Gaybourhood candidates prepare for election

I was surprised to see that I had a piece on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca today, considering that it was supposed to be for the upcoming issue. Nevertheless, it's now online, and it involves the preparations made by the various candidates in Ottawa Centre for a possible election. This follows on the work I've been doing in trying to get more involved coverage of the local riding nomination races, to ensure that readers can engage with politics on the ground level like this.

It was good connecting with the various candidates. I've come into contact with Dewar before, and this time I was able to have a face-to-face with Bradley, which was nice considering we've previously only spoken by phone before. This was the first time I've spoken with Hunter as well, but I have little doubt that I'll be seeing more of her in the not-too-distant future.

Gay Bloc MP Réal Ménard bids farewell to federal politics

I have a new piece up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which was an interview I did with Réal Ménard this morning on his last day as an MP. The last time I had been in his office, the walls were covered in old election campaign posters for his party and the PQ, but now they were bare as his assistants were packing up.

We did the interview mostly in English, though occasionally he'd slip in some French words that I translated in the piece (as well as proper verb tenses). But he was in good cheer, and excited about his next venture in municipal politics. We had a very good talk about the way that politics has changed in Canada in the 16 years that he's been an MP - both in the larger context of Parliament itself, and the way in which the Bloc's very presence virtually ensures minority governments - as well as how politics has changed for openly gay politicians, as he was the second openly gay MP in our Parliamentary history.

During my time on the Hill, I never had too much chance to work with Ménard, largely because of the language barrier, but now I'm a little sorry that I didn't make more of an effort. He was, however, always great when we did get a chance to speak (especially for the video pieces I did back in May), and I want to thank him for making my job a little easier.

MPs spar over Pride funding

A quick post to say that one of my three blog posts today on Hill Queries was packaged as a news item on the national page of Xtra.ca. This one was mostly a recounting of something that went down during Question Period, and then in the scrums in the foyer afterward. I like doing these kinds of short vignettes which give one a bit of the feel of the kind of action that takes place on the Hill, so I may try to do a few more of them as I'm able (given that my ability to attend Question Period has been reduced this year due to Masters programme commitments).

(And a huge thanks to Chris Rands from CBC for his help with the Tony Clement quote).

Immigration bid waylaid

I have a piece in the Toronto Xtra today, which is a bit unusual, though the editor called me up there and asked me to cover it since I do deal mostly with federal politics. It was an issue I had heard of, but I was interested to hear that he'd found the "gay angle" to it. But what was most interesting was to hear the refugee claimant's story. I told him he didn't have to tell me, to just give me broad strokes, but he poured it out to me, and it was absolutely heartbreaking to hear everything that he had been through, and to have to continue to live in limbo, his work permit nearing expiration while he continues to wait on Federal Court delays. At the same time, I had no idea about the ways in which the laws surrounding Federal Court justices were being subverted with these appointments of over-aged deputy justices. Quite an interesting story all around.

Finding a way out of the HIV criminalization loop

The second part of my HIV criminalisation story is now in print and online, and again I'm quite pleased with the results. By having the story split into two parts, I was able to go back and grab a couple of more quick quotes and interviews - in this case, the two MPs and ACO. Those additional viewpoints greatly enhanced the piece in my opinion, so I'm especially glad that I had that opportunity to bring them in.

That said, the editing of this piece did change things a bit. The last four paragraphs were all from the editor, which I feel changed the tone a little, but I realise this is part of the activist tone that a PTP paper likes to adopt, despite my best intentions otherwise. Still, it was a really engaging and important piece to write, and I'm glad I got the opportunity to work on it over the summer.

Thoughts From the Hill - September Edition

The September issue of Outlooks is finally online, and inside I have a new edition of the Thoughts From the Hill panel. This was an interesting topic to handle, and all three of my Parliamentarian panellists had really great answers to them. I think it was also the only time that they all had really succinct answers, which meant I had the opportunity to write a bit more of a preamble on what some of the issues at hand are.

As well, this is the first month where I am now on the masthead as Outlooks' new Political Editor. I'm eager to take on what new roles and challenges this title brings.

The panel is on page 52. You can download the full issue in .pdf format here.

Parties gearing up for federal election this fall

Another quick post to say that I have another Hill Queries blog post repackaged as a story for the national page of Xtra.ca. I'm not complaining - the exposure will do the blog good - not to mention the fact that I get paid the story rate rather than the blog post rate, which is an added bonus.

Getting to know the Liberal nomination candidates for Ottawa Centre

Of the new pieces I have online today, the big one is the two interviews that I did with the Liberal candidates for the Ottawa Centre nomination race. I enjoyed speaking to both candidates, and this continues what I think more local political coverage should focus on - the grassroots involvement, right down to who the nominees are and what they stand for. The questions for these interviews were chosen in large part by my editors, and they will again be used when we interview the Conservative nomination candidates in the next few weeks.

That said, one of the candidates, Scott Bradley, said something fairly profound, I thought.

"When people put $10 on the line, they themselves are passionate," Bradley says. "They have an investment in you, the candidate, and you can't let them down, you have to keep working hard. They're looking for that personal connection to politics as well, and when you can provide it to them, they're going to respond favourably and positively, and come out and support you."

This is precisely the kind of thing that I've been talking about - creating a personal connection to politics for people. That's the way that we should be engaging them, and it's something that I plan to continue carrying out.

My only regret with this piece was the way that slow editorial decisions meant that it wasn't up online in time for people to buy memberships before the cut-off date, as that was part of the process I've been trying to advocate for - getting involved in parties at the riding level. Nevertheless, the ball is rolling for future articles of this type.