—although a 360-page course pack of readings is included in that price. Seating is limited. To attend, contact the McGill School of Environment via www.mcgill.ca/mse. For more on the Democracy School, see celdf.org.

by Chris Barry

Rear-view mirror

14 YEARS AGO - SEPT. 8-15, 1994

On the cover: A man in a gas mask, symbolizing the 1994 Survival Guide. Categories range from “All Night Food” to “Selling Yourself to Science.”
•With provincial elections coming, the Mirror turns its editorial page over to news contributor Lyle Stewart, theatre critic Gaëtan Charlebois and McGill Black Student Network member Pat Harewood. Stewart gives a “very tepid” PQ endorsement, Charlebois says, “There are pro-Canada allies in Quebec, but the product is getting more and more difficult to sell,” and Harewood, claiming “neither party is committed to addressing the concerns of the black population,” will spoil his ballot.
•Disc of the Week is Jeff Buckley’s Grace, for “the majesty, virtuosity and delicate beauty that permeate his every exhaled breath.”
•Commenting on The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, Terence Stamp says, “I always imagined that if I played a woman on screen, I would look like Rita Hayworth. Bu [with a wig and make-up], I looked like an old dog! It was a terrible disappointment!”

Angel >> Tighter gun control Last Monday, Sept. 1, Quebec’s new gun control law came into effect, closing some loopholes gun control advocates say still exist in federal laws. Among other measures, the law—dubbed Anastasia’s law, after 18-year-old Anastasia De Sousa, who was killed in the 2006 Dawson shooting—makes it illegal to possess them in a school, daycare or on public transit. Which is good news, since the federal government only seems to care about firearms when they can score points by boosting sentences for gun crimes—ignoring the fact that, had guns not been available in the first place, many crimes wouldn’t be committed.

Insect >> Self-regulating industries In case the recent listeriosis outbreak didn’t prove the point that self-policing industries aren’t safe, a CBC investigation reported that government indifference extends to the airline industry as well. Critics say Transport Canada’s new regulations on safety mean only that they have to provide the framework for which the airlines should carry out inspections of their own aircraft. This summer, Transport Canada’s director general of civil aviation estimated that 15 per cent of the agency’s inspectorate workforce was vacant. If you’re still wondering how high this federal government in particular places your safety above industry interests, this should help you find an answer.