The North Island-Powell River (NIPR) Electoral District Association (EDA)

Mark your calendars for November 14, 2-4 pm. 

The North Island-Powell River (NIPR) Electoral District Association (EDA) is holding our Annual General Meeting (AGM) to elect the Executive Committee for the next year. Due to the BC Provincial election being called by Premier Horgan, we are moving our AGM from Saturday, October 24 to Saturday, November 14, 2-4 p.m.

This AGM will be a virtual (meaning a Zoom video call) meeting. But the good news about having it on Zoom is that people from all over the riding will be able to attend. We’re very excited about that, so we’ve decided to open up the Zoom call at 1:30 for those members who would like to meet other people from around the EDA – bring your tea or coffee and come visit with old friends and meet some new ones. This half-hour meet-and-greet will be hosted by Mark de Bruijn, our 2019 candidate.

At 2 o’clock, we will start the business portion of the meeting (register here). The business meeting is restricted to members only as it involves voting.

At 3 o’clock, we will go into a second Zoom meeting (register here) as there is a lot to talk about. For example, the Green Party of Canada has a new leader who is already running in a by-election in Toronto Centre. The BC Green Party also has a new leader and BC has had a snap election called.

Register now for the AGM (members only) AND also register for the discussion session (members and non-members). As soon as you register, you will receive your personal Zoom link to join.

We will be sending a reminder email with more information within the next couple of weeks, but mark your calendar for Saturday, November 14 from 2-4 p.m. 

NOTE: In order to vote in the AGM, you must be a member for at least 30 days, so make sure your membership is up to date before October 15, 2020. If you’re unsure of your membership, you can write us at northislandgreens@gmail.com, and we’ll confirm your status.

Annamie Paul wins Green Party of Canada Leadership

Here is GPC’s press release. Watch Ms. Paul’s acceptance speech here. And here is an interview with Annamie Paul this morning (Oct. 4) on Global News. This CBC article goes into a lot of background, which some people might find interesting. This article generated over 2000 comments. Though I didn’t read through even 100 of them, it seems the nay-sayers never waste any time trashing women, people of colour, or progressives.

What is most revelatory in all the trash talk is just how mortally afraid people are to consider change of any sort. Fundamentally, that seems to be an effect of colonialism at its very worst: Don’t change the White-dominated power system; don’t change the corporate-dominated economic system; don’t change the male-dominated everything systems. 

And some of that trash talk comes from within the Green Party itself. This leadership race has emboldened some people posting on social media - supposedly Green Party-supporters. There’s no way to know if some of the posts were from trolls who seem to be everywhere just posing as Greens. But most definitely some of them were from people who say they are Greens.

Anti-Semitism raised its ugly head in many ugly ways. Steve May, from Sudbury, wrote a blog post about this that is well worth devoting some time to. The abuse some of our leadership contestants were exposed to was truly astonishing. Interestingly, they were all people who identified either as non-binary or as women. That’s no accident. We, as individuals, have been raised in a system of entrenched racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia and anti-Semitism. It’s systemic, which means it’s the very air we breathe from the time we’re born. All those subtle messages about women, or about Indigenous people, or about gays, or about … pick your prejudice - all those messages are unconscious. Recognizing them in the first place is hard, ‘owning’ them is harder, and actively confronting them is harder still. But it’s essential for a Just Transition.

Well, things have certainly moved fast in British Columbia! No sooner was Sonia Furstenau announced as the new leader of the BC Green Party, than Premier John Horgan called a snap election. If you haven’t heard, Election Day is October 24. 

The BC Greens are desperately scrambling to shift gears from the leadership race to the election. They are doing an amazing job. At last count, there are 74 BC Green candidates announced.

The North Island-Powell River federal riding encompasses three provincial ridings: Courtenay-Comox, North Island, and Powell River-Sunshine Coast. Each of those ridings has a candidate.

Courtenay-Comox: Gillian Anderson.
North Island: Alexandra Morton.
Powell River-Sunshine Coast: Kim Darwin.

This is a mad scramble. If you can donate ANY time or ANY money, please go to their websites and sign up or donate.

Greens and unions go hand-in-hand

Labour Day was September 7. Read Tim Larsen’s piece on the relationship between the Green Party of Canada and support for workers’ rights.

A Wisp of a Woman; A Monumental Feminist

“I’m not one to pray. So, let’s call it hoping against hope. Yes, I’d been hoping against hope that Ruth Bader Ginsburg, that brave, brave Supreme Court Justice, might hang on until after the US presidential election. Even Bader Ginsburg thought she might be on the Court “for at least 5 more years,” as she said in August of 2018. But hope can be a dangerous thing, especially when it’s dashed on the rocks of reality. Then a person is apt to cry. I did.”

Read all of Pat Carl’s homage to this heroic woman.

In Profiles in Green, we will showcase individuals (or businesses) who are leaders in the personal or economic changes needed to ensure a livable future for the next seven generations. If you know of individuals (or businesses) who may be candidates for Profiles in Green, write to us at northislandgreens@gmail.com. We’d love to profile individuals and businesses from throughout the riding.

Check out NIPR’s calendar of events on a regular basis. You may see upcoming events there before a newsletter goes out.

We’re always looking for events happening in our riding of interest to Greens wherever they live. They don’t have to be Green events. As you’ll see from the calendar, many of the events showcased here have to do with issues that matter to us as citizens, no matter what our political party of choice. And many are events being put on my groups whose work we as Greens support. If you know of events in your community that you think might interest Green supporters, write to the NIPR Greens and let us know. Please provide as much information as possible, with links to the relevant Facebook or event page.

Of course, the coronavirus, COVID-19,  is wreaking havoc with so many plans. All in-person events are cancelled for the time being. But that doesn’t mean your local Greens are going to be slacking off. And check out the Green Party of Canada’s Events calendar for GPC webinars that are coming up,

Greens are defined by a personal responsibility to the community, the quality of decisions we make, and our ability to defend those decisions. We are not responsible for the success or failure of other political entities, and Greens are committed to earning the respect of voters.

Official NIPR email:
northislandgreens@gmail.com

Your NPR Executive:
Jay Van Oostdam, Comox
Susan Short, Powell River
Chris Tithecott, Campbell River
Megan Ardyche, Comox
Mark de Bruijn, Courtenay
Carol Thatcher, Courtenay
Will Hatch, Comox

© 2020 Greens of North Island - Powell River  Approved by the official agent.