canada: People's Party Leader Maxime Bernier doesn't believe in climate change, according to National Observer. That was enough for Elections Canada to say they would construe a position on the issue as proxy support for one party over another. The star candidate and former director of the environmental organization quiterre continued, Elections Canada won't let environmental groups talk about climate change because Maxime Bernier doesn't believe in it!!! Science is no longer acceptable for them it seems... Guilbeault was responding to a Canadian Press report saying Elections Canada had issued a warning that it could classify advocacy around climate change as partisan activity during the upcoming election. This is pure madness, Elections Can E won't let environmental groups talk about climate change because Maxime Bernier doesn't beleive in it!!! Science is no longuer acceptable for them it seems... globeandmail https //t.co/T5fDjgdGYs Election2019 steven guilbeault s guilbeault August 19, 2019This has serious consequences for environmental organizations like Guilbeault's former group. Groups that don't comply could be punished with fines adding up to several multiples of the amount they originally spent on the campaign activities. Under current election law, a group engaging in any election-related activity that's deemed partisan and costs more than 500 must be registered as a third party. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

president disapprove.article: Trump's approval rating has never dipped below 32% or risen above 42% in AP-NORC polls since he took office, according to Vancouver Courier. No other president has stayed within so narrow a band. Just 36% of Americans approve of the way Trump is handling his job as president; 62% disapprove.article continues below Trending Stories Richmond man killed in motorcycle crash in East Vancouver Making more lungs available for transplant in Vancouver Vancouver's millennials are being scammed and Nana's here to help Air Canada has temporarily suspended all flights to India from Vancouver The numbers may be ugly for a first-term president facing reelection in 14 months, but they are remarkably consistent. Since Gallup began measuring presidential approval, Trump is the only president whose rating has never been above 50%. Still, several Harry Truman, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush logged ratings worse than Trump's lowest rating so far at some point during their time in office. Views of the Republican president's handling of the economy remain a relative bright spot despite fears of a potential recession, but at least 60% of Americans disapprove of his performance on other issues. Trump's poor grades in the AP-NORC poll extend to his handling of several key issues immigration, health care, foreign policy and guns. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

protest movement: The prime minister added his government has been working tirelessly to secure the release of two Canadians detained in China, according to National Observer. As a global community, we must recognize that China is a growing power and increasingly assertive towards its place in the international order, Trudeau told the audience at the Montreal Council on Foreign Relations event. The federal government is closely monitoring the protest movement in Hong Kong, where there are 300,000 Canadian citizens, Trudeau said in a speech in Montreal. But make no mistake We will always defend Canadians and Canadian interests. We do not escalate, but we do not back down, he said. ; Trudeau's speech came a day after Geng Shuang, a spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry, told reporters Canada needs to stop its wrongdoing before it's too late. The prime minister said Canada will continue to engage in dialogue with the Asian power, but it won't stop standing up for fundamental freedoms, including the right to peaceful assembly. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

waterloo graduate: The dictionary's publisher, Oxford University Press, said in an email that it has no record of Dzsurdzsa working for the company, but that he appears to have worked on an unaffiliated research project examining the text, according to National Observer. But that short biography leaves out a few steps. According to the About Us page on The Post Millennial's website, the University of Waterloo graduate used to be a researcher on The Oxford English Dictionary. Before Dzsurdzsa was hired at the Post Millennial, he also worked for websites that promoted racism and peddled pro-Kremlin content. It did the same for Faith Goldy, who praised white nationalists at the deadly Charlottesville neo-Nazi protest, said a neo-Nazi slogan on a podcast for the neo-Nazi site the Daily Stormer and added that she doesn't see that as controversial, advocated to return Canada to a population that is 96 per cent Euro Canadian and said she wants launch the next Crusade to reclaim Bethlehem. While he was a creative director and correspondent at Free Bird Media, the blog promoted Richard Spencer, who has been identified by the Southern Poverty Law Center in the U.S. as a professional racist and white supremacist. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

