THE FRONT

Jail time for Jaggi Singh?—Walking against fracking—No cars on St-Viateur—Permaculture in NDG

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “We sincerely hope that when [Quebecers] hear and sing it in French, it will relight the flame of pride in the hearts of our citizens, and that that flame will give birth to a sovereign Quebec.” —Raôul Duguay, co-writer of the un-hummable Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste-commissioned proposed Quebec national anthem “O Kébec,” released this week.

Jail time for Jaggi?

Jaggi Singh—consistently voted the city’s loudest activist in the Mirror’s Best of Montreal—may have directed his loudness at too sensitive a target this time. Singh will be in court this week in Toronto, where he’s facing a potential six-month jail sentence for his high profile verbal abuse of the G20 security fence in Toronto last year. “I’m here today to support those who want to take down the fence,” he told the media at the time.

Last April, Singh agreed to plead guilty to charges of counselling people to commit mischief over $5,000 (the fence was apparently worth $5.5-million) in exchange for the Crown dropping three counts of criminal conspiracy.

Singh still stands by what he said: “The fence for me was a potent symbol of how fences and walls are built virtually and literally to separate the dominant class from the rest of us who work to survive. It was a literal representation of the policies of austerity and global apartheid that the G20 is responsible for.”

Anti-G20 organizers are looking for support for Singh and 17 others who are facing conspiracy charges that threaten to literally fence them off with two-year prison sentences.

For information about the case, see: clac-montreal.net/en/jaggi.

—MATT JONES

No fracking way

An intrepid troupe of anti-shale gas campaigners have spent the last month marching along the shore of the St-Lawrence River from Rimouski to Montreal, covering much of the area proposed for future drilling in what could become Quebec’s contribution to the new generation of lucrative-though-environmentally-destructive solutions to the oil crisis.

The marchers of One Generation Moratorium are calling for a full moratorium on shale gas drilling. Although a partial moratorium is now in place, they see this as a publicity move.

“We don’t expect that the Quebec government will relent because it’s clearly aligned with interests of the shale gas industry,” says coordinator Philippe Duhamel. If the moratorium doesn’t hold, he says their next march might be less passive.

“In 2013 we might do this walk again, but have acts of non-violent civil disobedience all along the way.”

The marchers will meet up with a demo against shale gas on Saturday, June 18 at 2 p.m. at the offices of Hydro Quebec (René-Lévesque and St-Urbain). Enthusiastic anti-frackers can also meet the group at Longueuil metro station at 1 p.m. to join them as they cross the Cartier Bridge with a 100-metre banner signed by supporters they’ve met on the march. Visit rimouskimontreal.net for information or to follow their progress.

—MATT JONES

Car free St-V

Both motorists and community-minded Mile End residents will want to take note that on Saturday, June 18, St-Viateur between Jeanne Mance and St-Urbain will be closed to traffic from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. Les Journées des bons voisins, a street festival devoted to promoting healthy urban lifestyles, is kicking cars off the road.

The event is the brainchild of RuePublique, a volunteer community initiative formerly known as Car Free Mile End. “Too many people were put off by our name,” notes founder Math­ieu Vick. “They thought we were trying to eradicate cars when all we really wanted to do was give all that space they take up back to the people.”

Vick says RuePublique’s mission is broader now, focused more on “things like bringing people together and encouraging young families to stay in Mile End rather than move out to the suburbs.”

Among the highlights of Saturday’s event will be an artisans’ market, yoga in the street, bike repair workshops, music, art displays and several kiosks for community groups to explain their raisons d’être to the public. “Most importantly, the day is really about having a great time just being on the street, enjoying this public space that’s supposed to be for everybody,” says Vick.

For details go to ruepublique.org.

—CHRIS BARRY

West End’s good food

As part of its year-long 25th anniversary celebrations, on Wednesday, June 22, the NDG Food Depot screens Permaculture: The Growing Edge. Longtime filmmaking partners Starhawk, a famous Wiccan environmentalist, and NDGer Donna Read made the doc in hopes of highlighting the positive, DIY-based approach of the permaculture movement.

“We decided we wanted to make a film, in part to show people that there are solutions to our very pressing environmental problems…and often it’s things we can do in our own backyards,” says Starhawk, speaking by phone from her California home.

Permaculture aims to create green, sustainable living environments through individual and community action. The movie, which took six years to complete, follows the film crew as they interview permacul­ture experts like mushroom guru Paul Stamets, and participate in New Orleans cleanup, post-Katrina.

Read says the Food Depot is a great example of the growing permaculture movement. “It used to be just nothing, a little room in a building at the end of my street, and it’s such a happening place now,” she says.

The evening will feature musical performances by Kyra Shaugnessy and Jean Elliott Manning. Starhawk and Read will also participate in a panel discussion. See depotndg.org for more info.

—ELISABETH FAURE

---

REAR-VIEW MIRROR

15 YEARS AGO – JUNE 13–20, 1996

On the cover: Shakti, a specialist in Japanese/Indian dance, bringing her Eros of Love and Destruction performance to the Fringe. A preview lists 10 shows not to miss.

• “The St-Laurent Street Sale truly puts the plat in Plateau Mont-Royal,” writes Inappropriate Behaviour columnist Josh Bezonsky.
• Promoters for rave Cream blame the company Olympic Stadium brass commissioned to sell $3 bottles of water for turning off all the cold water taps.
• My Dog Popper’s third album Fifi is described as “disturbingly good.” Says bassist/rapper Stu, “This time we concentrated on the members of the band who had the stronger musical capabilities. We gave less time to the wankers and their frailties.” He adds that he played hardly any bass on the album at all.
• Al Goldstein documentary Screwed director Alexander Crawford says making the doc took a personal toll. “My girlfriend of four years dumped me,” he says. “It wasn’t so much the content of the film, but the obsession. I’ve been dating girls in the sex industry ever since.” ■

ANGEL: Protecting sex workers An Ontario Court of Appeal is hearing arguments this week on the government’s responsibility to ensure safe working conditions for sex trade workers. Last year, the courts ruled that the Criminal Code’s ban on activities like solicitation endanger the predominantly female sex work force (prostitution isn’t illegal in Canada; bargaining with a prostitute for sex is, etc.), and that sex workers are entitled to protection under the law—a decision that could eventually lead to the trade’s legalization. The government argues that since workers make the choice to enter the sex trade, it isn’t responsible for their safety. That argument is both callous and shallow. No matter the reason for getting into that particular line of work, what on Earth could be wrong with making it less dangerous to everyone involved?


INSECT: Self-policing police The details surrounding last week’s fatal police shooting of two people—one with a history of mental illness, the other an innocent bystander—are still hazy. And the bigger picture won’t be revealed anytime soon, thanks in part to the standard procedure of having the SQ investigate shootings by Montreal police officers. It’s a dodgy proposition to begin with, and one open to abuse and cover-ups. If the public’s confidence in the force is shaken with the latest tragedy, a more open and transparent investigation—and one conducted by a civilian oversight body—might help to restore it. As it is now, there’s no reason to believe anything will change.

Short URL: http://www.montrealmirror.com/wp/?p=22803