Decriminalizing homosexuality

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca, which looks at the failure of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting to come to an agreement about the issue of decriminalising homosexuality among member nations, and broadens out to a look at the efficacy of using foreign aid as a possible means for achieving these goals. I really enjoy being able to do these longer, more analytical pieces, and I think I managed to find a pretty good group of experts to talk to on the issues presented here, which always makes these kinds of stories even more enjoyable.

Canada and the Commonwealth

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which is my interview with Senator Hugh Segal about his role in drafting the Commonwealth Eminent Person's Report. With the other Commonwealth stories I've been working on (another is due up on the site shortly), it was nice to get a chance to talk to Segal about his role and to get a better glimpse of what was going on behind the scenes of the report drafting process. Shortly after writing the story, it was announced that Segal would be leading Canada's effort for Commonwealth renewal, which I think will suit him well.

Harper government keeps 2011 Global Fund commitment

I have a story up on the Toronto page of Xtra.ca which is actually a good news story for the government, about how they're keeping their 2011 Global Fund commitment - and actually getting the money out the door a bit early even. I'd like to thank Bev Oda's spokesperson for getting back to me personally right away, which almost never happens lately, and to Richard Elliott for once again being such a great source of information on these kinds of issues.

Parliament Hill's Rehabilitation Underway on Several Buildings

I have a new story up on OpenFile Ottawa this morning, which serves as an update on the progress of the renovation, restoration and refurbishment of several buildings on Parliament Hill and in the parliamentary precinct. As a regular denizen of the Hill, I always enjoy hearing more about what is going on with that process, and doing stories like this gives me the opportunity. Plus, how cool is the cutaway picture of the Wellington Building?

Federal AIDS funding rules change

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which looks at the way in which the federal government changed the funding requirements for HIV/AIDS service organisations around the country. It's one of several HIV-related stories that I wrote over the past few days (but ironically the first one to be posted, as the others trickle out over the next few days), and it does seem fairly apropos given some of the news in the past week over the possibility of a new vaccine and the upcoming court challenges on criminalisation of HIV infections.

Critics question government's response to refugee claims

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca, which looks at the pledge that Jason Kenney made about taking in more refugees, but contrasts it with some of the other moves that his government has made on the refugee file. Given that the refugee file is one I've kept an eye on for a while (so much so that one of my sources remarked that I seem to be one of the few journalists who actually talks about refugees), it was nice to catch up with some of my sources, and to keep up on the issues.

Preserve the system, change the culture

I have an op-ed piece on iPolitics.ca today, as part of their "78 ways to fix the way we do politics" series, in which I argue in favour of the "first-past-the-post" electoral system. The opportunity came up as a bit of a surprise, when the deputy publisher emailed me after I tweeted my displeasure with the two articles on electoral reform that appeared in the print edition of the series. After a bit of discussion, and given their awareness of my own previous writings on the topic of democratic reform, they offered me the chance to write my own piece, which I gladly took up. Hopefully it can be a useful contribution to the discussion that follows.

Baird speaks out on Nigerian anti-gay bill

I have a second story today, this one on the main page of Xtra.ca, which gets reaction from opposition parties to the official condemnation by the Canadian government of Nigeria's anti-homosexuality bill. The other stories in the mainstream simply rewrote the press release whereas I got some reaction, and had some pretty interesting feedback - especially from the Liberal critic, who was willing to talk about reexamining our aid to Nigeria in the wake of this law.

An MP remembers a brother lost to AIDS

I have a new story up on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca, in which I talk to NDP MP Glenn Thibeault about his brother who died of AIDS twenty years ago. This being World AIDS Day, it was an interview that came about at a very timely juncture, and everything fell into place nicely. It's also received some really great attention from places like Macleans.ca, and it made it onto National Newswatch, which is really gratifying.

Senators talk to local youth about bullying

I have a new story up on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca, which was about an event that took place in the Senate chamber this morning. I always enjoy spending time up in the Senate, and as this was a more informal event, where I could actually take pictures and head down onto the Senate floor after the event to speak to both Jeremy Dias and a couple of the Senators, it made it that much more of a fun event to cover - even if I had to be surrounded by children and be subjected to spoken word poetry.

