campus
Briefs
Union still coming
Anti-Native event disrupted
Women’s Caucus for Indian Parliament
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continued from page 1
In India, female MPs proposed the establishment of a Women’s Caucus in the Lok Sabha (lower house) and Rajya Sabha (upper house) across party lines to ensure the passage of women-relevant bills. MP Brinda Kirat of the Communist Party of India (Maoist) told the Hindu, “I suggested that a women’s caucus be formed with representatives of all parties, because despite political differences, women MPs are together on a number of women’s issues.” Currently four contentious bills are being discussed: Prohibition of Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Bill 2010, amendment to the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act 1986, Prevention of Crimes in the Name of ‘Honour’ and Tradition Bill 2010, and the Domestic Workers Welfare and Social Security Act 2010.
The Coalition That Won’t Stop The Coalition for a Carleton Sexual Assault Centre celebrated the one-year anniversary of its independent support line on Mar. 22. Days later graduate students voted in favour of a $1 levy per semester for fulltime students to go towards the creation of a sexual assault support centre on campus. In a 2008 referendum asking if students supported the creation of a student-run sexual assault centre, more than 80% of ballots cast were in favour.
The card-check neutrality agreement between Aramark and HSTU Local 261, an affiliate of the international union UNITE HERE, comes after a visible student campaign in support of food service workers’ right to unionize. Aramark may also have decided to grant card-check neutrality because of the impending expiration of its contract with Carleton in 2013. The corporation has also faced concurrent unionization pressures at other locations, including Georgetown University in Washington, DC. At Loyola University in Chicago – where Aramark agreed to remain neutral as the result of a successful campaign led by students, professors, and workers – food service workers recently won a union. The unionization drive of Aramark workers at Car-
Sexual Assault at the Borders The Jamaican government will investigate the “finger rape” of one of its nationals at the hands of Barbados immigration officials. Shanique Myrie was subjected to two body cavity searches and verbal abuse by a female immigration official, including slurs about Jamaican people, while trying to enter Barbados on her Jamaican passport. This was Myrie’s first trip abroad. Jamaican Foreign Minister Ken Baugh told the Observer he will seek to work with his counterparts in Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago on the regional mistreatment of Jamaican nationals, but made no reference to the sexual nature of the assault. Barbados has denied Myrie was searched, but her story has been corroborated by the Jamaican honourary consul to Barbados, Marlon Gordon.
Six Nations are fighting to regain portions of the original 955,000-acre Haldimand Tract granted to them by the British Crown in 1784. The deed granted them six miles on either side of the Grand River, which winds from northwest of Toronto to Lake Erie. Since then, 95 per cent of the territory has been eroded through settlement and confiscations by the federal and provincial governments. On Feb. 28, 2006, Six Nations youth, with the support of community elders, set up a small camp at the entrance of the Douglas Creek Estates to prevent further subdivision construction. The reclaimed Kanonhstaton, or “protected place,” is on the outskirts of the Six Nations reserve and Caledonia. The reclamation remained low-key until Henco Industries obtained a court injunction and the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) increased surveillance.
On Apr. 20, 2006, 150 heavily armed OPP officers raided the camp and arrested 16 people, but local warriors and community members successfully repulsed the attack. From there, the tensions and conflict escalated as Six Nations expanded the camp’s perimeter and set up checkpoints on Highway 6 until May 24. The Ontario government has since purchased the land from Henco Industries and over five years later, the reclamation camp still stands. Although a formal decision has not yet been made, the land is expected to be transferred over to Six Nations. Since the standoffs and incidents of violence between Six Nations, their non-Native opponents, and police in 2006, anti-Native activists have continued to agitate by planting Canadian flags on the reclamation site and provoking Six Nations and their allies. On Feb. 27, an anti-Native group held a “truth and reconciliation” rally, where they tried
to erect an “apology monument” at the reclamation site. The group continues to allege that “race-based policing” has discriminated against non-Natives and demand apologies from Six Nations, the OPP, and the Ontario government. “Their objectives are to get the police to crack down on any kind of indigenous protest, to put Natives ‘back in their place,’ and also to discredit the entire negotiation process. They claim that there are no valid land claims at all. They are doing this work on our side of the wampum and we’re trying to counter them,” said Tom Keefer, a Six Nations solidarity activist. Six Nations and allies continue to counter anti-Native efforts, shedding light on the racism inherent in the group’s demands, slogans, and posturing. Meanwhile, anti-Native organizers around Caledonia have refused to distance themselves from known white supremacists who have promoted and attended their rallies.
THE CANADIAN UNION OF PUBLIC EMPLOYEES LOCAL 4600
Police Investigating Themselves The Fijian Police Force is running its own investigation after two police officers allegedly assaulted 7 children. The assault happened at an elementary school in Vanua Levu on Mar. 22. The officers have been taken to Labassa Police Station, where they will remain confined until the investigation is over, police spokesman Atunaisa Sokomuri says. The children have been examined by physicians and their medical reports are currently with the Fijian Police. Inspector Sokomuri told the Fiji Times, “The [police] commissioner has clearly stated that he will not tolerate police officers who abuse their powers. The officers thought they were too smart when they entered the school and assaulted the students.”
leton University went public in the spring of 2010, amid concerns over the circulation of intimidating letters from the employer that suggested workers would be fired for attempting to unionize. A student support campaign quickly formed. Many students, faculty, and workers have since expressed consistent support for food service workers’ right to unionize, by wearing stickers, signing a petition, and writing letters. Campus United, the coalition of campus unions and student associations, called on Carleton President Roseann Runte to ensure that Aramark remain neutral throughout the union drive. Ryan notes that even after a successful union drive, there is still work to be done. “There’s the next step of course, which is very difficult, which is getting a first [collective] agreement, so solidarity from other people is still needed.”
REPRESENTING TEACHING ASSISTANTS AND CONTRACT INSTRUCTORS AT CARLETON We re CUPE 4600, representing approximately 2000 Teaching Assistants and Contract Instructors at Carleton University. We re here to advocate for our members. But we work for all of you … because our working conditions are your learning conditions. Together with you, we share a commitment to the highest ideals of postsecondary education — academic freedom, quality and equality. Together with you, we can work to create a Carleton that lives up to these ideals, ensuring you receive the best possible University experience. We are dedicated to providing you with the knowledge and skills you need to flourish. To learn more about us, and our vision for post-secondary education, check out our website, Twitter page, Facebook group or just stop by our office in the university centre. Remember, we re here for you!
6 The Leveller vol 3, no 5, April 2011
For more information, drop by 511A Unicentre, Carleton University Phone 613 520 7482 Email presCUPE4600@gmail.com Visit 4600.CUPE.ca www.leveller.ca