"Mother's Day is celebrated in so many ways throughout the world, the most popular to be sure is the brunch where the entire family can come together and celebrate mom together. It is interesting to note, however , that Mother's Day was first celebrated as a holiday - a holiday to commemorate women's public activism, women taking a stance to protect their families. And today in expressing our love and honouring mothers, is the least we can do", she said.
Harriet Tubman, William Hall and Mifflin Wistar Gibbs were among those whose courage and conviction advanced our nascent society's ideals of freedom and equality. Thousands braved a perilous path to freedom through the Underground Railroad, conducted by valiant leaders like Harriet Tubman.
On Saturday, July 3, certain sections of downtown Montreal should have been teeming with the music and vibrations of the Caribbean on what was supposed to be the 35th or 36th staging (depending on who is counting) of the annual Carifiesta parade. Instead, not a drum will be heard and the soca, calypso, reggae and zouk rythmns that should have been fueling the fire in the tens of thousands of participants and spectators along Rene Levesques Blv'd. will be replaced by the usual humdrum of Saturday commerce on the thoroughfare. So when it's all said and done as the cliché goes... it's our fault that we'll not be palancing in downtown Montreal.
Two years of quibbling by 'wanna be' organizers, the Caribbean Cultural Festivities Association (CCFA), and the Montreal Carnival Development Foundation (MCDF), led to a mediocre and divided parade last year and a deadlock this year that made the community exasperated and provided municipal politicians with a reason to call off the parade. We should be worried, very worried by that cancellation. Because it shows that City officials do not value Carifiesta's place in Montreal's cultural tapestry nor do they appreciate the true meaning and relevance of the festival to our community. If they did, they would have resorted to any of the other available options, like giving the permit to the legally constituted CCFA or to an interim group of organizers. Let's start denying them by taking back our signature festival Carifiesta. It's part of our legacy in Montreal and that shouldn't be compromised because of the behaviour of illinformed men and bad minded politicians.
Last Wednesday (August 25) politicians, friends and family came out to Toronto's west end to celebrate the official unveiling of the 'Jean Augustine Park'. In paying tribute to Dr Augustine, deputy mayor, Joe Pantalone, and councillor, Mark Grimes, reminded the audience that during her tenure in the House of Commons, Dr Augustine was instrumental in getting funding from the Federal Government and making a reality the Toronto Linear Park System, in particular the Mimico Linear Trail, which is adjacent to the new Jean Augustine Park. This year Augustine became the first Grenada-born person to receive Canada's highest national honour. She was among the 57 Canadians named by Governor General Michaelle Jean to receive the Order of Canada - the country's highest civilian award.