MPs react to BC polygamy ruling

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which gathers political and legal scholar reaction to yesterday's BC Supreme Court decision on the polygamy reference. Being as I knew it was coming down the pipe, I gave the various parties a heads-up, and to their credit, they were ready with spokespeople for me. And once again, UofO law professor Carissma Mathen proved that she's a fantastic resource on these kinds of legal questions, and many thanks to her once again for taking the time to speak to me and explain some of the issues involved - and for creating a bit of controversy in the decision.

Democracy at the riding level

I have an editorial up today as well on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca, which accompanies the piece on the Liberal riding association meeting. While the story talked about what happened at the meeting, this piece looks at the significance of joining a party at the riding level, which is something that I'm quite keen on encouraging people to do because that's the part of our democratic system that is the most engaging, and the part that most people simply don't know about. Like I said before, the whole evening was pretty inspiring, and I'm hoping these two pieces help to encourage more people to get involved, whatever their party affiliation.

Ottawa Liberals discuss party's future

I have a new story up on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca today, which stems from my visit to the Ottawa Centre federal Liberal riding association meeting on Wednesday night. It was a pretty great night for someone who believes strongly in parliamentary democracy - seeing people engaging in the process and having some really great discussions about the existential questions of their party and where they want things to go. I also got to meet Mike Crawley, who is running for the position of party president and have a good chat with him, some of which made it into the final piece.

A more cautious Supreme Court?

I have a new analysis feature on the main page of Xtra.ca, which looks at what the two new incoming Supreme Court justices might mean for a couple of the cases that are heading before the Court that Xtra has been keeping an eye on - in particular, HIV criminalisation cases and the court challenge to prostitution laws. I really enjoyed this piece as I got to speak to a couple of really smart people on the subject, and I also had enough room to really delve into some of the issues.

Commonwealth meeting comes up empty-handed on human rights

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which follows up on last week's story and the weekend's events with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. It was another piece where I was able to get the right commentary immediately after Monday's QP, was able to get Baird's quotes from QP, and put it all together in a fast turnaround (where it then sat on my editor's desk, but what can you do?) And I hope to follow up on this story further within the next few days with some background and behind-the-scenes interviews, with any luck.

Will Stephen Harper address gay issues in Australia?

I have a story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today about the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting taking place in Australia, and whether or not Canada would be pushing for the decriminalisation of homosexuality as part of it. It was pretty straight-forward, but it was a case where half of the story changed between Wednesday and Friday last week, so some of the interviews I had to do over again, not that it was a hardship.

MPs of all stripes criticize free speech bill

I have a new story on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which looks at the new Private Member's Bill aiming to repeal the hate speech provisions of the Canadian Human Rights Act. It's a particular story that I've followed in various iterations for the past couple of parliaments, and not it's until now that it's coming up in a particular form that may actually have a chance of advancing. I'm sorry that Mr. Storseth denied the interview request, but a chance encounter with Senator Nancy Ruth helped to give the story its final shape, which was a nice bit of happenstance.

MPs grill Supreme Court appointees

I have a new piece up on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca which recounts what happened at the ad hoc Parliamentary committee on Wednesday that questioned the new Supreme Court appointees. It was interesting to be able to watch as the new justices answered questions, but the experience itself was a bit drawn out and ridiculous in places, but I'm glad I was able to cover it.

MPs commemorate Jamie Hubley

I have a new story on the national page of Xtra.ca, which looks at how Spirit Day was marked on the Hill yesterday, especially in light of the death of local teen Jamie Hubley. It was a pretty lively day, with action in the House to record and reaction to gather from the Foyer afterward, and getting Hedy Fry to talk about her bill was a bit of fortuitous happenstance that wasn't planned but worked out rather well in the final piece.

Supreme Court hears arguments in hate speech case

I have a new story up on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca, which looks at the Whatcott case before the Supreme Court of Canada yesterday. It was a case where a lot of the mainstream accounts completely overlooked the issue of behaviour versus orientation that were central to the appeal, and I made sure that it got a full airing. Unfortunately, the whole piece did not make through, and my interview with University of Ottawa law professor Carissima Mathen to analyse the hearing and talk about what was and was not said didn't make the final cut. Alas.

UK civil union is not marriage: feds

I have a new story on the main page of Xtra.ca today which looks at a particular international same-sex divorce case which the federal government is taking an interest in. It was fairly intriguing to learn about the particular differences, and it benefitted from an update on the day it was posted (I filed yesterday) with Nicholson's answer in QP today, but it's going to be something to keep an eye on.

