Flag Wars [film screening and discussion]

Cum join Queer fAction for a screening of the documentary Flag Wars and a discussion about gentrification afterwards!

Thursday March 11th 4-6PM
Pride Centre [UCU 215-C]
University of Ottawa



Check out the website at: http://www.pbs.org/pov/flagwars/

Ottawa Israeli Apartheid Week 2010

Students Against Israeli Apartheid Carleton and Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights uOttawa are very excited and proud to announce the confirmed speakers for Ottawa's Israeli Apartheid Week 2010:

Week Overview:

Monday (Carleton): Student-to-Student Solidarity in the Fight Against Apartheid
Featuring: Nada Elia, Haya Zaidan, Andrew Stachiw, Yafa Jarrar
Azrieli Theatre 301
7 pm

Tuesday (Carleton): Queer-Friendly, Multicultural, Green: Debunking Israel's Myths
Featuring: Natalie Kouri-Towe, Saron Ghebressellassie and Ilaria Giglioli
Mackenzie Engineering Building 3235
7 pm

Mercredi (Université d'Ottawa): La lutte pour l'autodetermination en Palestine
Sabrien Amrov et Denis Lemelin
Pavillon Colonel By B012
7:30 pm

Wednesday (Carleton): Cinema Politica presents Films Against Apartheid.
Have You Heard From Johannesburg?: Apartheid and the Club of the West
Carleton University, Tory Building 360
7 pm

Thursday (University of Ottawa): Fighting Racism, Fighting Apartheid
Featuring Naeem Jeenah, Gabriel Ash, and Nahla Abdo.
University of Ottawa, Fauteux Hall 147
7:30 pm

Friday (Carleton): Indigenous Sovereignty from Turtle Island to Palestine
Featuring: Dr. Jamal Zahalka, and Dr. Paula Sherman
Carleton University, Fenn Lounge, Residence Commons Building
7pm

To see a detailed schedule with bios Click Here

Sponsored by:
Agitate! Queer People of Colour
Association of Palestinian Arab Canadians
Books 2 Prisoners
Canadian Arab Federation
Canadian Friends of Sabeel
Canadian Union of Postal Workers
Carleton University Aboriginal Service Centre
Carleton University Womyn's Centre
Common Cause Ottawa
Faculty for Palestine-Carleton
Human Rights Program of the Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies, Carleton University
Canada Palestine Support Network-Ottawa
Collectif du chat noir
EXILE Infoshop
Independent Jewish Voices (Canada)
Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Movement Ottawa
No One Is Illegal-Ottawa
Not In Our Name: Jews Opposing Zionism - Ottawa
NOWAR-PAIX
Ontario Public Interest Research Group-Carleton
Ontario Public Interest Research Group-Ottawa/Groupe de recherche
d'intérêt public de l'Ontario-Ottawa
Queer fAction
Socialist Project
Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights-Ottawa
Students Against Israeli Apartheid-Carleton
Under Pressure//Sous Pression Coalition Against Poverty

http://ottawa.apartheidweek.org/

Open Letter to the Ottawa Citizen

This is an open letter is in response to this article.

Instead of engaging with the issues at hand, Mr. Stern in his article “The dark side of a yearly ritual” focuses his criticism (six paragraphs in fact) on those who are supportive of Israeli Apartheid Week (IAW). From OPIRG, to Carleton’s Womyns Center, the Canadian Arab Federation to “gay and lesbian groups” Mr. Stern’s attacks on these groups, are misreprestative, and at times false. He reserves his hardest criticism for those who happen to be Queer. To Mr. Stern it is disheartening that some gays and lesbians are part of the quest for Palestinian human rights, because all of those queers just don’t seem to understand that Israel is a haven for homosexuals and celebrates LGBTQ culture, with parades and movies. Try doing that in Gaza, or Syria probes Mr. Stern. As queers, activists and academics this logic is not only insulting but flawed. We resist the idea that because there exists a place of relative safety for LGBTQ people in the Middle East, illegal occupation is justified. Mr. Stern fails to mention that Palestinian Queers are targets along side the rest of the population. We should be fighting homophobia everywhere, even in Muslim countries. However, Palestinian Queer groups have said the biggest threat to their organizing is the Israeli occupation, not homophobia, so that’s where we choose focus our energy. Occupation: not it our name.

Now that that’s settled, we need to return to the actually issues at hand, which is the illegal occupation which is exactly what Israeli Apartheid Week is bringing to the forefront.

