Genocide is not a "Fair Weather" Issue

Since the Tamil protests began, there has been much confusion over whether they deserve support from the rest of the population. I can't tell you how many times I have read or heard, "I support them, but..."
• "They are flying those red flags."
• "Aren't the Tamil Tigers terrorists?"
• "They shouldn't block traffic."
• "Isn't there some other way they can protest?"
• "This has nothing to do with Canada."

Let's start with the facts. For decades, the Sinhalese majority has been persecuting the Tamil minority, and that persecution includes murder. Supposed "safe zones" have been bombed, including hospitals. The Tamil population is trapped and has nowhere to turn. As more and more are murdered, their relatives here in Canada grow more desperate.

Is genocide right or wrong? Speak to anyone about the holocaust, and in this day and age it is inconceiveable that anyone would defend genocide. No, genocide is always wrong, period. Full stop. There are no "ifs", "ands", or "buts". Genocide is not a political view. It has no pros or cons. There is no debate. It is simply and categorically wrong, and must be opposed and stopped at all costs.

Genocide is not a "fair-weather" issue. We do not oppose it only when we have time, only under certain conditions, only when we like the victims - or approve of their politics.

We do not decide to support the victims of genocide who we like, and turn our backs on those we don't. If you saw an elderly neighbour being attacked by a mugger, would you intervene, or would you first gauge how much you like that particular neighbour? Would you walk away because you don't happen to agree with her political views?

Oppose genocide, now, and always. Speak out against it. Support its victims, no matter who they are. Stand with the Tamils. Write to the newspapers. Call your MP. Tell Stephen Harper to get off his bloody ass and challenge the government of Sri Lanka, with economic sanctions if necessary. Don't let your complacency allow another murder.

Anti-Tamil-Tiger Propaganda Muddies the Real Issues

Papers, blogs, Facebook, and all manner of online sites are abuzz with discussion of the Tamils' plight. I'm encouraged to read that while many Canadians remain uninvolved in the struggle, they are at least aware (or becoming more aware) of the situation. But of course, there remains a stubborn group which insists that Tamils should not be supported because of the actions of the Tamil Tigers (LTTE).

Like so many rebel groups, the Tigers have a history of rebellion against opression, and they want an independent state. That is understandable, which is not to say that anyone should condone some of the things they have done. But it is important to understand that the Sri Lankan government is guilty of decades of oppression, violence, and murder. That is not the story we hear, however.

A couple of years ago, on my walk home from work through the University of Toronto campus, I passed a student who was leafletting on the sidewalk. (As is my habit, I stopped to take a leaflet, but stayed right there, looking at it. If it is something that truly interests, me, I thank the person, but if not, I make a point of handing it back.) I stood there for a moment, puzzling over it. It was text heavy, and I was not willing to read the whole thing right there, but neither could I determine what its aim was or who was behind it. What was clear was that it was a propaganda piece against the Tamil Tigers, complete with a glossy, full-colour photo of a murdered civilian - a crude shock tactic.

Amusingly, the student appeared to be a little bit uncomfortable to have me scrutinizing the information in his presence. He first tried to distance himself from the subject matter. A moment later, growing more uneasy, he told me, "I'm just being paid to hand these out."

I did take it with me, intending to look into its origins more closely, but by the time I got home, I was too disgusted by the photo and threw it out.

Here's the thing: in a city like Toronto, you can find people leafletting any day of the week. Leaflets from activists are always done on the cheap: paper photocopies, often one quarter of an 8 1/2 x 11 for maximum economy, run off by volunteers. The anti-Tiger leaflet was a two-sided, full-colour photocopy, on good quality paper. Who had money to print these and hire a university student to distribute them? It certainly wasn't from any volunteer-run activist organization. It also wasn't a message from any social- or political-activist organization I've ever seen or heard of. In other words, someone with time, money, and an agenda went to some effort to implement this. And it's not anybody on the political left.

I am thankful my experiences with activism have taught me how to analyze this experience. But what is the average person to think? Should it be any wonder that people are confused now, as to whether to support the Tamil community?

I now question every claim I hear about the Tamil Tigers. Supposedly, they have been doing some awful things. But where is our information coming from? As communications have been restricted by the Sri Lankan government, the government is in control of most of the news that is being fed to our media.

We have a duty to use independent resources on the internet, and to speak to the Tamil population to get the other side of the story. It's not hard to find Tamils to speak to; they are out on the streets every day.

For us, an inconvenience. For them, life or death.

I just got home to read headlines about Tamil protesters blocking Toronto's Gardiner Expressway, in both directions. If you need attention, that's a pretty good way to get it. Pretty good trick, but you need the numbers to pull it off.

Fortunately for the Tamil community, they do. Weeks ago, as I walked home from work, I came across one of the earlier protests in which the community did a march around Toronto's core. I saw them straggling up Queen's Park Crescent, a quiet area where pedestrian traffic is light. I thought they were walking home from a rally. But as I continued east and hit Yonge Street, I came across them again. Carrying flags and concentrating on the west side of the street (but spilling over to the east side and complemented by cars driving up and down Yonge), they formed a chain accented by their red flags - a strong presence as far as the eye could see both to the north and the south, and impossible to ignore. I was thrilled, and a little envious that even the largest protests I've been part of have never achieved that effect.

