Connect with us

Community News

Michelle Hughes remembered as a community builder and social justice advocate

Published

on

Photo Credit: yfile.news.yorku.ca

BY PAUL JUNOR

The passing of Michelle Hughes on Tuesday, March 21st, 2023, will no doubt leave a tremendous void in the Black community. Aside from the personal, emotional and sentimental loss to her family, loved ones and close relatives, many individuals have expressed deep emotion and grief at her untimely passing and commented on her loss.

Michelle was an extraordinary and exemplary person who was driven with passion and purpose to build community through volunteer work, speaking engagements and entrepreneurial ideas and networking events.

Michelle was born in Canada to Jamaican parents, and grew up in Etobicoke graduating from Martingrove Collegiate Institute. She subsequently attended York University in 1988 and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology in 1994. During her time there she: was the President of the Psychology Students Association, served as Social Cultural Convenor for Vanier College, and contributed to the Excalibur paper as an occasional writer. She was elected as the first Black President of the York Federation of Students (YFS). After her graduation, she worked in several academic institutions.

Michelle was interested in the power of public speaking and honed her skills through her involvement with Toastmasters International at classes offered at Burke’s bookstore. She co-founded Ebony Toastmasters, which still meets at 7:00 pm online at the website: ebonytoastmasters.org.

She was a public speaking teacher at the Music Student in Etobicoke from 2014 where she assisted students in developing: confidence, poise, presence and charisma, as well as finding their voice in any audience. She was a motivational speaker and taught music classes at the Music Studio in Etobicoke.

One of the initiatives that Michelle participated in was the Colourful Brick Road to Success. Onyx started it in the Black community and expanded it into the Aboriginal community. The basis of the project was to show students the various career options and the variety of paths to get there. It is also a chance to highlight the diversity in the various communities, and smash assumptions and stereotypes. They started in the Black Community and have moved to other communities.

The visitation ceremony was held on Thursday, March 30th at Turner & Porter Butler Chapel in Etobicoke, and the funeral service was held at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church Humber Heights in Etobicoke on Friday, March 31st, 2023. This was the church where Michelle spent most of her spiritual life as recounted by Rev.Paulette Brown, who knew her personally and officiated at the funeral. She shared many details about Michelle’s involvement in the lives of people at the church, and her attempts to bridge spirituality with social activism. Michelle lived out her faith through her: acts of charity, volunteerism and commitment to social justice.

Valerie Augustine, a personal friend of Mitchelle read the eulogy. She shared deeply personal recollections of memories over the years when their families would be involved in trips, attend events, and participate in activities together. She posted a message on her Facebook page on Monday, April 2nd, 2023, on behalf of Michelle’s family. It reads, “Your presence whether physically, emotionally, and/or in spirit has made this difficult time a little easier to navigate. To say goodbye to a loved one is never easy and they are deeply grateful for your comfort, prayers and thoughtfulness.”

There was a very deeply touching tribute by Naki Osutei, who knew her as a friend and member of the same church family. She mentioned deeply inspiring moments that they shared together as they navigate the intersection of: faith and politics, spirituality and sociality in their quest to address structural and systemic forces of oppression and marginalization in the post-George Floyd world and aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Honourable Jean Augustine, P.C, C.M.,O.Ont,C.B.E also shared details about how important community was to Michelle. She reiterated the fact that Michelle was always there to support individuals, organizations and businesses in the Black community. “We are here as a community to say goodbye. We are here to support the family.”

In a truly remarkable development, Schulich School of Business (where Michelle worked since 2009) announced on March 28th, 2023, that it had launched the Michelle Hughes Memorial Fund that will go towards a new award in Michelle’s honour. It will be presented annually to an incoming Black student in their Master of Management Program.

It is a fitting legacy for Michelle, who was committed to making business education more inclusive and accessible for individuals from Black communities. Undoubtedly, many students will benefit from this.

Donations can be made at: https://schulich.yorku.ca/about/michelle-hughes/.

In addition, in order to alleviate the financial burden on her family, husband John and children, Sage (Samantha),Christopher and Johan, donations are accepted via e-transfer at Memory of MichelleHW@gmail.com.