The main problem with Mr. Stern charging that IAW is trying to “erase the distinction” between Jews and Zionists is that its blatantly false. Judaism is a religion, and Zionism is a political ideology. The example given by Mr. Stern is that the Ontario Public Interest Research Group’s refusal to work with Hillel on an event about development. Hillel, although it claims not to be a Zionist organization, has as part of their structure an Israeli Awareness Committee and their current participation in the Israeli public relations campaign “Size Doesn’t Matter” speaks to a different story, a Zionist story. It is important to note though, that IAW has Jewish members organizing, funding and speaking during the week, making Mr. Stern’s accusations of disconnecting “Jew” and “Zionist” completely ridiculous.

Mr Stern’s article exemplifies a typical defense tactic of the supporters of Israel, which is to say that any criticism or questioning of the action of the state is hateful and anti-Semitic. All that IAW is trying to do, is just that, to legitimately criticize the actions of the state. It maybe true that no other nation is subject to a weeklong event criticism the actions of their government, but that speaks to an important fact. This is that Israel claims to be a liberal democracy, which respects human rights, and demands that their actions be accepted on the international stage. Israel gets special status in the international community to violate domestic and international law, including the Geneva conventions. Yet, these same conventions if broken by other states, these states would face huge backlash in the international community. Again this is what Israel Apartheid Week is aiming to bring into focus.

The word Apartheid brings up strong images and emotions, as it harkens back to the racist ideology exemplified in South Africa during its Apartheid. Mr. Stern is absolutely correct that international law defines Apartheid as a crime against humanity. The Convention on Apartheid spells out conditions in which a state, if met, is considered an Apartheid State. Desmond Tutu- Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, John Dugard-a renowned Jewish South African international jurist, and Jimmy Carter –former President all agree that the occupation of Palestine amounts to Apartheid according to international law. If they can see it, why can’t Mr. Stern?

If Israeli actions do amount to apartheid, then we (Queer Faction and Agitate) do question and act to undermine this state. This is not anti-Semitic, nor is it unprecedented, because in fact in the Convention on Apartheid, which Michael Ignatieff cites, calls for that same action to be taken. To fight apartheid until it is gone. We will not stop until Palestine and Israel can agree upon a mutual beneficial solution that respects human rights for all.

Sincerely

Agitate: Queer People of Color and Queer fAction

Gay penpal seeking same!

The Prisoner Correspondence Project is a collectively-run initiative based out of Montréal. It coordinates a direct-correspondence program for gay, lesbian, transsexual, transgender, gendervariant, two-spirit, intersex, bisexual and queer inmates in Canada and the United States, linking these inmates with people part of these same communities outside of prison.

If you live in Ottawa and want to get involved, Queer fAction can help set you up with the Prisoner Correspondence Project and provide a central mailing address in Ottawa for you to use. Contact us for more info. (Queer.fAction@gmail.com)

Check out the project's website for the tips and guidelines for being a penpal: http://www.prisonercorrespondenceproject.com/

Market this!

Cum to the Qf meeting and screening of MARKET THIS!: Queer Radicals Respond to Gay Assimilation on Thursday Jan.14th, 4pm @ UCU205. Part of OPIRG week!

For more info check out:
OPIRG Week Jan. 11-15 2010!

TWO SPIRIT AND QUEER LIBERATION MOVEMENTS

The OPIRG Carleton Fall Colloquium presents

TWO SPIRIT AND QUEER LIBERATION MOVEMENTS
From Radical Revolt to Freedom Fighting Justice

With presentations by:
Jessica Yee, Executive Director of the Native Youth Sexual Health Network
Gary Kinsman, co-author of "The Canadian War on Queers"
Ashley Fortier, Q-Team
Zaheen, Agitate! Ottawa

Wednesday Nov 25th
7-9 pm
Montgomery Legion Hall, 330 Kent Street near Somerset Ave (wheelchair accessible)

Suggested donation $5-10, no one turned away
Advance tickets available at OPIRG Carleton (326 UniCentre), OPIRG-GRIPO (631 King Edward Ave, 3rd floor) Venus Envy Ottawa (320 Lisgar St), and Octopus Books (116 Third Ave)

Talk descriptions:

>> Two Spirited Indigenous Feminist Freedom Fighting with Jessica Yee <<

Jessica Yee is a self-described Two Spirited Indigenous Feminist Freedom Fighter - and as such will outline how frameworks like reproductive justice and movements like Indigenous feminism come into play with her work with Two-Spirited youth specifically as the founder and Executive Director of the Native Youth Sexual Health Network - currently the only Aboriginal organization in North America to work within the full spectrum of reproductive and sexual health.

Jessica Yee is a 23 year old Two Spirited young woman from the Mohawk Nation. She is the founder and Executive Director of the Native Youth Sexual Health Network, a North America wide organization working on issues of healthy sexuality, reproductive justice, cultural competency, and youth empowerment.

