This week @ rabble.ca: Follow the money

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Published on Tuesday, 01 April 2014 16:20

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s17 r18.

28 Mar 2014

Hey rabble readers,

You've seen Galen Weston on his President's Choice TV commercials -- you probably even shop in Loblaws grocery stores yourself. But did you know that the Weston family has probably done more to undermine public education in Canada than anyone else? The family foundation has donated nearly $22 million to the Fraser Institute for its programs to destabilize the public education system. In an eye-opening series launching this week, Donald Gutstein follows the trails of corporate money -- to uncover which agendas it funds and how that shapes public policies and the social fabric of Canada.

Tuesday was the National Day of Action to stop the Conservatives' vote-suppressing election law, the Fair Elections Act. Why is the Fair Elections Act so harmful to our voting rights? Check out our top five posts on the Fair Elections Act and what you can do about it -- and see all of our coverage here.

Earth Hour is this Saturday and now it's time to get ready for Earth Month and all the organizing that comes with it! The Activist Toolkit has a new crop of tools for environmental activism, green living and embracing a vegan lifestyle. See them all in our roundup here!

Pro-choice organizations in Nova Scotia recently ran a successful grassroots campaign to counteract anti-choice advertising on buses. But who is behind anti-choice ads in Canada? See our guide to anti-choice advertising and learn how you can take action against it.

PowerShift Atlantic is coming March 28-31! PowerShift is a gathering organized by youth for youth that focuses on climate justice. It will bring together 500 youth from diverse backgrounds to learn, develop their skills and build the movement for climate, environmental and social justice. Learn more here.

This week's top news

2014 People's Social Forum takes aim at austerity and the Right
The 2014 People's Social Forum aims to be the launching point for building an extra-parliamentary opposition that will endure long after the conference has ended in August.
By Roger Rashi

Why Canadian unions want you to talk about TV
Why are Canadian media unions concerned about the potential watering down of CRTC regulations? Why, they're worried about protecting jobs of course!
By H.G. Watson

13 examples of the Harper government's anti-democratic abuses
The Conservatives have shown a pattern of anti-democratic abuses. Here are 13 examples with two themes: (1) ignoring the rule of law and (2) flouting the traditional processes of democracy.
By Phil Elder

We work despite Taliban threats, say Pakistani journalists
When attacks from the Pakistani Taliban moved from 'possibility' to 'real life' journalists and editors scrambled to define what this means for reporting on extremists and the safety of their writers.
By Maria Kari

Buyer beware: A guide to anti-choice advertising
Pro-choice organizations in Nova Scotia recently ran a successful grassroots campaign to counteract anti-choice advertising on buses. But who is behind anti-choice ads in Canada?
By Michelle Reid

Fair Elections Act? It's all a Con game!
MP Craig Scott sees no fewer than 20 serious problems with the Fair Elections Act, but has clustered them into three themes: voter suppression, "fighting" electoral fraud and money and politics.
By Craig Scott

Goodbye my friend, Ali Mustafa
Lia Tarachansky says goodbye to her friend Ali Mustafa, a progressive Toronto photojournalist who was killed in Syria March 9.
By Lia Tarachansky

This week's top blogs

It is now legal to drill oil and build pipelines in B.C.'s provincial parks
A little-known bill, the Park Amendment Act, that will drastically alter the management of B.C. parks became law Monday, opening provincial parks to industrial development.
By Carol Linnitt

Uh, shouldn't Canada's new sex work legislation include workers' voices?
The development of new sex work laws in Canada is very important and the government should take their approach to policy development more seriously and include all perspectives.
By Celine Bisette

Truth and reconciliation and our hopeful shared future
I am attending the final National Event of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Edmonton. I am about to witness unimaginable resilience, which I believe holds the key to a hopeful shared future.
By Jennifer Henry

Broadening the scope of the debate on the Ukrainian crisis
The crisis in Ukraine runs much deeper than violence and "human rights." It is at its root an economic crisis. Better yet, it is a crisis born of neoliberalism.
By Ray Silvius

On rape culture and what Heather MacDonald doesn't understand about sexual violence
Meghan Murphy responds to the misguided and dangerous arguments made by Heather MacDonald in a debate about rape culture hosted by CBC Radio's Q and Jian Ghomeshi.
By Meghan Murphy

Québec election, day 20: Anglos need to break from the Quebec Liberals
Recap 4 of the issues surrounding the Québec election.
By Nora Loreto

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