Teachers Dept: No! she says with a broad smile over a cappuccino in a trendy Montreal cafe. My God, I would cry all day, every day. , according to The Chronicle Herald. I admire them a lot, she said. I had a lot of compassion for my teachers. I would never tease them or anything because I felt I had the responsibility of showing them I was interested even when I wasn t. MONTREAL Evelyne de la Cheneliere laughs when asked if she ever considered becoming a teacher like one of her best known creations, Bashir Lazhar. She s kidding, the playwright quickly adds, but she also points out she believes teachers have a huge responsibility and need more energy than she has. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

84th Annual Academy Awards Dept: A lot of pundits will be left speechless if retro Hollywood homage The Artist doesn t take the Oscar for Best Picture at Sunday s ceremony, although scene-stealing canine Uggie will likely bark anyway, according to The Star. If The Artist wins, it will be the first silent film in 83 years to take Best Picture, which last occurred when World War I aerial drama Wings stormed the very first Academy Awards in 1929 and silence is golden at the 84th annual Academy Awards . This most unlikely of movie smashes silent, square, colourless and European has emerged over months of campaigns and contests to be deemed almost unbeatable. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Eddie Murphy Dept: Billy s back to save the day as the 84th annual Academy Awards unspool Sunday night at 8:30 on ABC and CTV, according to The Star. But it could have been much worse much earlier, when Hollywood bad boy Brett Ratner, director of the Rush Hour movies, was hired to produce the annual awards extravaganza and his dubious choice to host was his second-string Tower Heist star Eddie Murphy and fear not, Oscar watchers. You re safe now. The crisis is over and the way is clear Crystal clear. And just in the nick of time, too. Nominees and winners aside, it could have been a disaster. For one thing, the titular sponsor of the current venue, Hollywood s Kodak Theatre, has gone bankrupt, which is why you won t hear it mentioned at any point during the evening. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Canadian Doug Saunder Dept: Reacting to "myths" that metropolises are dirty, sick and crime ridden, Triumph of the City blasts away by arguing that "cities are actually the healthiest, greenest and richest in both cultural and economic terms places to live.", according to Vancouver Sun. In an age when half the world has moved to cities - with the demo-graphic shift even more exaggerated in Canada - Triumph of the City is part of a trend in city-boosting publishing. Its enthusiasm for urban life is matched by Canadian Doug Saunder's book, Arrival City: How the Largest Migration in History is Changing Our World. It explores the aspiring migrant communities on the edges of the world's giant conurbations, such as Rio de Janeiro, Mumbai and Los Angeles and triumph of the City. It's a punchy title, designed to get your attention. When you scan the book's subtitle - How our Greatest Invention Makes Us Richer, Smarter, Greener, Healthier and Happier - you realize Edward Glaeser is also itching to pick a fight. To put together his book, Glaeser, a Harvard University economist, travelled to some of the globe's most thriving cities, including London, Tokyo, Bangalore, Houston, Singapore, Boston and Vancouver, which he accurately dubs "The Consumer City." (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Evelyne De La Cheneli Dept: Based on a play by Evelyne de la Cheneli re, the movie follows an Algerian immigrant and teacher who helps a class of Quebec students mourn and recover from a horrible tragedy. In turn, they help him grieve his own heartbreaking past, according to CBC. I realized that I had found another way of expressing myself that could be a way for the future, and I also found out that I liked it, he told News and montreal filmmaker Philippe Falardeau never dreamt he would find himself in Los Angeles, nominated for an Academy Award for his school-set drama Monsieur Lazhar . A political analyst-turned-filmmaker, Falardeau attributes his movie career to a happy series of accidents, the first being his decision to enter a short film contest in the early 1990s. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Kou Dept: Beijing-based China Guardian Auctions Co. Limited, the world's fourth-largest auction house, opened its office in January in Vancouver, the first of its kind in Canada, according to Vancouver Sun. "We look at Vancouver as market filled with crouching tigers and hidden dragons," Kou said, noting the regions large Chinese immigrant population may have brought Chinese art collections with them to Canada and one of the top art auction houses in China has set up shop in Vancouver, an attempt to explore the emerging local market - and providing yet another sign of the city's increasing visibility to Chinese businesses. This is not China Guardian's first venture in to Metro Vancouver; last year, it held its first Canadian artwork consignment event in Richmond. Director and vice-president Kou Qin said the event resulted in Guardian accepting 50 mil-lion Chinese yuan $7.9 million Cdn in artwork for auction. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Criminal Law Dept: Nicholson said the law, which includes mandatory minimum sentences for drug offences, is "very targeted.", according to CBC. "But again, ours is a Canadian solution to Canadian issues and we make no apology for that." Federal Justice Minister Rob Nicholson is standing by mandatory minimum sentencing legislation, despite a new warning that such laws don't work. "We develop our criminal law legislation looking at the experiences from around the world, from Britain and other countries," Nicholson said at a news conference Wednesday in Regina. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Special Investigations Unit Dept: The charge was laid not by fellow police officers, but by Ontario's special investigations unit. It's an independent organization staffed entirely by civilians. Although some of the investigators are former police officers, most are drawn from various branches of government, including workplace health and safety, national security and intelligence, immigration, corrections and the legal profession, according to Winnipeg Free Press. The SIU was created to bolster confidence that investigations into police-involved homicides and serious assaults were being handled with integrity and professionalism. It was a measure to help retain trust in the police themselves, because when that's lost, policing becomes much more difficult and a Toronto police officer has been charged with second-degree murder after a man was shot in the back during an investigation. Murder charges against police are extremely rare, and no officer has ever been convicted of such an offence committed in the course of his or her duties. The SIU has learned that it doesn't need serving police officers to find the smoking gun or the suspect, because the case is not about who fired the shot; it's about context and circumstance. It's not a whodunit, but a whatwasit -- justifiable homicide, accident, negligence or murder. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Leslie Ann Coles Dept: It was a pivotal moment for women working behind the camera and a signal that the male-dominated industry was welcoming new voices into the elite filmmakers club. But the euphoria was short-lived, according to The Star. If she acknowledged, Hey, I m a woman director, the feminists said, It s not about being a woman, why make it an issue? At the same time, what she did thank you. At the 2010 Oscars, Kathryn Bigelow made history as she accepted the Academy Award for Best Director for her powerful dramatic thriller, The Hurt Locker , the first woman to take the prize. I think Bigelow was caught between a rock and a hard place, says writer-director Leslie Ann Coles, founder and director of Toronto s Female Eye Film Festival , which marks its 10th year next month. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Kensington Market Dept: The store, with the fire-truck red sign and striped awning, has stood on Baldwin St., near Kensington Ave., for more than five decades. The company now has locations in Etobicoke and Brampton and ships meat to the U.S, according to The Star. We came back with an offer we couldn t refuse, the younger Leider said, adding that the new occupants will definitely not be meat purveyors and european Quality Meats and Sausages, a stalwart butcher shop in the heart of Kensington Market, will close in the spring, yet another harbinger of the old immigrant quarter s fast-changing fa ade. Rumours circulated earlier this year that the shop was put on the market for $1.8 million. While Larry Leider, son of founder Morris Leider, would not discuss specifics of the sale, he confirmed the Kensington branch will shutter April 7. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.