With a last name that means “Faithful and loyal,” it is no wonder that Paul Junor has become a welcomed addition to the Toronto Caribbean Newspaper Team. Since 1992, Paul has dedicated his life to become what you call a great teacher. Throughout the years, he has formed strong relationships with his students and continues to show them that he cares about them as people. Paul is a warm, accessible, enthusiastic and caring individual who not only makes himself available for his students, but for his community as well.

Community News

Hidden Agendas – Bill C-293: The silent Bill being passed right under our noses

Published

on

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

Greetings everyone.

It is always fascinating, isn’t it? How some things dominate the news, get talked about endlessly on our social media feeds, debated over dinner tables, and dissected in countless articles and op-eds, but what about the things that do not make headlines? What about the decisions that happen quietly, in the background, while we are busy discussing everything else?

This edition, I want to shed light on something that has been happening right under our noses. A bill, being crafted, debated, and—unless we take action—soon to be passed by the Canadian government, without most of us even knowing it exists. By the time it hits the public radar, it might just be too late.

Now, I know some of you may be thinking, “What bill? I haven’t heard about any major legislation.” That is exactly the point. While we are kept busy with all the newsworthy controversies, this bill is being shaped in the shadows.

Why hasn’t this bill gotten the same attention? Why isn’t it making headlines? Is it not important enough, or is there something else at play? What this bill will do is undermine Canadian sovereignty by shifting power to unelected, non-Canadian organizations like the WHO and WEF.

You see, it is always the quiet ones, the bills that fly under the radar, that often carry the biggest consequences. The laws that: reshuffle power dynamics, alter rights, or change the very fabric of our society without any of us having a say. By the time we are aware, the decisions have been made, the ink has dried, and we’re left wondering, “How did this happen?”

So today, as I share the details of this bill, I want you to think critically. Ask yourselves why it has not been brought to our attention sooner. Why has it been kept quiet? Most importantly, what can we do as a community to ensure that we are no longer kept in the dark?

It is a move that willfully hands over control of your food, your privacy, and your rights to globalist agendas. You have likely heard of the hard work Citizengo is doing around the world to stop the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Pandemic Treaty.  A treaty that would have countries sign away their national sovereignty and become servantent states under unelected globalist rule, whenever and however the next “pandemic” is called. If this goes through we will see the World Health Organization’s “One Health Initiative” rolled out in Canada. This has dire consequences and will essentially usher in a technocratic surveillance state under the guise of safety and preparedness.

What if I told you that Canada, thanks to Justin Trudeau’s Liberals and Jagmeet Singh’s New Democratic Party, have already hatched a plan to surrender our national sovereignty to their authoritarian globalist friends. Let me introduce you to Bill C-293, the Pandemic Prevention and Preparedness Act, introduced by Liberal MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith. Currently, the bill is awaiting its 2nd Reading in The Senate, under the very noses of every-single Canadian, and this is news for some of our readers right now.

I only just learned about this Pandemic Treaty Bill myself when the team at CitizenGo reached out to me. Shortly thereafter, LifeSiteNews released their article, and I was truly shocked by what I read. “Included in Bill C-293 are provisions to ‘regulate commercial activities that can contribute to pandemic risk, including industrial animal agriculture,’ produce ‘alternative proteins,’ and ‘enable contact tracing of persons.”

In other words, if Bill C-293 passes, The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), The World Health Organization (WHO), The World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH), and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and other unelected globalist international bodies will have unprecedented control over Canada’s sovereignty.

If this bill is allowed to ascend into Canadian law, the federal government would have to listen to these globalist agencies “guidelines” in regulating our agriculture industry all under the guise of something called “pandemic prevention.”

Guess what else falls under this vague label? Promoting alternative proteins like insects while phasing out traditional meat production. Even more alarming, the bill allows for contact tracing, raising serious privacy concerns and enabling government overreach. How many more digital applications are you going to have to pay for, like ArriveCAN, if you decide to travel abroad, or even throughout Canada?