As the protests have continued, occupying University Avenue, I've read the inevitable racist comments in the online papers. "These people don't have the right to come to our country and protest." "They shouldn't be allowed to block our streets."

Way to miss the point, people.

Have you thought about the things that bother you about government action or inaction, and have you ever done anything to try to effect change? Have you made any effort to raise awareness about injustice or wrongdoing? Or are we just too comfortable with our lifestyle - too busy to protest?

Ask yourself why so many people are part of these protests. Why are so many members of the Tamil community taking the time and making the effort to get out on the streets?

Now ask yourself if you would get off your ass and do something if your relatives were in danger. Would you act if they were being killed? Would you protest if your people were the target of genocide?

No doubt, tomorrow there will be more angry letters to the editor from people who were stuck in traffic as a result of the protests. For me, I'm ok with many hours of gridlock if it results in more people speaking out about the apathy of governments like Harper's - apathy toward the killing campaign being waged on the other side of the world. Wake up, people.

Harper and Kenney to Close the Door to Gay Refugees

The erosion of Canada's reputation as a diverse country, welcoming of immigrants, took another step backward today as Immigration Minister Jason Kenney appointed an anti-gay conservative to the IRB. Doug Cryer, former director of public policy for the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, says churches have the right to denounce homosexuality.

I have very dear gay friends who have immigrated to Canada, fleeing discrimination and persecution in other countries. They are part of an (until recently) increasing movement of gays who are coming to Canada in search of a better life, a life without worry and fear. Gays who are applying for immigration now can look forward to an IRB influenced by bigorty, hatred, and a lack of sympathy and understanding of their situation. In examining refugee claims by gays, the IRB should be focused on determining whether persecution is a threat. How can a board member focus on that if he believes homosexuality is a sin in the first place?

This is beyond ludicrous. What's next - a white supremacist IRB member? Let's not laugh - this comes from the same conservative government with a federal Minister of State for Science and Technology who doesn't believe in evolution. Gary Goodyear is a Christian who has made significant cuts to science research funding. Any conservatives out there who want to defend that one?

I am going to start referring to Harpers conservatives as "republicans". I think it's the most concise way to summarize this government's actions. They are doing everything they can to move this country backward and emulate the disastrous Bush administration. Somebody help us.

Get on side.

Remind Stephen Harper that we live in a democracy! A decisive majority believes that American Iraq-war resisters should be allowed to stay in Canada. A majority in the House of Commons voted to allow them to stay as well. And Harper said himself (on April 13, 2005), "The Prime Minister has the moral responsibility to respect the will of the House."

So why has Harper not acted on his parliamentary obligations? Why is he allowing war resisters to be deported? Why is he acting in defiance of Canadian democratic policy and tradition?

If you're a fan of Harper, you're probably not reading this anyway. If you're not, you're probably already aware that Harper is a Bush wanna-be (way to pick a role model, Steve!) without a compassionate bone in his body. Either way, if you can answer the above questions, let me know. My guess is that he knows he's already well on his way to becoming the most unpopular PM in Canadian history and that nothing short of a miracle will reverse that, so he might as well be true to his heart - or lack thereof.

If you want to make a difference during his conservative reign, if you want to protest our lack of democracy, even if you just want to call Harper on being an asshole - there's no better time to protest than now. This week is a week of action, in which people will be calling and emailing politicians and making donations to the war resisters campaign (legal fees are mounting). Don't allow Harper to deport any more war resisters. Send an email, donate $10, do something. There's so much bad news these days; this is one way in which you can make a positive difference.


Weekly calendar of events (Thursday's is my own addition):

Monday, March 16
Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper. Copy this text to email different members of Parliament (see Tuesday).

Tuesday, March 17
Call Immigration Minister Jason Kenney to demand he stop the deportation of the Rivera family: 613-954-1064 and 613-992-2235
Email:
minister@cic.gc.ca
kenney.j@parl.gc.ca
Don't forget to cc the opposition critics:
bevilacqua.m@parl.gc.ca
chow.o@parl.gc.ca
st-cyr.t@parl.gc.ca

Wednesday, March 18
Distribute leaflets (available at resisters.ca).

In Toronto: War resister Matt Lowell's federal court hearing to request leave to appeal the negative decision in his H&C application. Join us for a morning vigil and to observe the hearing if you can. Meet in front of 180 Queen Street West.
8:30 am vigil
9:30 am hearing

In London: protest Citizenship and Immigration Minister, Jason Kenney, 4:00 pm.

Thursday, March 19
Donate to the war resisters' legal defense. (This link is good until March 25; after March 25, go to resisters.ca to make a donation.) Donations will be needed at least until Harper does the right thing and allows the resisters to stay.

Friday, March 20
Meet with your local Member of Parliament and ask them what they are doing to defend Canadian democracy and stop the deportation of the Rivera family.

For other local actions, go to resisters.ca.