I had also been curious about whether this may have an impact on the current UK campaign to have their civil partnerships be given full equal marriage status, but since the line of questioning was pretty much universally that it shouldn't be a factor, and given space considerations, it never made it into the final copy.

Insite can stay open: Supreme Court

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca, reporting on the Supreme Court of Canada decision this morning to grant an exemption that allows Insite to remain open. This was actually the first time I've done a court decision the day of at the Supreme Court (in fact, after seven years of living in the city, it was the first time I've actually been in the building - shocking, really), which was pretty cool. I've done plenty of stories on the Insite case, and it was nice to be able to cap them off in such a manner, and to get some pretty immediate political reaction from the Hill right after.

Partner of fallen cop honoured at national ceremony

I have a story on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca today, which talks about the the death of a police officer, and his surviving partner's experiences since the accident. It was a difficult piece to write - an interview with someone whose spouse had died, and trying to be sensitive yet trying to find out more about what else was going on, such as the dispute with the family over the estate. That part of the story almost didn't make it in, as Blais was reluctant to talk about it, but emailed me a couple of days later, intent on sharing the story in order to show how other people in common law relationships are vulnerable in situations like this under the law. Already the feedback has been really positive, which I'm quite grateful for.

Trans bill reintroduced in House of Commons

My second story today on the national page of Xtra.ca is about the reintroduction of the trans bill to the House of Commons. Actually, I'm not really sure I can say it's my story anymore as most of what I wrote was cut, which was a lot of context and explanation of procedure as to why two identical bills were introduced and how the Order of Precedence works, and my editor inserted a quote with an improper attribution, got a couple of other facts wrong, and stripped away the context from one of the quotes so that it doesn't make any sense. But it's still my byline anyway.

Contentious federal bill to tackle drugs, crime

The first story I have up on the national page of Xtra.ca is my look at the introduction of the omnibus crime bill in the House of Commons this week. While this updates the issue that we have been following for a while, it also was the signal that the Liberals are looking at reopening the issue of decriminalising marijuana, but what didn't make the final article was Bob Rae's quote about how prohibition failed with alcohol and we as a society changed tactics there, and how that kind of discussion is needed with marijuana, which would have been a nice bit of context.

Libby Davies mulling NDP leadership bid

I have a new story today on the national page of Xtra.ca, in which I talk to Libby Davies about her mulling the leadership of the NDP, as well as her current role as deputy leader in the transition period with Nycole Turmel as interim leader. A couple of quotes didn't quite make it into the final edit, which were about Davies talking about the sense of responsibility she feels as deputy leader despite it being an "honorific" title, and about the activist role she plays within the party.

Topp first to declare NDP leadership candidacy

My second story of the day was my take on this morning's big story of Brian Topp making his declaration for leadership. This was was more standard, and the Boivin connection was of interest to us, given the questions that surrounded her during the campaign, and this marks the beginning of what promises to be an interesting next few months.

Queering the Liberal Party

My first story of the day was originally a feature story that I had worked on over the course of the summer, but which has been edited down into a much smaller piece. It was a lot of work in terms of talking to some really interesting people within the party about how they feel that the queer community can do its part to help in the Liberal rebuilding, and how the party can reach out to that community as part of that process. Unfortunately, in the editing process, most of that discussion and nuance was cut and it turned into more of a discussion of attracting voters. I'll likely post the original version on my new Tumblr page in a few days, but this was one case where I was really disappointed by the final outcome of the editing process.

Update: Here is the link to the full version on my Tumblr.

A look at potential NDP leadership candidates

I have an analysis piece on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca which looks at the current slate of candidates who are mulling the NDP leadership. While this has been a fairly common story going around, I'd like to think that I did bring a couple of things to the table that others haven't mentioned, such as Paul Dewar's expending his political capital on local municipal issues, the unresolved questions around Françoise Boivin's departure from the Liberal party, and the fact that people are underestimating the appeal that Megan Leslie has with the younger members of the party, who all adore her (and tell me so on a regular basis).