Here’s how Canadian sovereignty will be lost:

  • Global Regulation of Industrial Agriculture will target meat production and give international bodies influence over what Canadians can produce and consume.
  • Promoting Alternative Proteins through the pushing of lab-grown meats and insect farms designed to devastate local farmers and meat producers.
  • Implementing Contact Tracing to intrude upon every aspect of your life. Without privacy, digital IDs and contact tracing tools grant significant power to the government to control individuals’ behaviour, including where you can go through the usage of mandatory lockdowns and “social distancing” style policies.
  • Ceding Control to Global Institutions were Canada’s pandemic response and industries would be 100% subjected to international oversight, ending our national autonomy as a democratic nation that values individuals’ Human Rights and Freedoms.

The Senate was set to resume its business on September 17th, 2024, but here is the reality: this is not an accident. Certain policies are designed to be kept quiet, tucked away, and only brought to light when there is no turning back. Whether it is the complexity of the bill, or the deliberate silence around it, it is clear—the less we know, the less we can protest.

It is not just this one bill. It is a pattern. While we are being distracted by the flashy stories, we miss the subtler, yet often more impactful, moves happening right beneath the surface. What is the strategy behind this? Silence. Secrecy. Control. Before we know it, we are living with the consequences of decisions we never had a chance to discuss, let alone oppose.

Now, I am not here to incite fear. I’m here to inspire awareness, because we still have a say. We still have time. We must start paying attention to these quieter moves by our government. We need to ask the hard questions, demand transparency, and hold those in power accountable for the decisions they make in the shadows.

If we don’t, we’ll continue to wake up to laws that we had no idea were even in the works. We’ll continue to have: rights, freedoms, and choices taken away without our consent. And that, my friends, is a dangerous place to be.

Democracy doesn’t just live in the loud, public moments—it thrives when we shine a light on the quiet ones too.

REFERENCES:

https://www.onehealthcommission.org/en/why_one_health/what_is_one_health/

https://www.citizengo.org/en-ca

https://www.parl.ca/documentviewer/en/44-1/bill/C-293/third-reading

https://em.citizengo.org/OTA3LU9EWS0wNTEAAAGVic6AghmKYA6VL35jcL7JwEYFvRucjLnneADAZGHY-8NrORLPoh1N5xgY_bNvOwh7xoMLCzs=

Bill C-293 (International Pandemic Treaty) Revisited: Concerns Raised Over Food Supply

 

Continue Reading

Community News

The drug manufacturer and pusher man: Off with their heads

Published

on

BY STEVEN KASZAB

Victims of the opioid epidemic have been shouting aloud to the: authorities, addiction/mental health emergency providers, and local governments for help. Asking, pleading, and when action does not happen quick enough protesting the apparent inaction of those who are supposed to be protecting society. There will always be excuses as to why those who manufacture and sell these drugs are not in prison right now. Their legal rights, the police’s inability to soundly find proof necessary to have them arrested, the federal government cannot stop the importation of these illegal drugs illegally, nor the domestic manufacturing of this poison. Aboriginal Rights, personal and privacy rights, international domains, lack of response from India and China’s Security Apparatus in stopping those in their country.

It comes down to the question, if you are addicted to drugs, are you of sound mind and body? Can you think for yourself, or must a public judicator force the addict into rehabilitative care? Often war does not have rules, and the war on drugs has been one sided for a very long time. Those nations that allow illicit drugs to be made in their territory, or transported from should feel the effects of powerful embargos. Let the Foreign Affairs Office do something useful by placing: Mexico, China, Columbia, Burma, and others on an embargo list not allowing them to ship or sell their products to Canada.

Long ago sanitariums were set aside, considered politically incorrect. Now, these same institutions of medical rehabilitation are necessary to hold involuntarily addicts for a three-to-six-month period, where their healthcare, mental health, and addiction therapy can be carried out. Inviting the church organizations to assist with their historical experience can be an asset.

Our society must take the war seriously, or hundreds of thousands of our citizens will perish. Take no prisoners, as those who manufacture and sell this poison know exactly: what they are doing, who they are harming, and what the end game truly will be.

For all those who have not seen someone dying of addiction, being poisoned long term, or it was their very first try…wake up. Decide whose side you are on, the victims and their families, the society you live in that is possibly the best that can exist, or you’re on the side of evil, people who make a living by poisoning and killing others.

Choose, and choose well.

