BY SIMONE J. SMITH

The holiday season, a time often associated with joy and celebration, can paradoxically trigger a decline in mental well-being for many. Coupled with the ongoing pressures of inflation, rising crime rates, and the abrupt shift of daylight savings time, particularly in northern regions, these factors can create a perfect storm for individuals struggling with their mental health.

Suicide, a tragic reality, knows no boundaries, impacting people of all ages and backgrounds. In Canada alone, a staggering average of 4,500 lives are lost to suicide each year, translating to approximately 12 individuals per day. The impact of each suicide extends far beyond the individual, leaving a trail of grief and devastation among family, friends, and communities.

On November 30^th, 2023, Canada launched 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline. It is for anyone thinking about suicide, feeling hopeless, or like they are struggling to cope. The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto, Canada’s largest mental health teaching hospital, leads and coordinates delivery of 9-8-8 nationwide. 9-8-8 is funded by the Government of Canada, through the Public Health Agency of Canada.

A growing network of nearly 40 experienced local and national crisis line partners across the country provide culturally appropriate, lifesaving supports to people who call or text the helpline.

Over the past year, 9-8-8 crisis responders have answered more than 300,000 calls and texts to the national helpline. 9-8-8 answers an average of almost 30,000 calls and texts per month – approximately 1,000 calls and texts per day. In Ontario, 9-8-8 responders answer an average of over 12,000 calls and texts per month (more than 135,000 from the launch to October 31^st, 2024).

The goal of the three-digit helpline is to prevent suicide by making it as simple as possible for people to get the help they need, when they need it most. 9-8-8 provides urgent, live support by phone and text to people in every province and territory across the country in English and French, 24/7, every day of the year.

Last week, I had a chance to speak with Nika Khossravi, 9-8-8 Crisis Responder, and she shared with me her reason for becoming a responder, and the importance of 9-8-8.

“Last year I experienced the loss of a friend to suicide,” Nika shares, “When I was grieving the loss, I did a lot of reflection, and I realized that I did not have the tools to assist my friend. I dug deep and volunteered and learned a lot. What many of us don’t take into consideration is how suicide affects survivors of suicide. We don’t like to say suicide is contagious, but sometimes it becomes more of a reality, especially when someone close to you has committed suicide.”

“What are the biggest challenges you anticipate in ensuring equitable access to the 9-8-8 helpline for all Canadians, including those in remote, rural, and underserved communities,” I inquired?

“It serves every single city in Canada. It is the same as 9-1-1. Let’s be honest, when you are in crisis, you are not thinking about long drawn-out numbers. We want 9-8-8 to become as familiar as dialing 9-1-1,”

“Are there mechanisms for seamless referrals and follow-up care?”

“Responders offer follow calls within 24 hours, and some are able to do referrals to local distress centres. 211 is one of the resource databases that we can provide for them.”

9-8-8 also offers support and advice for people who are worried someone they know may be considering suicide. Whatever you are going through, you don’t have to face your problems on your own. 9-8-8 responders are here to listen. No one who calls or texts 9-8-8 will be turned away. Everyone who contacts 9-8-8 will be assessed for suicide risk.

“What are the initial expectations and long-term goals for the 9-8-8 helpline in terms of reducing suicide rates and improving mental health outcomes for Canadians?”

“We want people to be aware. We are a resource to those who think someone in their lives might be thinking about suicide. We want 9-8-8 to be as familiar to Canadians as 9-1-1.”

By texting or calling 9-8-8, people can connect with a responder who’s ready to
listen and trained to help. 9-8-8 responders work with callers and texters to explore ways to cope when things are overwhelming and find a path to safety. Responder training is informed by evidence, best practices and engagement with organizations representing populations most affected by suicide to ensure that anyone, anywhere, can access the support they need.

