Free to Be; Ontario Students Opposing Quebec’s Charter of Values

Say show who you are; don’t hide it
Rahman Mohamed

On September 3, 2013 the Globe and Mail reported that Mayor Naheed Nenshi of Calgary, Alberta stated Quebec’s Charter of Values was “social suicide” and “intolerance”. Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne told reporters “It’s very important to me that Ontario is a diverse province, that our laws and our policies reflect that diversity.” Today students at York University support them.

A group of students that have formed an organization known as “Free to Be” have been seen canvassing on campus, gathering signatures and promoting an online petition on Change.org to show the Quebec National Assembly their opposition to Bill 60, the Secular Charter or Charter of Values.

As part of their campaign they’ve been posting pictures of students wearing religious garments on a Facebook page.

What is the Charter?

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Federal Budget Impact on Post-Secondary

New and increased funding for education and labour
Rahman Mohamed

On February 11 Jim Flaherty introduced his 10th budget, allocating a total of $116 million to “Connecting Canadians with Available Jobs” for 2014-15 (a substantial increase from $2 million in 2013-14) including: the “Canada Job Grant”, $15 million over 3 years help people with disabilities help people with developmental disabilities through the “Ready, Willing & Able” initiative, introducing Labour Market Agreements to help persons with disabilities and their employers and $11.4 million over four years to support the expansion of vocational training programs for persons with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

The 2014 federal budget states “creating the Canada Apprentice Loan” and “Eliminating the value of student owned vehicles from the Canada Student Loans Program assessment process to better reflect the needs of students who commute or work while studying”.

Its focus is on new funding for apprenticeship, but university students still have a reason to smile.

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See The Senate Live

Canada’s newest reality show; drama, comedy, or politicians? See it live and decide!
Rahman Mohamed

It’s true that the Canadian Senate is really going to be broadcast live!

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