Welcome to the December edition of the Broadbent Bulletin! Last month we were thrilled to celebrate Seeking Social Democracy, which was awarded the Rik Davidson – Studies in Political Economy Book Prize. You can read co-author Luke Savage’s remarks from the Book Prize here, and buy your copy of Seeking Social Democracy: Seven Decades in the Fight for Equality (a great holiday gift!) here.
In November PressProgress also announced that they are hiring an Ontario Reporter to deliver impactful and investigative news from Canada’s most populous province. Take a look at their full job posting here, and consider applying or circulating the hiring notice before the closing date of December 6, 2024.
Broadbent in the News
Last month our team continued to push progressive narratives into the media spotlight. Echoing his earlier reporting on Europe’s greenlash, PressProgress Editor Luke LeBrun explained in the Toronto Star how Canada has the chance to choose the right side in the battle between democratic and autocratic forces during a second Trump presidency.
Research Director Clement Nocos also responded in The Star to Trudeau’s tax holiday. “With U.S. Tariffs, global conflict, and climate disasters looming,” he writes, “a permanent GST cut is but one measure to help stop inflation before it starts.” You can read his full op-ed here.
And just last week, Executive Director Jen Hassum attended the BC Federation of Labour’s bi-annual convention, connecting with labour leaders and trade partners, and members of BC’s NDP team, including Mable Elmore, Parliamentary Secretary for Anti-Racism Initiatives!
Activists Make History
Activists Make History is a new series by the Broadbent Institute’s Peggy Nash that pulls back the curtain on Canadian politics, showing how outsiders can overcome challenges to achieve power for the working-class.
The first episode featured Angela Drew Kimmelman, a Unifor organizer who helped Walmart workers at a Mississauga distribution warehouse unionize — a first for Walmart warehouse workers in Canada in the face of corporate union busting. Listen to the full episode here.
Peggy then chats with Chiara Padovani, a social worker, organizer for the York South-Weston Tenant Union, and former Toronto City Council Candidate. Padovani talks about the journey and success of winning rights for renters, and the fight going forward. Listen to the full episode here.
Keep up with the latest from Activists Make History by subscribing to the Perspectives Journal podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Amazon Music, and all other major podcast platforms.
What’s new in the Perspectives Journal
On November 7, 2024 we released the second issue of Perspectives: A Canadian Journal of Political Economy and Social Democracy (Autumn – 2024).
From examining the lack of data on trans deaths, to re-evaluating Ontario’s New Democratic government under Bob Rae, Perspectives Journal no. 2’s themes of death and haunting are meant to exorcize neoliberalism’s ghosts. Demonstrating the wide-reaching effects of minimum wage increases and a universal, social democratic Pharmacare program are alternative visions discussed to deliver us from the worst of capitalism. Read the full issue, including an editorial by Editor-in-chief Clement Nocos plus Isabella Weber’s 2024 Ellen Meiksins Wood Lecture, here.
On the Perspectives Journal podcast, Dylana Thompson spoke with us about her article on the importance of data to understand the effects of public policy. Listen to that episode here. We also spoke with Marc-André Gagnon about Bill C-64, “An Act Respecting Pharmacare,” its shortcomings, and promises. Listen to that episode here.
And lastly, new from 2023 Emerging Leader Alexandra Ages responds to the US election by showing, “Why all Canadians Need Decommodified Reproductive Healthcare”. Read the full article to learn about the sorry state of Canadian reproductive care and why being “better than” our southern neighbours is not enough when it comes to reproductive justice.
New Video Series: Making the Good Society
Making the Good Society brings forward stories and strategies from emerging leaders for building a fairer, inclusive world. Grounded in the legacy of Ed Broadbent, Making the Good Society presents the values at the heart of the progressive movement.
Watch the first episode, featuring American political strategist, community leader and organizer LaToia Jones discussing how to win the movement—not the moment—here.
PressProgress kept a close eye on the continued rise of the far right last month, while also tracking important labour actions like the Canada Post worker’s strike.
Here’s the latest PressProgress original reporting from the last month:
- Media Coverage of the Canada Post Strike is Centering Business Interests, Not the Interests of Workers
- Smith Government’s Anti SOGI Culture War Bill Coming Soon to Alberta Schools
- Workers at Canada Post Are On Strike. Here’s What Postal Workers Are Fighting For.
- Police Investigating Violent Plots Aimed at Sikh Places of Worship and Law Enforcement in Surrey and Brampton
- Former Conservative Minister’s Allegation Ottawa Citizen Journalist was a Soviet Spy is ‘False’ and ‘Unhinged’, National Security Committee Told
- Russian-Linked Far-Right Media Personality Accused of Being In Contempt of Parliament by Canadian MPs
- Rift Forming Between Danielle Smith Government and Grassroots Ahead of Party AGM
- Canadian Sikh groups point out Conservative Party’s reluctance to ask questions about foreign interference by India
That’s all for this December edition Broadbent Bulletin. Thank you for following our work to advance a just and equitable world, and stay tuned for other updates and announcements from the Broadbent Institute. Consider supporting the Broadbent Institute, sharing this Bulletin with your friends and family, and subscribing if you haven’t done so already.
In solidarity,
Jack McClelland
Digital Communications Assistant
Broadbent Institute