For more information and to receive the latest updates, please visit www.988.ca  or connect with them on our social media platforms:
Twitter: @988Canada
Facebook: 988Canada
Instagram: @988Canada
LinkedIn: 988Canada

BY PAUL JUNOR

The announced lawsuit seeking $500 billion against the tobacco companies could potentially be settled. The Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) issued a press release on October 18^th, 2024, in which it expressed reservations. The Ontario government is supportive, but there have been mixed reactions from others.

The proposed lawsuit would dispense the following:

• $24.7 billion over time to provinces and territories, including $6.3 billion up front, and the remainder paid out as a percentage of tobacco company profits, including 85% of net after-tax profits in the first five years, and then 80% declining to 70% in subsequent years, until the $24.7 billion is paid
• $4.1 billion to the Quebec class action plaintiffs
• $2.5 billion to individual victims across Canada beyond the Quebec class action plaintiffs
• $1.0 billion to a Foundation to fund research for the diagnosis and treatment of tobacco-related disease.

Rob Cunningham, lawyer for the CCS and Senior Policy Analyst states, “The approach in the proposed settlement falls massively short and fails to protect the future health of Canadians properly. How can such an approach possibly be justified when we continue to have millions of Canadians who smoke each year and tobacco remains the leading cause of cancer death? This settlement fails to support public health efforts to reduce smoking.”

Cunningham is supportive of the $1 billion funding, which will go towards the foundation independent of the government but expressed concerns that it will not be involved in proactive measures such as: smoking cessation initiatives, awareness campaigns, or public health programs.

Cunningham would like to see specific changes before approval. He notes, “The foundation must have the ability to fund a full range of initiatives to reduce tobacco use, such as smoking cessation and community programs, among others. Moreover, as in the U.S, the settlement in Canada should contain policy measures to reduce tobacco use such as banning remaining tobacco promotion and should require public disclosure of secret tobacco company internal documents.”

Some of the data presented by Canada Cancer Society include:

• Smoking is the leading cause of disease and death in Canada with 16,000 deaths in Ontario and 46,000 in Canada
• The rate of smoking is 11.4% for age 18 and older according to 2023 stats
• About 3.6 million Canadians are smokers

The Canada Cancer Society highlights some of the wrongful actions of the tobacco industry such as:

• Marketing to underage teenagers
• Advertising to women with themes of slimness and fashion
• Denying that smoking caused cancer and other diseases
• Failing to warn consumers adequately
• Using misleading advertising, including for so-called “light” and “mild” cigarettes
• Lobbying aggressively against tobacco control laws

Cunningham states, “Without investing in significant measures to reduce tobacco use, this proposed settlement misses the very intention of the lawsuits in the first place, which is to curtail the damages caused by the tobacco industry. The health disaster caused by the tobacco industry is still ongoing and needs immediate attention, which this proposed settlement fails to do. This is a deal that won’t reduce smoking.”

The three major tobacco companies in Canada include:

• Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd. (owned by British American Tobacco)
• Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc. (owned by Philip Morris International)
• JTI-Macdonald Corp (owned by Japan Tobacco)

Gar Mahood of the Campaign for Justice on Tobacco Fraud acknowledged the settlement is a “Hollow victory. The settlement went from $500 billion in claimed damages (the costs to the health care system for treating smoking-related illness) to just over $24.7 billion. It’s a financial cave-in that will be paid for by current addicted smokers, the most at-risk group in the proposed settlement, and youth who will become addicted.”

“It is a meaningful first step in acknowledging decades of harm,” states Jessica Buckley, President and CEO at the Lung Health Foundation (LHF) notes further, “But financial restitution can’t make up for the loss of life. It can’t make up for the experiences of Canadians who have suffered through lung cancer and COPD. It’s not enough for people who are struggling to breathe right now.”

“It is crucial to ensure that more resources are allocated to lung health prevention programs, research and education efforts.”

She is not sure if the funds will go directly into practical steps. “LHF is pushing fit a Smoke-Free Generation, a move that if enacted, would protect youth from addiction by ensuring that youth born after a certain date would never legally become of age to purchase tobacco products.”