community berg: It made her feel like she was a foreigner in her own community, according to CTV. Berg, a registered Democrat, is among a growing and crucial bloc of Asian American voters leaning further to the left in the age of Trump, and his stunt, reported by the New York Post, angered her and many others. Berg, a Korean American who grew up in Fort Collins, Colorado, recalled kids doing the stereotypical pulling at the eyes and the mocking accent. It empowers people who would be predisposed to doing that kind of thing anyway, said Berg, a high school English teacher in Denver. Trump has used racist rhetoric to fire up his conservative base ahead of the 2020 election -- most notably against four Democratic congresswomen of colour. And it makes it acceptable to be openly, increasingly discriminating. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

riot shields: Police with riot shields faced off at the station entrance against a group of remaining protesters, who sprayed a firehose and spread soap on the floor to slow a police approach, while piling up trash bins, a wheelchair and umbrellas in a makeshift blockade, according to CTV. They also discharged fire extinguishers, creating a cloud obscuring visibility. Near the end of the event, the police began what they called a dispersal operation, using minimum force after some protesters blocked roads and flashed laser pointers at officers. The station's entrance shutters were lowered, barricading the protesters inside. The black-clad protesters flooded earlier into Yuen Long station to commemorate the July 21 rampage by a group of men suspected of organized crime links, in what was a shocking escalation of the city's summer of protest. The confrontation ended without further incident, as police retreated and protesters left on trains. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

word-of-mouth event: With its lasers and disco balls and sandy dance floor, Promise Cherry Beach has the feeling of a well-kept secret and it was, back when it was a clandestine word-of-mouth event, according to NOW Magazine. But it's now an above-water party, with city permits, a legal bar and bored-looking police officers stationed at the exits. Those are the directions you take on the way to Promise Cherry Beach, the unwavering techno beats serving as a pulsing beacon that guides you along the Lake Ontario shoreline. Signs around the beach that say Someone grab your ass signs outline the event's strict security policy. Promise founders Dave Macleod and Irving Shaw have even brought in an official diversity director, Sanj Takhar, whose booking has helped the parties stay vital as they move into their second decade. It's a place where old and new collide in Toronto's party scene where the old-school Peace, Love, Unity and Respect ethos has given way to a more modern and official safe space policy; where DJ lifers alternate on the decks with out-of-town headliners and newcomers making noise on Soundcloud. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

dozen people: The CBSA conducts enforcement actions when it is believed that a contravention of the Customs Act or the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act has occurred, it said in an email to CTV News, according to CTV. An employee at the racetrack, who didn't want to be identified, said they saw about two dozen people getting arrested around 6 30 a.m. The agency confirmed to CTV News Vancouver that there is an ongoing investigation at the Hastings Racecourse, but it would not provide details including how many people were arrested and the nature of the case. Monday. These individuals were working in the backstretch under the employment and supervision of various horse owners and trainers that are stabled at Hastings Racecourse to race, said Darren Mac Donald in a news release. Hastings Racecourse confirmed a number of individuals were escorted off its property, adding the people were employed by private horse owners. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

halifax: This is a violation of human rights, Halifax activist El Jones told a group of about a dozen protesters who crowded into the narrow hallway outside the constituency office of Halifax Liberal MP Andy Fillmore, who was away at the time, according to CTV. Elmi's lengthy criminal record includes assault charges, which is why he is facing deportation as a non-citizen. Supporters held a news conference Tuesday in Halifax, where they said it was important to remember that 34-year-old Abdilahi Elmi fled Somalia as a child and was later taken into foster care in Ontario -- but provincial officials failed to fill out paperwork that would have granted him permanent residency. On June 26, the Canada Border Services Agency decided Elmi should be deported to Kismayo, Somalia some time later this month. Spokeswoman Mylene Estrada-Del Rosario said Elmi has committed extensive crimes within Canada and is considered a danger to the public. The removal of convicted, repeat offenders is an enforcement priority, the CBSA said in a statement. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