Gays and lesbians in the House of Commons

I have a guest post on Samara Canada's blog as part of their series on diversity in the House of Commons, where I look at the topic of gay and lesbian MPs in the 41st Parliament. This all began a couple of months ago when a fairly active member of Ottawa's queer community wrote to Samara to ask why they didn't already talk about queer MPs in their diversity series, and when they said they didn't know enough about the topic, he suggested me to them, and I was happy to take it on. It was a nice chance to talk about some of the work I do on a regular basis to a broader audience, and to bring up some issues that are perhaps a bit more under the radar, like the urban/rural divide within the queer community, and how that even plays out in the House of Commons. It was a great experience, and I'm really thankful that Samara asked me to participate.

Lucie Pépin retires from the Senate

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca, which is an "exit interview" with retiring Liberal Senator Lucie Pépin. When I first heard that Senator Pépin was retiring, I read a brief biography of some of her accomplishments over her career and was fascinated, and felt that she was someone that Xtra readers should know a bit about, considering how much of her activism has touched the queer community one way or another. Fortunately, she was more than willing to talk, despite her office in the middle of being boxed up (we got the photo before they came in later in the day to take back the artwork), and it was a great conversation that I'm glad I was able to have, and share with my readers.

Picking up the pieces

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca which looks at this week's Liberal caucus retreat and the direction the party is moving in the post-Layton landscape. Of particular note in my mind were the resurgence of the word "prosperity" in the political rhetoric, and the new Liberal mantra of evidence-based policy over ideology. No doubt this is just the first of many pieces to come on the Liberal Party's rebuilding effort.

NDP queer caucus remembers Jack Layton

I have a new feature story on the national page of Xtra.ca, which is about the reactions of the queer MPs in the NDP caucus to the passing of Jack Layton. I didn't get to talk to Dany Morin or the co-chair of the NDP's LGBT commission, but I still had a story that was full of some pretty great recollections.

Chronicling our past

I have a feature story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today which looks at the progress of the Canadian Human Rights Museum, and how it plans to address the issues of the history of queer rights in this country. I had a few good conversations in writing the piece, and got a bit of an insight into the planning process, and some of their thinking around ways to ensure that it won't simply be the "saddest place on earth."

Getting In On the Ground Floor + Thoughts From the Hill - July/August Edition

The July/August edition of Outlooks Magazine is now out, which has two piece in from me. The first is an editorial geared toward queer Liberals in terms of encouraging them to get involved in their party's rebuilding process, while the second is the monthly Thoughts panel, this time on the issue of catastrophic drug coverage (which sparked me to write a more substantial piece for Xtra on the topic).

These were also my last political pieces for Outlooks for the foreseeable future. The new direction the magazine is taking under the new owners is more lifestyle oriented, and for the time being, nearly all editorial pieces are out, as are my Thoughts panels. I hope to write some politically-themed features in the coming months, but Canadian politics won't have the same prominent place in the magazine that it has in the past few years.

The editorial is on page 46, and the Thoughts panel on page 47.

Scaffolding on Wellington remains for several years

I have a story up on OpenFile Ottawa site today, which looks at all of the scaffolding on Wellington Street as part of the ongoing Parliamentary precinct construction and renovation. While this is a story that someone seems to cover every few months, I decided to take the angle of speaking to Ottawa Tourism about it, which was a different take that I think suit the OpenFile audience quite well. And hey, I managed to take a couple of decent photos to include with it, so that was a nice bonus.

NDP endorses Turmel as interim leader

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca about the NDP caucus decision to endorse Nycole Turmel as the party's interim leader. While everyone was on this particular story, I did manage to get a couple of really great interviews with Libby Davies and Randall Garrison, and got some great quotes to go with a piece that the rest of the pack was covering. I also managed to get some additional interviews for the Hill Queeries blog, which made for a busy day.

Parliamentary anti-Semitism report tabled

I have a new piece up on the national page of Xtra.ca about the CPCCA report that was tabled last week. Unlike any of the other outlets who wrote on the topic, mine focused a bit more on the Queers Against Israeli Apartheid connection, as well as focusing a bit more on some of the recommendations that came out in the report. My editors in Toronto added a bit more context and some links around the Ontario legislature debate, which is wholly appreciated. And hey, I managed to take a half-decent photo with the sometimes problematic lighting in the Charles Lynch Press Theatre.

