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Letters To The Editor News

Letters to the Editor: Carding unbecoming for multi-racial T.O.

Carding unbecoming for multi-racial T.O.

Re Who Really Killed Carding? (NOW, June 18-24). The Urban Alliance on Race Relations supports the community groups that are calling for the elimination of carding in its entirety. 

Carding, or “intelligence-led policing” – call it what you will – is a corrosive and atrocious practice and a blot on a city that is multiracial and multi-ethnic. 

The process of stopping and questioning a preponderance of young black and brown men is unfair, unjust and intimidating. It is even more unjust to retain details of these non-criminal interactions in a database, details that come back to haunt and taint the lives of these young people.

Any interaction between police and individuals should respect Charter rights. Citizens must be informed in the absence of any criminal investigation that they are not required to answer police questions. 

If information is exchanged between an individual and the police and retained for collection in a database, the individual should receive a copy of the information recorded. 

These measures are essential to rebuilding trust between communities and the Toronto Police Service, and restoring full, fair and equal respect for all Torontonians’ human rights and civil liberties under the Charter and Ontario’s Human Rights Code.

Nigel Barriffe

President

Urban Alliance on Race Relations


Four-legged animals over two-legged?

Re On The Front Lines With Pig Save (NOW, June 18-24). I’ve never understood animal lovers who aren’t humanitarian. I see a huge number of two-legged animals in need on Sherbourne at Queen or Dundas, younger ones at Yonge and Gerrard, and many more across the GTA. Four-legged take precedence?

Dan Cowan 

Toronto


Animal slaughter certain ruin for the planet 

Thanks to Zach Ruiter for his comprehensive and beautifully written article on Pig Save and Climate Vegan, intelligently making the connection between speciesism, animal slaughter and devastation of the environment. This is NOW at its best, providing leadership on important issues as always.

Sylvia Fraser

From nowtoronto.com


Waverly redo means more social cleansing

Re Waverly Goodbye (NOW, June 18-24) There’s no mention of the many low-income people who live in the Waverly and will be forced out by the new condo development proposed for the site in Richard Longley’s story. More social cleansing of downtown, displacing regular people to make way for pompous yuppies and their condos. Fuck this shit.

Patrick Clohessy

From nowtoronto.com


A modest proposal for the Gardiner

Reading John Tory: Highway Star (NOW, June 11-17) and seeing the different options proposed for the Gardiner Expressway east of Jarvis, I thought of a simple alternative. Let’s build a suspended steel floor a few feet underneath the existing deck to catch falling chunks of concrete. And forget romantic notions about access to the lake.

Rudolf Manook

Toronto


Raising welfare rates not enough for poor

Thank you for making our event one of your Big 3 picks (NOW, June 11-17). We appreciate the promotion! 

I want to clarify that our interim demand pending the report of the Commission on Social Assistance Reform was a $100-a-month increase in social assistance. 

As you know, the commission did endorse our recommendation of an immediate $100 a month increase but wanted to cancel the special diet allowance to pay for it. 

Since then, Ontario Works rates for single people have increased by almost $50 a month. But neither that $50 nor our interim demand of $100 is enough. 

Our core demands now are a raise in social assistance rates to ensure people can have lives of health and dignity, a $15-an-hour minimum wage and an increase to corporate taxes to provide government with more revenue. Thank you again for your ongoing coverage of our campaign.

Mike Balkwill

Put Food In The Budget

Toronto


Catch Pan Am torch in Mount Dennis July 9

As a local Toronto paper, we expect you to know at least the basics about Toronto’s neighbourhoods.

The St. Phillips Bridge is (as your article correctly states) in Weston – very close to that community’s northern boundary. The adjoining community of Mount Dennis begins more than 2.5 kilometres south of there (NOW, June 4-10).

The Pan Am torch is scheduled to “hit Mount Dennis” July 9. We would be delighted to have NOW cover the event (at our award-winning renovated library) and to provide you with a guided tour of Toronto’s Greenest Neighbourhood. 

Simon Chamberlain

Mount Dennis Community Association


Wendy Coburn, R.I.P.

I am saddened to hear the news of Wendy Coburn’s passing (NOW, June 19). Wendy was in elementary school with me, and even at that age there was a mature serenity about her and a kind of deep wisdom. She left an impression. I’m not surprised to hear she became an artist and activist and teacher.

Kevin Bushell

From nowtoronto.com

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