juan guaido: On Tuesday, the United Nations said the growing flight of Venezuelans has now totally surpassed Colombia's capacity to respond, and called on countries to step up the amount of aid they are providing to the area, according to CTV. Countries including Canada and the U.S. have been ratcheting up economic and political pressure on President Nicolas Maduro in a bid to force him aside and allow for a transition of power to the government of Juan Guaido, who is recognized by dozens of countries as Venezuela's rightful leader. As many as four million Venezuelans are believed to have fled in the last four years, a migration of historic proportions in the region that has severely strained neighbouring countries hosting the majority of the displaced. U.S. President Donald Trump's hard line, however, has not been fully backed up by a corresponding softening of his approach on immigration, so far. But the Trump administration has allowed Venezuelans to use expired passports to apply for entry or extend existing visas, one of two steps Canada announced this week that would make it easier for Venezuelans to come or stay in this country. A decision to restrict asylum claims at the Mexico-U.S. border has cut off one major avenue for Venezuelans seeking sanctuary in the U.S., and efforts to place what amounts to a stay on deportations for Venezuelans have also failed. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

sketch: I think it's a sign of the times, says Tall Boyz cast member Guled Abdi, who moved to Toronto as a refugee from Somalia in 1991 and went to school in Nairobi, Kenya from '96 to 2005, according to CBC. There have always been people doing things that are on the fringes or considered alt, but now alt and mainstream is one and the same. After the success of Key & Peele and the still-running Baroness von Sketch Show comes a flood of TV and stage ensembles with fresh, diverse cultural perspectives.article continues below Trending Stories Man charged with abducting daughter arrested in Victoria Andrew Berry takes the stand, denies killing his daughters Killer granted 60-day unescorted temporary absence to attend healing program Comment Lanes on Wharf Street put cyclists at risk The upcoming CBC series Tall Boyz, HBO's recently launched A Black Lady Sketch Show, and Canadian-based stage troupes including She the People and Tita Collective, are among the more niche voices breaking through to the mainstream and speaking to demographics that hadn't previously had this kind of comedy tailored to them in North America. You can enjoy both equally.... There seems to be more room for these voices and networks that are willing to take the chance on them . Debuting Sept. 17, Tall Boyz features Abdi and other members of the all-male sketch comedy troupe Tall Boyz II Men of Toronto Vance Banzo, Franco Nguyen, and Tim Blair. People are ferocious for authenticity, says McCulloch. Comedy star Bruce McCulloch of The Kids in the Hall is among the executive producers of the half-hour series, which explores themes including friendship, race, nostalgia and toxic masculinity. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

funding cuts: After Ford paused the planned cuts -- to public health, child care and land ambulance funding -- in May, it was unclear whether they would go ahead next year, according to CTV. His office said those changes will now take effect Jan. 1. The Progressive Conservative government had tried to force retroactive funding cuts on communities earlier this year but had to cancel them after municipal leaders complained their annual budgets had already passed. Ford said Monday that he had heard municipalities' concerns. But my friends, we're listening to you. We recognize our government moved quickly when we came into office to address our inherited challenges, Ford told a gathering of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

interest rates: Finance Minister Darlene Compton says the bond ratings show the Island is on solid fiscal footing, according to CTV. She says interest payments on provincial debt are the fifth highest budgetary expenditure, and an improved bond rating means lower interest rates on that debt. For the first time since 2000, the debt-rating agency DBRS has upgraded the province's bond rating to A from A-low, while Moody's maintained its rating of Aa2. The minority Tory government tabled its first budget in June -- projecting a 1.8-million surplus. DBRS noted the government is committed to maintaining balanced budgets. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

lauren hashian: Both were wearing white, and they were standing overlooking the ocean, according to CTV. The post said the date of their apparent nuptials was Sunday, in Hawaii. A photo of the movie star and Lauren Hashian was posted on the social media site. Johnson's representative did not immediately return calls asking for comment. Johnson also has a teenage daughter from a previous marriage. The couple have been dating for several years and have two young daughters. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

canadians: But the same divisive and discriminatory politics that turned Quebec's infamous Bill 21 into law last month are now springing up in Mississauga, Canada's sixth-largest city.I was born in Mississauga, where our public education, much like curriculum across the country, has raised whole generations on the welcoming and inclusive understanding that public spaces should not erase diversity to be made neutral, according to National Observer. I grew up with Canadians of all strides, rightly believing that the removal of diverse expressions, identities and cultures fosters discrimination and exclusion. For decades, since the Multiculturalism Act of 1988, Canadians have put forth societal ideals that celebrate religious and cultural differences while making room for everyone. As a community leader and religious studies researcher, I have spent years promoting the fact that we all benefit in cultural and religious literacy and in deeper social cohesion from having the richness of Canada's many traditions present in public spaces. So why is he supporting an Ontario candidate who seems to uphold the banning of some religious symbols in public It seems, however, that in Eastern Canada, such values are increasingly under threat. Andrew Scheer said he would never support a bill that banned religious symbols at the federal level if he were prime minister. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