Paying for HIV prevention

I have a new story on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which takes a look at the issue of catastrophic drug coverage across the country, particularly through the issue of HIV medication. I was first alerted to the issue not only through the last election (and numerous questions in Question Period), but when I was invited to be on a media panel at the Canadian AIDS Society's annual general meeting a few weeks ago, and one of the participants talked about this issue. A few things ended up on the editing room floor, including some mention of a couple other issues of coverage in some provinces, explicitly saying that the pharmaceutical companies aren't the bad guys in this, and talk about the Romanow and Kirby reports, but overall the piece should hopefully generate some good discussion about the issue.

NDP resolves to deny charitable status to ex-gay organizations

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which is a bit late but I'm glad it's up nevertheless. Despite the delays (it took a long time to get in touch with the new GLBTT Commission co-chair, and then delayed at the editorial end because of Toronto Pride coverage), I'm glad I was able to not only draw together some of the queer-themed happenings from the NDP convention, but also was able to find a queer angle to one of the other stories from the convention, being the "socialism" debate.

It Doesn't Have to be a Binary Choice + Thoughts From the Hill - June Edition

I have two pieces in the June issue of Outlooks, the first of which is my editorial on the narrative of "uniting the left" after the last election. My case is largely to look south of the border to see what a polarised political landscape has done to the country, and how partisan devolved into tribalism, and how that is not an idea that we need to import into the Canadian scene. The other piece is my usual Thoughts From the Hill panel, where Libby Davies steps in to fill the role that Bill Siksay played since the inception of the panel. Davies will appear again in the next issue before the spot is taken over by Randall Garrison, who is the party's new GLBT critic (and also fills in my urban and west coast boxes of regional representation).

The editorial is on page 11, and the panel is on page 22 of the issue.

Gay people and national security

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, that immediately gained a lot of attention and was even the headline story at the top of National Newswatch, one of the most popular news aggregators in the country. It was a story that was a couple of weeks in the making, gathering the right interviews and having the time to work on it and edit it just right (which was a bit tough during the busy past week), but I had a lot of interest from certain acquaintances and even a few other reporters in just what it means that Baird became the new foreign minister. It also became an opportune time to provide a bit of a history lesson on our country's history with the security campaigns of years past, which is something that not a lot of people gay or straight know about, and to show the kind of progress that we've made in the past couple of decades. Baird's appointment turned out to be an opportune hook for the story, and based on the feedback that I've received over the course of the day from some pretty prominent reporters from national outlets, I think I struck a good balance.

Canadian Human Rights Act amended to cover First Nations

I have a story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which is one from Friday (oh, delays...) about the changes that have just happened to the Canadian Human Rights Act. It's not something entirely in Xtra's usual beat, but there is a peripheral connection, and I was curious about a few other issues at the CHRC (such as if they're afraid they're up for the axe under the Conservative majority), so there was enough to keep one engaged with the story nevertheless.

UN to study discrimination against queer people

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which is a closer look at the UN vote the other day with regards to queer rights, and which also takes a look at political reaction here in Canada. Finding the UN document and decoding it was a bit of work, but I think I got a better read of the situation than was reported in some other outlets. My editor was also warning that I seemed to be letting Hedy Fry take all the credit, when what I was hoping her comments would actually convey were the fact that this is a very long process, and that Canada's persistence did pay off.

Phil Toone brings activist experience to Parliament

Also up today on the national page of Xtra.ca is my introductory interview with Philip Toone, one of the new gay NDP MPs (which also managed to languish in limbo for a couple of weeks). Toone was the last of my new MP interviews, and he was quite pleasant to talk to, and I will certainly be talking to him more in the days to come.

Silva walks away with no regrets

Up on the national page of Xtra.ca is a long overdue "exit interview" with former Liberal MP Mario Silva, which I actually did about a month ago, but it managed to languish in limbo for an inordinate amount of time. That said, here it is, and it was a pleasure dealing with Silva in the years I was covering him on the Hill, and I'm sure I'll see him again in the future.

NDP plans to give pass on tough-on-crime bill

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which looks at the upcoming bill on mega-trials that is about to go before Parliament, and they're going to try and pass it in a single day. While it's a bit on the edge of what we normally cover in Xtra, the fact that it's a "tough on crime" bill that is getting a pass, likely without debate, we wanted to ensure that this fact gets some notice and attention.

Conservatives vote to soften marriage stance

I have a brief piece up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which is a quick recap of the same-sex marriage policy resolution from the Conservative convention, plus a quick quote from Senator Nancy Ruth. There wasn't much more to add than that, and for having to work on a Saturday afternoon, I'm glad we were able to get the piece online in very short order.