upcoming events and news
- Details
- Published on Wednesday, 14 May 2014 15:20
- Written by editor
Dear Friends of SJS,
below are some upcoming events that may be of interest to you:
Friends of Cuba present Social Justice Film Night:
"THE TAX FREE TOUR"
How Big Corp gets out of paying taxes leaving us to fund governments
7pm Thursday, May 15
2994 Douglas (BCGEU Hall), Victoria
Admission by Donation
YES2SCS presents:
Supporters and volunteers of YES2SCS!
An upcoming opportunity to show your support for SCS in Victoria!
On Tuesday, May 20 you are invited to City Hall* at 12pm (noon) to have your photo taken along with a statement that you create about why SCS is important to you and your community. We have the white board and the marker. Bring yourself and some ideas about the importance of SCS.
The "I support YES2SCS" photo... campaign gives members of our community a chance to express why they support SCS in Victoria. These photos will be uploaded to our website and shared through our facebook page and twitter feed to increase awareness of the YES2SCS campaign and the need for SCS in Victoria.
*Let's meet outside the main City Hall doors on the Pandora side. You will see our banner!
If you are unable to make this date/time, but are interested in taking part in the photo campaign, let us know at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Looking forward to seeing you!
The YES2SCS crew
As Always:
* Access past minutes and resources on our dropbox
* Sign our petition for SCS in Victoria
* Visit our website for resources about SCS (under the 'resources' tab)
* Like and share content from our Facebook Page
UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA MEDIA RELEASE
May 14, 2014
Witness Blanket weaves together hope, reconciliation and pieces of history
The Witness Blanket, an art installation created by Kwagiulth artist and Master Carver Carey Newman (Ha-yalth-kingeme) and inspired by the traditional woven blanket as a symbol of protection and comfort, evokes the atrocities of Indian Residential Schools and a national journey toward reconciliation. On May 20, the blanket will be presented for the first time during opening ceremonies for CUVic 2014: Beyond Engagement, a global three-day conference hosted by UVic to highlight the innovative experiences of universities and communities working together.
Once complete, the blanket will be composed of 13 cedar panels containing over 600 objects and artifacts—including rock, wood, tiles, bricks, chunks from building foundations, an old drum, pages from books, panes of glass, patchwork prayer kneelers, two children’s hockey skates and two hanks of hair from Newman’s sisters in honour of their father’s experience—collected on gathering trips over the past year to residential school sites, churches, courthouses, government buildings, and traditional and cultural structures across our country. The blanket will be presented next week with seven panels and, once complete, will measure in total two metres high and 12 metres wide.
“There is something special woven into this process that separates it from my other works,” Newman says. “Each item, each story and each contributor adds another layer to the depth, meaning and raw beauty of the Witness Blanket. It is that collective spirit that has provided strength and guided this journey. This project has brought me closer to my family and given me a clearer understanding of my father. It has changed my soul. The fact that it is being shown for the first time, at UVic, in my hometown, at a conference about community engagement—perfect.” More on Newman
“UVic has a special connection with the Witness Blanket on several levels,” says Dr. Leslie Brown, lead scholar for CUVic 2014 and a long-time community-based researcher. “Its creator is a former UVic music student. The university’s contribution is a cedar plank from First Peoples House at UVic and a replica of the cover page from a 1987 course manual which was among UVic’s early efforts to positively shift the relationship between researchers and Indigenous communities. When Carey and I spoke about his new project a year ago, CUVic seemed a natural fit as a first space for the Witness Blanket.” More on UVic’s contribution
Aboriginal arbitrator, political icon and scholar Bob Rae will open CUVic 2014 (previously announced) with a keynote presentation May 20 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Everyone is invited to the opening address, and to the three days of more than 100 thought-provoking workshops, panels and presentations, a gala evening celebration at the RBC Museum, as well as pre- and post-conference field trips. Full program details: www.uvic.ca/cuvic2014.
The Witness Blanket was part of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Commemoration Initiative.
It will be displayed in the University Centre until June 8, then later this year, Newman’s project coordinator Rosy Hartman will take the blanket on a cross-country tour.
What: CUVic 2014 opening ceremony, with keynote speaker Bob Rae (Public viewing of the Witness Blanket will take place in the lobby before and after the ceremony)
When: May 20 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.
Where: Farquhar Auditorium, University Centre
Tickets to the opening ceremony are free of charge. It is recommended that tickets be booked in advance, as seating is reserved. Contact UVic Ticket Centre at http://auditorium.uvic.ca/tickets/ or 250-721-8480.
Media availability with the artist and blanket is on Tuesday morning, May 20. Please contact Tara Sharpe below for details. High-resolution photos, as well as B roll (a short five-minute video filmed by Media One) from the gathering trip, will be available Tuesday on the UVic news page.
MEDIA RELEASE
May 14, 2014
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Lenore Kennedy
(250)383-5545 (office), (250)882-0942 (cell), This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Walk a Mile in Her Shoes to highlight and teach bystander intervention (Walk a Mile on May 25th, Bystander intervention training on May 14th:)
VICTORIA – Walk a Mile in Her Shoes participants take an extra step to learn bystander intervention skills to stand-up and speak-out against sexualized violence year round.
Every year in May the Victoria Sexual Assault Centre hosts Walk a Mile in Her Shoes to raise funds and awareness for the Victoria Sexual Assault Centre (VSAC). Participants walk only one mile, and although the distance is short, the significance is immense—to bring awareness to, and speak out against, sexualized violence, a topic often clouded in shame and secrecy.
While Walk a Mile has helped break the shame and silence that surrounds sexualized violence, event organizers have long understood that it takes much more than one day of action to make the societal shifts necessary to one day eradicate sexualized violence. That’s why this year Walk a Mile will incorporate the bystander approach, both at Walk a Mile itself through interactive theatre and at a pre-event workshop.