wally schumann: This will change the economy of Canada, Wally Schumann, the N.W.T.'s minister of industry, tourism and investment, said Thursday.A direct, all-weather connection to southern Canada's highways Nunavut's first would allow everything from fresh vegetables to construction materials to be shipped more cheaply and easily by trucks, according to National Observer. It's very important for our region, said Stanley Anablak, head of the Kitikmeot Inuit Association, which has been lobbying for the port and northern road for years. Transport Minister Marc Garneau pledged more than 50 million to cover preliminary studies and planning for an all-weather road from Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories to a deep-water port on Nunavut's central Arctic coast. Anablak said many of the supplies his Nunavut communities need, including groceries, are flown in, which results in higher bills. As climate change erodes the usefulness of ice roads, the new link would open what's known as the Slave Geological Province, one of the most mineral-rich parts of the country. Others are shipped from ports thousands of kilometres away on barges that arrive once a year. ; Once we get the road built, we're hopeful that it will bring the costs down significantly for our communities. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

chinese pavilion: Folkfest executive director Terresa DeMong was excited to be a part of the festival this year, getting to highlight its history and the decades of volunteers that have helped share culture throughout Saskatoon, according to CTV. We've had over 50 different cultures participate, 100,000 volunteers, and a million passports DeMong said. Venues were spread out all around the city hosting pavilions from different countries selling food, drinks, wares, and even putting on performances. The Chinese pavilion is one of the many cultures on display at the festival this year. I met my husband, the most significant person in my life, in 2004 at the Folkfest Chinese pavilion. Co-manager Shirley Zhou has been involved with the festival for 15 years, and said she stays involved after meeting someone special there. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

energy board: There are significant legal challenges from six major First Nations whose territories include much of the proposed pipeline route through B.C. Ecojustice is litigating in the Federal Court of Appeal to defend the critically endangered southern resident orcas, according to Rabble. The B.C. government is taking its case for jurisdiction over the transport of toxic diluted bitumen within the province to the Supreme Court. But the latest approval of TMX by the Trudeau government and the industry-captured regulatory agency, the National Energy Board, does not settle the issue. The Indigenous-led, grassroots place-based resistance that encouraged the Texas-based multinational Kinder Morgan to walk away from the project is re-emerging, after the construction delay imposed by the Federal Court of Appeal in August 2018. It was founded by two former executives of Enron, the company that later collapsed amidst accounting scandals. Kinder Morgan, remember, never intended to benefit Canada. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

government officials: The commissioner found that Trudeau acted improperly when using his position of authority over Wilson-Raybould, the then-justice minister and attorney general, in an effort to have her overrule the director of public prosecution's decision not to negotiate a deal with Quebec construction giant SNC-Lavalin that would see the company avoid a criminal prosecution over charges of corruption and fraud stemming from an RCMP investigation, according to CTV. He said the evidence showed that Trudeau both directly and indirectly, through his staff, sought to exert influence over Wilson-Raybould's decision on the matter, after months of government officials and the prime minister denying that was the case. PM Trudeau broke ethics act in relation to SNC-Lavalin On Aug. 14, federal ethics commissioner Mario Dion released his bombshell report on his months-long SNC-Lavalin probe, and found that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau broke the federal Conflict of Interest Act in relation to the SNC-Lavalin scandal, by seeking to influence Jody Wilson-Raybould in many ways. These findings have renewed opposition outrage and calls for accountability. While accepting responsibility, Trudeau has maintained that the actions of he and his staff were solely about protecting jobs. The prime minister has not apologized, as he did the first time he was found in contravention of the Conflict of Interest Act. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