Jacob Shelley, co-director of the Health Ethics, Law and Policy lab at Western University shares that he is pleased that plaintiffs will receive restitution after five years of going through the courts. He states, “It’s not a meaningful individual victory in the sense of like a big payout, but it’s meaningful and there is going to be an opportunity for collection on this claim, which started decades ago, and that there is recognition and an imposition of liability for the failure to warn about the risks associated with the use of this product.”

BY MICHAEL THOMAS

Three-time Canadian Calypso monarch and Saint Lucian-born Mr. Dennis James Sr. has left us. Uncle Dennis as would sometimes call him was an extremely passionate performer. Anyone who attended a Calypso tent where Dennis James sang could testify to this. He was a reticent brother by nature but make no mistake when he hit the stage you knew it was showtime.

Always dressed to the teeth, Dennis left no stone unturned musically. He was not just a Calypso singer, Dennis touched almost every genre musically from: Soca, Calypso to RnB, and more. Every song Dennis James did he brought his fiery touch to it like a stamp.

James was crowned Canadian Calypso monarch first in 2001, then 2002, and 2006. From the day James touched down in Toronto to perform as a Calypso artist, he was loved. Some artists have to grow into that love, the audience gave Dennis that package naturally.

With songs like “West Indians Unite,” “Words I Did Not Say,” “Nothing to Declare,”  “The Thunder,” and “Thank You Toronto,” it is said that as a Calypso artist, if you knew you were competing against Dennis James, you better do your homework.

One of the founding members of the Calypso organization here in Toronto and artist Juno D Kanhai aka Juno D’ Lord remembers Dennis James in two words as a “Great crooner.”

Seven-time Canadian Calypso monarch Tara Woods (aka Macoomere-Fifi) told me, “I called him Mr. Toronto. From the time Dennis James landed in Toronto, he was loved by everyone. He was always grateful for the love, and very shy about his talent.”

“Dennis may have looked unassuming, that is until he hit the stage. I will always remember Dennis onstage with that smile that is all his own, and the vocal explosion when he feels the audience’s love.”

“You had to be afraid,” she said. “Dennis was one of the guys you had to watch as a competitor. You could not take him lightly. He has left us a legacy. Rest in peace Mr. T.O.”

I spoke to five-time Canadian Calypso monarch Bryan Thornhill (aka “Structure”) who competed against Dennis in the Calypso arena, “I first met Dennis in 2003 in the Calypso finals. Even though we were fierce competitors we had that admiration for each other’s work. His strong voice and renditions made him a formidable force and added color to the Kaiso mosaic. My deepest condolences to his family. He will always be remembered. May he Rest in Peace!”

Calypso Monarch and Soca king Joel Davis (aka “Connector”) had this to say of James. “He was a giant in the business, a humble but serious man who I considered a cultural ambassador. He executed his vocal range with a vengeance.”

Five-time Canadian Calypso monarch Michael Moore (aka the Lord Beginner) also weighed in on his memory of Dennis James. “What I liked about him was his aggressive nature on stage. Even though we performed in the same tent I told myself, I better watch him. James was smooth, Dennis performed nicely, and he knew how to get the crowd involved in the Calypso. He was a fierce competitor, and I liked him, but you know me, even though we were in the same camp I have no friends when it came to the competition, but I am very sympathetic about his passing.”

One of the things I have learned as an artist from Dennis is to document my work. James would post songs that he recorded in the 70s as well as his latest work, both his music and the pictures from that era he kept. Not many artists have that mindset.

Even though James has lived in the US and Canada he has never forgotten his Saint Lucian roots going back from time to time and even competing in the Island’s national Calypso competition.

I have always liked how Dennis James packaged and presented himself as an artist. He took his craft seriously and I respect that. On behalf of the Toronto Calypso fraternity, I extend condolences to his wife and family. Dennis James, may you fly high King. You will be fondly remembered.