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canada’s largest ethnic newspaper Toronto | August 7, 2014 | Vol.37 N°20 | www.sharenews.com
Youth celebrate graduation from mentorship program
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Text: Roy Fanfair
roy.fanfair@sharenews.com
Deeply concerned about the paucity of Black and Aboriginal students in medical and other health-related classes at the University of Toronto, retired administrative co-ordinator, Diana Alli and former associate dean of student affairs and admis-
Diana Alli
sions, Dr. Miriam Rossi, acted just over two decades ago. They did a random survey of universities across the country to see if there was a scarcity of students from these ethnic groups pursuing medicine. The results were shocking and disheartening. “There were less than two Black students in each medical
class at the U of T and no Aboriginals,” said Alli, who was the university’s senior officer for student services, community partnerships and student life. “It was the same situation on other Canadian campuses.” The Association for the Advancement of Blacks in Health Sciences emerged, which provided out-
reach sessions in high schools in the Greater Toronto Area that led to the establishment of a U of T summer mentorship program designed to offer a focus for students with both an interest and aptitude for the sciences, particularly for those who otherwise would not have available mentorship opportunities.
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Culture Celebrating Reggae
Some of Toronto’s top musicians were among a Who’s Who of reggae pioneers honoured on stage at the 12th annual IRIE Music Festival last weekend at Nathan Phillips Square. See Page 13
President of the Caribbean Community (right Mr. J Parker) signing the funding agreement with ScotiaBank CEO Ms. Floyd
C’da to provide funding for financial management in Caribbean
Text: Roy Fanfair
C
roy.fanfair@sharenews.com
anada has committed $15 million in funding over the next four years to enhance public financial management in the Caribbean and provide technical assistance to regional
countries facing economic challenges. Minister of Finance Joe Oliver made the announcement at the launch of the 47th annual Toronto Caribbean carnival parade last Saturday at Exhibition Stadium. Oliver said $5 million will be used to help the Jamaican government make fiscal management changes
to meet commitments under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) program, while the remaining funds will go towards technical assistance in other countries facing economic management issues. “Through this funding, the IMF will work with governments to provide short, medium and long-term advice
as well as training to respond to the precarious financial situation,” said Oliver, who is the Member of Parliament for Eglinton-Lawrence. “Many of the economies, especially those that rely on tourism, have not fully recovered from the global economic crisis. See Page 13
Sports PanAM Games
Incorporating diversity into every aspect of its business operations, including human resources and procurement, is a priority for the Toronto 2015. See Page 18
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EDITORIAL
Thursday, August 7, 2014
EDITORIAL
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Toronto Police Chief Tony Blair
The policing of Blacks a major issue for next chief Text: pat watson
pat.watson@sharenews.com
W
ith the Toronto Police Service Board’s recent decision not to renew or extend Police Chief Bill Blair’s contract beyond the end of April next year, we must be concerned over how his replacement will impact the lives of Black people and other minorities of colour in this city. One of the major issues over the years has been the overpolicing of Black men, especially the youth. Blair came in as a refreshingly different leader, whose understanding of the relationship between the police and the Black community, and his vision for policing in general, were in sharp contrast to that of his predecessor, Julian Fantino. For example, Fantino refused to publicly acknowledge that racial profiling of Black people exists within the force. Blair did acknowledge it and embarked on a program of diversification and community
engagement which saw minority officers moved up the ranks and more emphasis placed on police officers interacting with residents in their neighbourhoods. Blair promoted three Black deputy chiefs and elevated many other Blacks and minorities in the service to senior positions. No other police chief before him even came close. Although Blair’s tenure was not without controversy, we must remember these things, take note and give credit. It is ironic, though, that under Blair’s watch, the controversial practice which came to be known as carding where individuals were randomly stopped by police, questioned and had information collected from them stored in a police database, was ramped up to alarming levels. A statistical majority of these individuals were Black and other minorities of colour, especially young men. Black men in the police data bank represent almost 30 per cent of people questioned which, relative
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to Toronto’s total Black population of just over eight per cent, is troubling. In the process, an increasingly antagonistic relationship between the police and large sectors of the Black community has developed, despite attempts to reform the program. A recent Toronto Star report shows that although the practice of carding has dropped off significantly, police stops of Blacks and other minorities of colour have actually increased, percentage-wise. Deputy Police Chief Peter Sloly, who has been at the forefront of tackling this thorny issue, has presented a tidy rationale for it. However, it comes back to the same issue, which is that police officers continue to racially profile persons of colour. The police claim that they are taking steps, including racial awareness training and conducting studies of why racial bias is still so embedded in the system, to begin to correct this anti-Black attitude on the part of officers in the field. Whatever changes are com-
ing cannot happen soon enough. Rather than Sloly commenting that police are not involved in “social engineering” but “go where the community calls us to go”, we would like to think that there really is, as he said when he met with Share’s editorial staff last summer, a vision within the police force of the most diverse city in the country, and in North America, to do something so forward thinking on the matter of police and community race relations as to clear a path for others to follow. As it stands now in the minds of too many officers, every Black person appears to be a suspect or potential criminal. We need to know that whoever becomes the next police chief can take the baton and carry it forward to advance the work in bridging relations between the Black community and the police. We would hate to see a return to the kind of policing philosophy Blair worked so hard to overcome.
