“The failure of electoral politics to address what’s really at stake means an increasing number of…issues are destined to be resolved through various forms of protest and civil disobedience”
Before photographer and essayist Christopher Grabowski moved to Canada in 1992 he was part of “a social movement that started as a protest and that successfully transformed the society by non-electoral and mainly non-violent means—the Solidarity movement in Poland.” Grabowski writes in The Tyee that “Although I’m not exactly experiencing déjà vu, much of what I am seeing and reading now is beginning to look familiar. And that makes me hopeful.” (more…)
Five community-based nonprofit groups on the west coast have lost their funding from Vancouver Coastal Health in an unexpected decision that the health authority says will increase focus on “core health services.” The affected organizations include: 
The Mental Health Strategy for Canada promotes peer support as an essential component of mental health services. In particular, it recommends an increased number of peer support opportunities and the development of national guidelines for peer support.
A new documentary film, On the Road to Find Out, examines the re-location of people with mental illness from smaller communities on Vancouver Island to Nanaimo—in order to access mental health services. The film was commissioned by Columbian Centre and directed by Vancouver Island-based filmmaker Paul Manly.
Ride Don’t Hide