leadership race: It will be a phoney discussion where they attack each other on their superficial differences, according to CTV. The Quebec MP, who represented the Conservatives for a dozen years and placed second in its 2017 leadership race, said the Liberals, NDP, Greens, Bloc Quebecois and his former party all share similar views on things like immigration, climate change and supply management in the dairy sector. It won't be a real debate if I'm not there, Bernier, the leader of the People's Party of Canada, said in his closing speech to his first national convention in Gatineau, Que., on Sunday, where candidates and campaign teams spent three days learning how to attract and motivate voters. He also dismissed those political rivals as espousing varying degrees of left-leaning views. Those other parties have all qualified for the debates, to be held Oct. 7 and Oct. 10, under criteria established by the federal government. While the other parties look at polls and focus groups to decide what they stand for, and pander to every special interest group, we follow our principles, said Bernier, adding that his party does not do any polling. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

world population: Perhaps it's forgivable that an outfit called the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change' would blame a perilous future food supply on climate change, according to Rabble. Yet it's astounding that in the report's broad news coverage I never encountered mention of the main driver of agricultural stress. Having pooh-poohed the 1960s population bomb' alarmism that would have us all balancing on our allotted five square inches of Earth by now, we've grown complacent about increasing our 7.7 billion world population by at least a quarter in the next 30 years, and by about half in 2100, when we're likely to number around 11 billion. After all, what causes climate change Even according to the most fervent of climate activists, the culprit is people. Back when human population was escalating unsustainably worldwide, demography was politically relaxing. More people, more carbon emissions double duh. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

ethics law: We weren't consulted before you were hired, according to National Observer. Your history in the civil service is checkered. How can we trust you, they thundered. Are you tough, are you fair, are you a dog with a bone NDP MP Nathan Cullen asked Dion at a hastily-convened committee to review the appointment. In a withering review released Wednesday, Dion concluded the prime minister broke ethics law when he pressured Jody Wilson-Raybould, who was attorney general at the time, to halt the criminal prosecution of Montreal firm SNC-Lavalin. While opposition parties may not have trusted the appointment, they certainly didn't hesitate this week to trust the damning report Dion has now released on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

nation: You will receive occasional promotional offers for programs that support The Nation's journalism, according to Rabble. You can read our Privacy Policy here. AP Photo / Mark Lennihan Ready to fight back Sign up for Take Action Now and get three actions in your inbox every week. Thank you for signing up. Subscribe now for as little as 2 a month! Support Progressive Journalism The Nation is reader supported Chip in 10 or more to help us continue to write about the issues that matter. For more from The Nation, check out our latest issue. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

bazar district: Bangladesh Refugee, Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Abul Kalam said the identities of the refugees have been confirmed by Myanmar and they could go back there if they want, according to CTV. Speaking in Dhaka, Bangladesh's capital, he said the government had ordered local officials in Cox's Bazar district to locate those on the list in the four refugee camps there, but their repatriation would only happen if they want to return voluntarily. Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay, speaking in his country's capital, Naypyitaw, said the parties concerned had agreed that the process would begin next Thursday. He said Bangladesh is ready to provide support to any refugees who wish to return home, but also would not use force to make them go back. She said the list was whittled down from 22,000 names that Bangladesh had sent to Myanmar for verification. Caroline Gluck, a spokeswoman for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, told The Associated Press that the Bangladesh government has asked for its help in verifying 3,450 people who signed up for voluntary repatriation. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

borders bids: A group of employees called Googlers for Human Rights posted a public petition urging the company not to bid on a cloud computing contract for CBP, the federal agency that oversees law enforcement for the country's borders, according to CTV. Bids for the contract were due Aug. 1. It's the latest in a year full of political and social pushback from the tech giant's workforce. It is not clear if Google expressed interest. More than 700 Google employees had signed the petition by Tuesday afternoon. The company did not return a request for comment. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

rights violations: Asylum seekers are still fleeing Turkey for Canada and other western countries, Kaplan said, according to CTV. There's at least 14 families in my neighbourhood in Ottawa . I mean ladies with kids . All their husbands have been arrested in Turkey, he said. More than 3,000 Turkish families have landed in Canada seeking asylum during the last three years, said Vaner Kaplan, who represents a group called Advocates of Silenced Turkey in Canada that documents human rights violations in the eastern European country and presses for change from abroad. The women are not comfortable speaking out publicly for fear it could imperil their husbands behind bars in Turkey, he added. Before that, he used to work in a non-for-profit organization in the United States. Kaplan brought his wife and three kids to Canada more than two years ago. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.