Publisher/Senior Editor: Arnold A. Auguste | Editor-in-Chief: Roy FanFair | Editor: Pat Watson 658 Vaughan Rd., Toronto, Ontario M6E 2Y5, Tel.: (416) 656-3400 | Fax: (416) 656-3711 www.sharenews.com | share@interlog.com | ISSN: 0709-4647 Readership 130,000 each week (estimated) Founded January, 1978 | Member of the Ethnic Press Council of Canada Inc. Founded in 1978, SHARE is Canada’s largest ethnic newspaper. SHARE serves the dynamic and upwardly mobile Black and West Indian Community in Toronto with a weekly publication that is highly respected both within and outside of its target market. SHARE is distribued free of cost in more than 1,500 retail outlets throughout the GTA and is financed solely by advertising revenue from businesses directed at the Black and West Indian Community. SHARE is published by Share Publishing Inc. Articles, photographs and advertising appearing in SHARE may not be reproduced in any other publication without the express permission in writing of the publisher. Such use may be an infringement of © copyright and may render the user liable to prosecution.
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Thursday, August 7, 2014 NEWS
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U.S. insurers returned billions to consumers Text: roy fanfair roy.fanfair@sharenews.com
A
US Consumers shopping in the busiest shopping centre in NY.
recently-released U.S. Department of Health and Human Services report states that insurance companies have returned approximately US$9 billion from premiums since 2011 because of an ObamaCare provision to cap how much profit they can make. Under the Affordable Care Act, insurance companies are required to spend at least 80 to 85 per cent of the premiums they collect on patient care or to make improvements to healthcare quality. If companies fail to meet that threshold, also known as the Medical Loss Ratio (MLR), they are required to return the difference to their insurance
holders either directly or by reducing future premiums. If the insurance was bought through an employer, the employer must either do the same or provide better benefits. HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell lauded the findings of the report, which was released last week, and said provisions like the MLR “are providing Americans with immediate savings and helping to bring transparency and accountability to the insurance market over the long-term”. According to the report, the average family will either get a direct refund or reduction in their premiums in the amount of $80 this year. A previous report by the Commonwealth Fund found that insurers returned more than $1.5 billion in rebates to consumers between 2011 and 2012.
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Minister of state in the Ministry of Tourism and Entertainment shares educational
Minister urges ‘single vision’ for educating Jamaica’s kids Entertainment Damion Crawford has challenged nationals in the Diaspora Likening Jamaica’s educa- to lead the charge for the tion system to apartheid, implementation of a sinMinister of State in the gular vision for educating Ministry of Tourism & Text: roy fanfair roy.fanfair@sharenews.com
the country’s citizens. In the keynote address at the Jamaica Canadian Association (JCA) gala last Saturday night to celebrate the organization and country’s
52nd independence anniversary, Crawford said education apartheid starts as early as the primary school level where the playing field is unequal.
Wendy Jones
Pan Fantasy wins third straight Pan Alive competition Text: pat watson
pat.watson@sharenews.com
T
he choice was between Farmer Nappy’s “Big People Party” and Superblue’s “Spanking”. In the end, Pan Fantasy’s arranger Al Foster enticed the local band to settle for “Big People Party”, which was one of the most popular hits in this year’s Trinidad & Tobago carnival road march. The rendition and presentation resonated with the judges at the annual Pan Alive steelpan competition at Lamport Stadium last Friday night as Pan Fantasy captured its third straight title. “This is an old-fashioned style (of) music with big people holding each other and doing steps,” said the winning band’s leader, Wendy Jones. “It’s not just for young people. It’s a bacchanal song with sweet music. ‘Spanking’ is a nice song, but it doesn’t jive musically.” The bands are judged on arrangement, general performance, tone and rhythm. With 88 members, Pan Fantasy was the largest contingent in the 13-band competition. The youngest member is 13-years-old. “We have a youth-led band and I am extremely happy with the way they have performed on a big stage in the last three years,” said Jones. While Afropan had to settle for second place, veteran member Tony Pierre was pleased with the growing emergence of young people in the bands.