Quote of the week

“It seems to me Quebec is emerging as a quasi-Third World environment in terms of regulation.” —Boston-based wealth manager Jerry Coughlan, whose 77-year-old mother Mary was a victim of alleged fraudster Earl Jones, arrested on Monday.

Hoodies for Fredy

Out of the ashes of the rioting that flared in Montreal North last summer after 18-year-old Fredy Villanueva was shot and killed by police comes Hoodstock, two days of music and public forums taking place Aug. 8–9 at Parc Aimé-Léonard (4975 Gouin E.).

“If all goes well, we’re looking to make this an annual thing,” says Will Prosper, founder of community group Montréal-Nord Républik and one of the organizers.

Things begin Saturday with a discussion of police brutality, the alienation of local youth and other issues of concern to the community, from 11 a.m.–5 p.m., followed by musical performances by Luck Mervil, Olivier Cheuwa, Bad News Brown, Dramatik, Cyrano de Montréal and many others, from 6–10 p.m. On Sunday, Aug. 9, the one-year anniversary of Fredy’s death, the forum continues at 11 a.m. and closes with a 5 p.m. march to the site where he was shot.

A coroner’s inquest into the case is scheduled to resume this fall after the government agreed to pay the legal fees of two witnesses who were also shot by police in the same incident. For more info, visit hoodstock.ca.

CHRISTOPHER HAZOU

Buzz kill

The recent publication of the Braidwood inquiry into the national use of Tasers by police forces in Canada was greeted with general approval from most human rights groups, and the francophone branch of Amnesty International Canada is no exception.

Launched following the death by Taser of Polish national Robert Dziekanski at Vancouver’s airport in 2007, the inquiry found there were no clear guidelines on the weapon’s use and no system of accountability. While he did say the electric stun guns were a better option than bullets, over 25 people have died as a result of being hit with Tasers in Canada, including two in Quebec. The B.C. Solicitor-General has said that all police forces in the province—including the RCMP—will adopt all 19 of the report’s recommendations.

Things aren’t as rosy here, however. Amnesty’s Anne Ste-Marie says the city of Montreal and province of Quebec have not shown any real concern over the Taser’s use, and their reluctance may be slowing down nationwide regulation over its use. “They don’t seem to acknowledge the weapon’s lethality,” says Ste-Marie, and that most of the people on the receiving end have mental or drug problems, and cannot understand police warnings.

The full report can be read at braidwoodinquiry.ca.

PATRICK LEJTENYI

AIDS cyclists here

Of the many ways to flee Toronto, riding a bike certainly ranks among the least practical. But that doesn’t stop hundreds of enthusiastic cyclists from making the long journey every year as part of the annual Friends for Life bike rally, a fundraiser for the Toronto People With AIDS Foundation (PWA), an organization that provides food services and counselling to Torontonians living with HIV. This year saw 230 riders and 100 volunteer supporters ditch the T-dot last Friday, July 24, and they should be on course to arrive at Parc Émilie-Gamelin (Berri and Ste-Catherine E.) on Friday, July 31 at 4:30 p.m., just in time for Divers/Cité’s closing weekend festivities.

“It’s easier to ask for funds when you’re taking on such a tremendous endeavour,” says organizer Todd Ross.

The crew has raised $800,000 so far, although Ross says the slow economy means that they’re working harder than ever to provide needed support.

“With the economy like this, a lot of jobs that used to be part-time are being cut and people are being laid off. We’ve noticed a lot of people who have lost their job or seen their salary dwindle,” he says.

See bikerally.org for more information or to sponsor a rider.

MATT JONES

Sex ed on the beach

This Sunday, Aug. 2, the good folks at Head and Hands will be hosting their fourth annual Serve Beach Volleyball Tournament in the effort to raise funds for their Sense Project sex education program.

Always a good time, this year no fewer than 18 local bars and restaurants have formed teams that will be facing off for the cause, “the only fully inclusive, youth-directed, queer-positive sex education program in Montreal,” according to Sense Project fundraising and events coordinator Nikki MacMillan. “The tournament starts at 10 a.m. at Parc Jeanne Mance and will be going until 6 p.m., at which time all the sweaty, sandy players, volunteers, spectators and friends will be heading over to Blizzarts [3956A St-Laurent] for what’s sure to be a great afterparty.”

MacMillan promises Serve will be going down “rain or shine—and even if it does start raining, we’re hoping Montrealers will have grown accustomed enough to all the rain this summer to just go, ‘Screw it’ and party in the rain anyway.”

If, however, the idea of enjoying your favourite local waiter/waitress/bartender jumping around half-naked in the sand holds little appeal for you, you can still support the Sense Project by going to serve.headandhands.ca and donating a pledge for your preferred team.

CHRIS BARRY

Rear-view mirror

10 YEARS AGO - JULY 29–AUG. 5, 1999

On the cover: A daydreaming boy, for an article in which Matthew Hays asks local homosexuals about their fantasies for the Divers/Cité supplement issue. (He confesses to an early crush on Mr. Spock). Subjects include Arnold Schwarzenegger, Frankenstein’s monster, Dr. Evil (“and Mini-Me at the same time, if he’s available”), “a girl who looks like Ed Norton in American History X.” Other supplement highlights include:
•An interview with an anonymous lesbian cop, children’s attitudes to homosexuality and a guide to fag-hagging.
• An illustrated “Gay or Québécois?” guide for tourists to help them avoid embarrassment. One tip: “Straight Québécois also wear the kinds of headgear that would normally make your gaydar scream. Take berets, for example.”
•Hays posing as a reporter from the Christians Concerned for Canadian Families for an interview with Pastor Fred “God Hates Fags” Phelps. (“M: Do you think [Sonny Bono’s] burning in hell? FP: Sure…. [Cher] is generally whorish too.”)
•Under the logo: “No gerbils died in the making of this issue.”

Angel >> A human scale on Ste-Catherine Sure, Ste-Catherine W. is a dump, but turning it into a glass and steel canyon isn’t the best possible solution out there. The particularly dumpy block between Lambert-Closse and Chomedy is long overdue for a makeover, with Concordia eyeing it as a site for new dormitories. But the city’s public consultation office issued a report this week saying the current plans, with its 25-storey tower, is unacceptable as it obstructs the view of the river from the mountain, and that the remnants of the Seville theatre should be preserved. Of course, the report is not legally binding, and may in the end mean nothing to property developer Claridge Ltd, the company behind the $100-million redevelopment.

Insect >>L’Acadie circle Five years and $110-million after a major renovation, l’Acadie circle is a mess. The interchange between the 40 and Marcel-Laurin flooded for the second time this month during Sunday’s downpour, stranding six cars and inspiring a weird sense of déjà vu for any hapless motorist stuck on the highway. The city and the province are pointing fingers everywhere, but l’Acadie has flooded far too many times—including the weekend it re-opened—to be considered anything other than a disaster. Even non-act-of-God-affected traffic around it is terrible. Another terrific example of Montreal savoir-faire.