It has been six weeks since the Nova Scotia massacre and as the RCMP dribbles out the official facts of the investigation, many have wondered why the Nova Scotia government has been reluctant to call for a public inquiry. Premier Stephen McNeil has tried to fob it all off on Ottawa, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau […]
Calvin Lawrence: Black Panther Party’s “unlikely cub”
His hiring as a Halifax police officer in 1969 happened only because the city feared what might happen if it didn't at least pay lip service to inclusion. But over the course of his 36-year policing career, Calvin Lawrence proved a more than worthy fighter against racism.
Calvin Lawrence remembers the life-altering moment well. It was an early summer day in 1968 and Calvin, then 19 and still a student, was hanging out at Creighton and Gerrish Streets, “one of my favourite corners,” with his good friend Ricky Smith. A big Lincoln car filled with three senior members of the black community,...
Council pay and publicly financed election campaigns: Morning File, Thursday, March 23, 2017
News 1. Council pay and publicly financed election campaigns On Tuesday, Halifax councillor Shawn Cleary tried to revisit the ever-contentious issue of council pay, asking for a freeze on councillors’ salary until the issue can be studied again, but his motion was voted down. I had already left the meeting, but as Jacob Boon reports for […]