Continue Reading

Community News

Canadian Congress on Inclusive Diversity and Workplace Equity 4th Annual Canada Leadership Summit and Nations Building Award

Published

on

BY PAUL JUNOR

There will be much to look forward to at the 4th Annual Canada Leadership Summit and Nations Building Award which will be held on Friday, October 4th, and Saturday, October 5th, 2024, at the Hilton Toronto Airport Hotel. The event will be hosted by the Canadian Congress on Inclusive Diversity and Workplace Equity and along with several partners such as: International School of Greatness (ISG), Diversity Institute located at TMU and other strategic partners who have been integral.

The CIDWE is described as the premier global event that gathers leaders from diverse backgrounds, all united by a shared dedication to transformational leadership and tackling today’s most urgent issues through networking, advocacy, and steadfast commitment. An integral mission of the summit is the goal of inspiring participants to rise above: personal, professional, and corporate challenges, and their aim is to ignite the spirit of leadership in everyone and transform those in positions of authority into nation builders.

On Friday, October 4th, 2024, there will be an evening of networking. It is intended to inspire critical dialogue and action on a global scale through strategic learning and networking opportunities.

On Saturday, October 5th, 2024, there will be a Business Breakfast Forum followed by the Leadership and Diversity workshops. There will be a Business Branding and Profitable Growth Workshop. Participants will learn about the Seven Laws of Exponential Growth and how to leverage the Psychology of Sales and Marketing to build generational wealth and achieve global impact.

These series of workshops will focus on: Transformational Leadership, Strategic Management, Social Justice, and Community Development. Some of the speakers include Dr. Wendy Cukier, Dr. Ardavan Eizadirad, Dr. Upiomoh Osholene, Dr. Mary Grogan, Alethia O’Hara Stephenson, and others.

The Nation Builders Award will be given to thirteen inspirational and motivational individuals who have distinguished themselves in a variety of fields such as: government, academia, business, and community service. A nation builder is understood in very specific terms as  someone who actively contributes to the development and strengthening of their country. In addition, nation builders take responsibility for their country’s future, working to create: systems, policies, and cultural practices that lead to long-term success and prosperity. They are visionaries who understand that the strength of a nation depends on the collective efforts of its people, and they work to: inspire, lead and empower others to participate in this important work.

In an email, Nosakhare Alex Ihama mentioned, “Our dedicated committee meticulously selected the 2024 nominees, ensuring that the awardees exemplify outstanding leadership and community service across our nation. With about 100: speakers, panelists, entertainers, sponsors, and strategic partners involved; we are proud to be recognized as a leading platform for national transformation. We congratulate the distinguished 2024 award recipients and eagerly anticipate learning from their insights while celebrating their collective achievements in making Canada truly North and Free.”

Participants will be able to network with the speakers and Nation Builder Award winners. They will have an opportunity to engage with thought leaders and policymakers and be part of meaningful conversations that will shape our collective future.

The titles of the awards and the names of the thirteen recipients are:

  • Nation Builders Lifetime Leadership Award: Senator Wando Thomas
  • Nation Builders Award for Excellence in Black Community Development: Dr. Winston LaRose
  • Nation Builders Legacy Award: Honorable Dr. Jean Augustine
  • Nation Builders Award for Inclusive Government & Policies: Greg Fergus
  • Nation Builders Award in Education & Academia: Dr. Gervan Fearon
  • Social Justice Icon Award: Honourable Michaelle Jean
  • Nation Business Award for Business Excellence: Harriet Thornhill
  • Nation Builders Rising Star Award for Social Justice: Nicholas Marcus Thompson
  • Nation Builders Global Humanitarian Award: Kamala Jean Gopie
  • Nation Builders Award for Inclusive & Equitable Sports: Rowan Barrett
  • Nation Builders Award for National Unity & Harmony: Senator Murray Sinclair
  • Nation Builders Award for Media, Arts & Entertainment: Patricia Babia
  • Nation Builders Award for Law and Justice: Hon. Justice Donald McLeod
  • Nation Builders Award for Youth Empowerment: Diana Alli D’Souza

There is much to expect from the upcoming Leadership Summit and Nation Builders Award. No doubt, there will be many moments of: empowerment, inspiration, motivation, and engagement.

Continue Reading

Trending