It’s a Canadian Day of Action


By: Cory Pike, Young Liberals of Canada President and Darcy Diachinsky Young Liberals of Canada Representative to the Aboriginal Peoples’ Commission

The National Aboriginal Day of Action is not just a protest. It’s much more than that. And it’s not about anger, it’s not about resentment. It’s about fairness. It’s about hope. It’s about ensuring that our Aboriginal Peoples are able to take their rightful place as equals in our society.

The Canadian record on the treatment of our Aboriginal Peoples has been, and remains, dismal. Consider the horrors of children forcibly removed from their families and sent to residential schools; outlawing aspects of Aboriginal culture by our criminal law; or even denying Aboriginals the right to vote until 1960.

As a member of the G-8, Canada is considered an immensely successful nation. Yet, today, over 56% of Aboriginals live in poverty. Yet, today, Aboriginal Peoples don’t have access to adequate healthcare and education services. Yet, today, there are some places where Aboriginal Peoples don’t even have access to clean drinking water!

This is unacceptable for a G-8 country. This is unacceptable for Canada.

Nonetheless, after decades of neglect, of promises and promise-breaking, there was the Kelowna Accord. It was our first best hope of addressing all of the wrongs of the past and building a brighter future. The federal government, the provinces, and our Aboriginal organizations had all come together and broken the age-old barriers of discord and mistrust. The wellbeing of our Aboriginal Peoples was finally, once and for all, going to be addressed in a meaningful and tangible way.

Then, in a flash—it was gone. Jack Layton and Stephen Harper took it away.

Layton, because he cared more about getting a couple more seats in the House of Commons, forced an election before the Kelowna Accord had a chance to be implemented. Stephen Harper, because he has no real understanding for what the Kelowna Accord truly sought to achieve, cancelled it. He decided snuffing out a Liberal policy was more important than assessing it’s huge potential.

Well, enough is enough. It is time we fixed these problems. And it’s time to make sure the current Government knows we want them fixed. All Canadians deserve fairness, and that is what the Day of Action is all about. It is a National Day of Action, a Canadian Day of Action. And that is why the Young Liberals of Canada will be marching in support.


Cory Pike
President, Young Liberals of Canada

Darcy Diachinsky
Young Liberals of Canada Representative to the Aboriginal Peoples’ Commission

For further information, contact: Cory Pike, Young Liberals of Canada President
cpike@liberal.ca

Captain Planet: He's Our Hero!

Our very own Stephane Dion was named one of the top 15 environmentally friendly politicians in the world today by the award-winning independent online environmental magazine Grist.

Congrats to Stephane. Check out this link to read more.

We're painting the town blue this Canada Day

The colour scheme for July 1 festivities on Parliament Hill this year sure is interesting.





It would appear that the stage and media booth are both blue. Maybe it's always been like this... or maybe not.

It's now been one week of working on the Hill, and it's been a good one.

But life in Ottawa actually got started the week before when I arrived
in town to settle in. Whether it was a garden party at Stornaway or a
going-away party for MPs Gerald Keddy and Peter Mackay (with lobster
hats for all), I could already detect an auspicious air of festivity
and productivity. I've got a good feeling about our Liberal Party...

The work week began with my introduction to the team at Senator
Hervieux-Payette's office (for whom I am so fortunate to work). It's a
dynamic and inspired team (but maybe everyone was just excited that
we'd reached the end of the Senate's session :) . I have several
projects that I've already begun with more to come. It's a great
feeling to know that you: 1) love the work you do; and 2) know that
it's making a difference for many people. I'm one lucky duck.

The highlight of the week would have to be playing baseball with Ken
Dryden and friends. Yes, you read correctly, baseball not hockey.
After the House's final sitting, a couple staffer friends (the always
sporting Richard Zussman and Mary-Rose Brown) and I were playing whiffle ball on the lawn of the Hill when House of Commons/hockey legend Ken Dryden
showed up to hit a few balls. Maybe it was the accumulated tension from a tumultuous Conservative-led 39th session that accounted for Mr.Dryden's need to vent because he put some serious mustard into those swings. Those whiffle balls never saw it coming...

Ian Anderson
Ottawa via Montreal

Chronicles of a Summer Student

My summer has been unbelievable so far. I’ve learned all kinds of skills by working with (I may be bias) the best boss ever, Hon. Dominic Leblanc. However, it’s not just the skills that I’m learning that has made this summer awesome, it’s the great experiences I have been having with the other summer students that have made this an awesome summer. The summer students have been having a great time working hard and learning tons. It’s not all work and no play though. After work we often get the opportunity to go to awesome events.
On Wednesday, All of the summer students attended a rally at Foundation with special guest, our leader, Stephane Dion. His speech was inspirational and really got us all pumped for the rest of the summer. Behind him was a team of almost 40 Members of Parliament who also seemed inspired by what our leader had to say. Mr. Dion joked that the conservatives don’t really want to be in power and that we must do them a favour by voting them out in the next election. The crowd seemed to agree as his joke received a thunderous applause.

elyse

Life in the Past Lane

It's sure to make you lose your mind.

http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif

Hilarious Cartoons

Great Stuff.. have a laugh

accordnoless.ca is launched

Check this out. Don't mess with NS!

Accord, No Less

Keddy and Mackay sold out Nova Scotia, Young Liberals charge

For Immediate Release
June 11, 2007

HALIFAX, NS - The Young Liberals are targeting Gerald “Unsteady” Keddy and Peter “Disarray” Mackay for their betrayal of the Atlantic Accord, following their anti-Nova Scotia budget vote.

The youth's aggressive public awareness campaign, titled "accord, no less," includes a facebook campaign, buttons, an online petition (http://www.petitiononline.com/nsaccord/petition.html) and a website in development.

“We have eleven MPs in Ottawa and yet only nine of them stood up for this province," said Nova Scotia Young Liberal President and Bridgewater native Colin Hebb. "Keddy and Mackay have a lot of explaining to do."

It has been estimated that the loss of the Accord could mean up to a billion dollars less for the province, leaving many Nova Scotians to question the allegiances of Keddy and Mackay.

“Our province is not rich and the loss of a billion dollars in potential revenue means less money to improve access for all to post-secondary education, less money to help make Nova Scotia a more attractive place to live and work, less money for our future,” said NSYL VP Federal and Sydney native Jenna McGrath.

The “accord, no less” campaign will roll-out over the next week and will provide opportunity for Nova Scotians to rally and put pressure on the two Conservative MPs that continue to support the government’s betrayal.

“It’s about accountability,” says Hebb, “if they want to choose their party membership over their constituents, then they will have to answer for that. We refuse to stand idly by and see our province treated with such disrespect.”

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For more information contact:
Colin Hebb
(902) 476 1307
colin.hebb@gmail.com