>> Remembering Revolt and Resistance: Queer Struggles Against the Canadian National Security State with Gary Kinsman <<

Queer liberation started as a radical revolt against heterosexual hegemony in alliance with other groups fighting against oppression and for social liberation. This presentation actively remembers queer organizing against the Canadian national security state from the late 1950s to the 1990s. This resistance undermined and dismantled the Canadian War on Queers which had led to the purging, surveillance, and harassment of thousands of queer identified people. This presentation draws from the just-released book "The Canadian War on Queers: National Security as Sexual Regulation" which will be available for sale at the event.

Gary Kinsman is a longtime queer liberation and anti-capitalist activist. He is the author of The Regulation of Desire: Homo and Hetero Sexualities (1996), co-editor of Whose National Security? (2000), and Sociology for Changing the World (2006). He is a professor of Sociology at Laurentian University in Sudbury.

>> Queer Organizing Against Apartheid with Ashley Fortier <<

Drawing on a long history of queer solidarity organizing against South African apartheid, and in response to Israel’s branding of itself as a safe haven for queers in order to distract from its racist policies towards Palestinians, a growing movement of queer solidarity against Israeli Apartheid has emerged in recent years. This presentation will
highlight some organizing successes and challenges throughout Canada and the U.S. and demonstrate the importance for queers to learn about and join in the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions campaign against Israel.

Ashley Fortier is based out of Montreal where she organizes around radical queer, prisoner justice, and Palestine solidarity struggles. She's also a part-time activist researcher with the Collectif de recherche sur l'autonomie collective, works as a coordinator at QPIRG Concordia, and hopes one day to complete her graduate certificate in
Editing and Publishing from Ryerson University.

>> Agitating Ottawa: A Local Perspective on Queer Anti-Racist Organizing with Zaheen <<

Think Ottawa’s bureaucratic and stuffy reputation is a drag? Unfortunately, this reputation has permeated many facets of our community, including the activist and queer communities. Anti-racist and queer organizing has never been easy in this city, but we have definitely come a long way. Zaheen from Agitate!, a local collective for queer people of colour, will address some challenges in doing this type of organizing in our city, as well as successes and ways we have overcome and continue to overcome these challenges.

Zaheen is a local community activist and has been a member of Agitate for almost 5 years. She is also involved with other community organizations such as Ladyfest Ottawa, SASC, and has recently joined the staff at OPIRG-GRIPO as one of their Coordinators. In her spare time, she likes to eat ice cream, be a Muslim heathen, and rock out to
Whitney Houston.

* * *

Endorsed by the CUSA GLBTQ Centre for Sexual and Gender Diversity, the CUSA Womyn's Centre, the CUSA Aboriginal Service Centre, the Carleton Centre for Aboriginal Culture and Education, OPIRG-Ottawa/GRIPO-Ottawa, the Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Movement-Ottawa, Agitate! Ottawa, Queer fAction, Q-Team, the Native Youth Sexual Health Network, PTS LBTTQ Women's Health and Sexuality Program, Students Against Israeli Apartheid-Carleton, After Stonewall, Venus Envy Ottawa, and Octopus Books.

Brought to you by OPIRG Carleton . . . research, education and action
on social and environmental justice issues, since 1980.

For more info, contact opirg@carleton.ca or 613 520 2757.

On facebook: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2261598026&ref=ts#/event.php?eid=173367522837&index=1

"CRIMINAL QUEERS" screening in Ottawa!

Saturday, November 14th at 6PM “Agora” of the University of Ottawa's University Centre (UCU, map)
85 University, (bottom floor)

Chris Vargas and Eric Stanley will be in Ottawa presenting their latest film Criminal Queers! Criminal Queers visualizes a radical trans/queer struggle against the prison industrial complex and toward a world without walls. Remembering that prison breaks are both a theoretical and material practice of freedom, this film imagines what spaces might be opened up if crowbars, wigs, and metal files become tools for transformation. Follow Yoshi, Joy, Susan and Lucy as they fiercely read everything from the Human Rights Campaign and hate crimes legislation to the non-profitization of social movements. Criminal Queers grows our collective liberation by working to abolish the multiple ways our hearts, genders, and desires are confined.

Criminal Queers brings together powerful abolitionist voices like Angela Y. Davis (who plays herself in the film), with a fictional, campy world of queer insurrection. Reworking what a queer history might mean for the possibility of surviving the present, the program centers the devastating effects the prison industrial complex (PIC) has had on transgender/ gender non-conforming and queer communities.

The Agora/University Centre is wheelchair-accessible >> Accessible entrances to the UCU can be found here (http://www.uottawa.ca/maps/)

(Désolé, le film est seulement disponible en anglais.)


Presented by: QUEER fACTION, OPIRG-GRIPO Ottawa, SFUO Women's Resource Centre, and the University of Ottawa Women's Collective

www.criminalqueersfilm.net
www.queerfaction.blogspot.com