As always, with the war resisters updates, thanks to WMTC for the event info.

I hate you all.

Yes, that's me at the wheel of a Hummer. And if you look closely, I am showing you some disrespect with a hand gesture. Not that it's needed! By driving one of these things, you are basically saying, "Fuck the environment, and fuck YOU".

Who the hell drives these things? It's 2009. There's talk about whether it might be too late to reverse the damage we've done to the environment. There was a gas-price scare, which got the SUV-driver considering whether maybe it was time to rethink the choice to drive a truck... but then oil prices fell. So we can postpone environmental responsibility once again!

By buying and driving one of these, you can save time being nasty to people. It's a tangible, rolling expression of anti-social irresponsibility. Hi! I waste gas and other resources. I am polluting the air as you watch. I am creating a burden for future generations, and setting a poor precedent for third-world countries; why should they care about cleaning up their countries when we don't? While you're at it, wear ivory, drink while driving, and blow cigarette smoke in babie's faces.

The irony of sitting in one of these things was too much to resist, and we giggled the entire time we were photographing ourselves. I'm looking toward a future when we will be able to look back, and laugh at car manufacturers who built stupidly wasteful vehicles, and people who were ridiculous enough to buy and drive them.

Death by Terrorism... versus Death by Capitalism

For those who have grown up in a country like Canada, it's difficult to imagine what things must be like in Mumbai at the moment. For the families of the victims, there is anguish and anger - at the loss of their loved ones, at the perpetrators, and at the politics of terrorism which punishes the innocent. Unlike 9/11 in the US, terrorism in India is an ongoing phenomenon, yet because the terrorists struck Mumbai - where western influence is in evidence everywhere - this is big news. Mainstream media are doing their usual comprehensive coverage, with step-by-step explanations of the timeline of events, human interest first-hand accounts, and the local connection (any Canadians who were victims).

As we ponder the tragedy of death under these circumstances, there is an unrelated story which is buried under the Mumbai headlines. In Nassau County, NY, a temporary worker was trampled to death at a Wal-Mart, when hundreds of impatient shoppers literally broke down the doors to take advantage of the 5:00 AM start to "Black Friday" sales. There was no malice in this death, no anger. No one intended for anyone to get hurt. People simply wanted bargains.

I've been in life-threatening crowd situations a few times. It is a terrible feeling to realize that a crowd is out of control, frightening to see the potential for disaster and death so close. When a large crowd of people presses forward and those at the front have nowhere to go, either the barrier containing the crowd will collapse, or people will get crushed. I've experienced tightness of breathing from the pressure, and had that flash of memory from news reports of similar incidents when people described how the deaths occurred. If you fall, you're not getting up again. There's no space to manoeuver, and those behind you are being pushed forward, trampling anything underfoot because the crowd is so dense and tight that no one can see their feet or the ground.

However my life ends, please - if it's not a natural death, at least let it not be inconsequential. We hope our lives will have value, that we can make a difference in this world. It would be nice to leave this world in a similar manner. Most of us will die of old age, or perhaps of illness. But we don't tend to imagine dying a senseless, meaningless death. I'm not talking about accidents; I'm referring to the "Darwin Awards" stuff, or the flukes that sometimes end up on the internet "news of the bizarre" sites - like getting a piano dropped on your head. I don't need to be eaten by lions while helping starving children in Africa. But could my death have some purpose?

The Mumbai terrorism victims were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Their deaths weren't exactly accidental, but their loved ones might see it that way. At the moment, it may be hard to attach meaning to these deaths. But when, one day, the terrorism ends, the Mumbai incident will have played a part - if only in increasing the desire to end strife and achieve peace. These deaths, then, may one day have purpose, even if they seem not to right now.

The Wal-Mart death has no such meaning. A man is dead, and for what? So that a few people could get a 50" plasma for $800? How much of a saving is that? How many people saved money on xmas gifts? I wonder if the people who saved money at Wal-Mart today will stop to think about the part they played in this incident.

Not that the Wal-Mart shoppers should take the blame alone. In learning all about "Black Friday", I am amazed at the stories of people pushing, elbowing, and grabbing merchandise out of the hands of others. What have we become? We may think we are motivated by the need to save money, especially in these hard times, but that is just an excuse - and a cop out. In capitalist society, our number one motive is greed. Would you rather be nice to a fellow citizen, or save a couple of bucks?

In the Wal-Mart death, there is potential for meaning. Just as the deaths of 11 people at The Who concert in Cincinnati led to the demise of "general admission" seating ("festival seating" in US dialects), so perhaps this death will result in significant changes to "Black Friday" sales. (Canadian Boxing-Day sales are similar, but the savings are not as good, so the sales don't create the same frenzy. It's a kinder, gentler madness. But the concept and the greed are still there.)

We live in the age of the internet; don't tell me a substantial portion of this can't be done online. I don't even care what the solutions are, but when we are reaching the point of fist-fights - and deaths - over sales merchandise, it's time to put a stop to it. Let's not let one more person die because of our greed for a bargain. If we can prevent that, this year's Wal-Mart death will not have been completely meaningless.