What is bystander intervention? Simply put, bystander education teaches people safe and positive ways to speak out against ideas and behaviors that tolerate and sustain sexualized violence. Research shows that bystander education is an effective method to help prevent the widespread problem of sexualized violence in communities. “Being more than a bystander is about de-normalizing violence, calling it out, and moving past it,” says Jeremy Loveday, local poet (whose poem, Masks off: A Challenge for Men written for last year’s Walk a mile event went viral, reaching over 875,000 on YouTube alone and viewed globally when featured by the social media powerhouse, Upworthy). In addition to performing at Walk a Mile on May 25th, Loveday will participate in the bystander intervention training on May 14th: “I am excited to attend the training and it is encouraging to see young people taking the lead on this issue.”
Isaac Rosenberg, along with a team of knowledgeable and experienced facilitators, will guide workshop participants. Involved with VSAC’s Project Respect and Hollaback!, Rosenberg believes that “the bystander approach encourages people to step up in a way that feels safe.”
Rosenberg says that when first introduced to the concept of bystander intervention, he had a feeling of men’s responsibility – his own responsibility in ending violence. “Responsibility may sound like a burden, but that’s not how I’ve experienced it. For me it’s empowering to work towards ending gender based violence. I’ve been given this opportunity to step up and work for justice. It’s an honour to work with people who are not men who have been doing this work for a long time – it’s an honour to step in and fill the space where men have been missing and where men are needed."
Sexualized violence can only be prevented when the whole community commits to creating a culture of respect where everyone has the right to sexuality without violence. To get involved or learn more about bystander intervention, people are encourage to attend Victoria's Walk a Mile in Her Shoes®, on Sunday, May 25, 2014, 2-4pm Spirit (Centennial) Square. Walk a Mile asks men, alongside their communities, to walk one mile wearing shoes of their own (or fancy shoes with heels if they choose) to raise funds and awareness for the Victoria Sexual Assault Centre. It’s fun and it gets everyone talking about something that’s really difficult to talk about: sexualized violence. For more details visit: www.walkamilevictoria.com (twitter handle: @VSACentre, #walkamilevictoria).
The Victoria Sexual Assault Centre (www.vsac.ca) is a feminist organization committed to ending sexualized violence through healing, education, and prevention. We are dedicated to supporting women and all trans* survivors of sexual assault and childhood sexual abuse, through advocacy, counselling, and empowerment.
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Resource Development Manager
Victoria Sexual Assault Centre
201-3060 Cedar Hill Road
Victoria, BC
(250)383-6112 fax
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CAPI TALKS AND JOB OPPORTUNITY:
PANEL DISCUSSION: India Votes 2014
Thursday, May 22, 2014, 5-7pm
Harry Hickman Building, Room 105, UVic
The 2014 Indian election will be one of the largest democratic elections in the world, with 814.5 million eligible voters set to elect members of parliament in all 543 parliamentary constituencies. However, the election is not without its controversy, particularly around the prime ministerial candidate of the main opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Mr. Narendra Modi, who has been chief minister of the state of Gujrat, is praised by many for his leadership and is slated to be the next prime minister of India. However, others point to criticism of Modi’s past and his inability to tackle poverty in his state. The country is divided and stakes are high for the ruling Congress Party and the BJP. What is certain is that the results of the election will have an impact on India and around the world for years to come.
Hosted by the Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives and the Centre for Global Studies, the panel is moderated by Reeta Tremblay, Vice President Academic and Provost. Panelists include: Sikata Banerjee, Associate Dean, Humanities, Sudhir Nair, Assistant Professor, Gustavson School of Business, and Richa Sharma, PhD Student, School of Population and Public Health, UBC.
TIANANMEN SQUARE PROTESTS: A Reflection 25 Years On
Friday, May 30, 2014, 12-2pm
Harry Hickman Building, Room 110, UVic
In the spring of 1989, millions of citizens across China took to the streets in a nationwide movement against government corruption and authoritarian rule. What began with widespread hope for political reform ended on June 4, 1989, with martial law being enforced, and the army firing on unarmed citizens in Tiananmen Square, Beijing. The scale of army mobilization and casualties was unpresendented in modern day China. To respectfully mark the 25th anniversary, CAPI is bringing together two experts on China whose lives were forever changed by the tragedy. CBC Asia Bureau Chief Patrick Brown was in Beijing covering the student protests days before June 4th, and he has a unique perspective on covering the events for the CBC. Author and scholar, Rowena He, was born and raised in China. Her talk will be based on her new book, Tiananmen Exiles: Voices of the Struggle for Democracy in China, which interweaves her own experiences with the accounts of three student leaders exiled from China in the aftermath of the military crackdown.
With former CBC Asia Bureau Chief, Patrick Brown, and Harvard Lecturer and Author, Rowena He. There will be time for questions, and refreshments will be provided.
Please also have a look at the following opportunity:
JOB OPPORTUNITY
A project manager is required for an exciting new research project! Landscapes of Injustice is a collaborative project to research and tell the history of the forced sale of Japanese Canadians' property during the Second World War. The project will bring together 33 researchers and as many as 100 students, to deliver a traveling museum exhibit, teaching materials for elementary and secondary school classes, educational websites, scholarly and popular publications, and public presentations across Canada. The project is funded by a recently awarded grant and 14 participating institutions. To see the job description – click here. For more details please email Jordan Stanger-Ross at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Deadline for applications is Friday, May 23, 2014.
Social Justice Studies Program University of Victoriaweb.uvic.ca/socialjustice/@UVicSJS on Twitter UVicSJS on FacebookUVicSJS on YouTube
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