RIP
Jazz great Ellis Marsalis Jr. passes away at 85 while battling pneumonia brought on by the coronavirus

By ASSOCIATED PRESS 2 April 2020

Ellis Marsalis Jr., jazz pianist, teacher and patriarch of a New Orleans musical clan that includes famed performer sons Wynton and Branford, has died after battling pneumonia brought by the new coronavirus, at the age of 85.

Ellis Marsalis III confirmed in a phone interview with The Associated Press that his father's death was brought about by the virus that is causing the global pandemic.

'Pneumonia was the actual thing that caused his demise. But it was pneumonia brought on by COVID-19,' said the younger Marsalis, speaking of the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.


R.I.P.: Ellis Marsalis Jr., jazz pianist, teacher and patriarch of a New Orleans musical clan that includes famed performer sons Wynton and Branford, has died after battling pneumonia brought by the new coronavirus, at the age of 85

He said he drove from Baltimore on Sunday to be with his father as he was hospitalized, adding that others in the family also were able to spend time with their father.


Four of the jazz patriarch's six sons are musicians: Wynton, the trumpeter, is America's most prominent jazz spokesman as artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York.

Branford, the saxophonist, led The Tonight Show band and toured with Sting. Delfeayo, trombonist, is a prominent recording producer and performer.

And Jason, the drummer, has made a name for himself with his own band and as an accompanist. Ellis III, who decided music was not his gig, is a photographer-poet in Baltimore.


Father: He said he drove from Baltimore on Sunday to be with his father as he was hospitalized, adding that others in the family also were able to spend time with their father

'I was with him in the hospital for six or seven hours yesterday. Branford was with him Monday, I was with him yesterday and Jason was with him today. He passed right after Jason departed,' Ellis III said.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell announced the musician's death in a somber news release Wednesday night. The elder Marsalis had continued to perform regularly in New Orleans until December.

'Ellis Marsalis was a legend. He was the prototype of what we mean when we talk about New Orleans jazz,' Cantrell said in her statement.

'He was a teacher, a father, and an icon - and words aren´t sufficient to describe the art, the joy and the wonder he showed the world.'


Performer: New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell announced the musician's death in a somber news release Wednesday night. The elder Marsalis had continued to perform regularly in New Orleans until December

Because Marsalis opted to stay in New Orleans for most of his career, his reputation was limited until his sons became famous and brought him the spotlight, along with new recording contracts and headliner performances on television and on tour.

'He was like the coach of jazz. He put on the sweatshirt, blew the whistle and made these guys work,' said Nick Spitzer, host of public radio´s American Routes and an anthropology professor at Tulane University.

The Marsalis 'family band' seldom played together when the boys were younger, but in 2003 toured up East in a spinoff of a family celebration that became a PBS special when the elder Marsalis retired from teaching at the University of New Orleans.

WHAT A GREAT HOODOO CANE

New Orleans: Because Marsalis opted to stay in New Orleans for most of his career, his reputation was limited until his sons became famous and brought him the spotlight, along with new recording contracts and headliner performances on television and on tour

Harry Connick Jr., one of Marsalis' students at the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts, was a guest. He is just one of the many now-famous jazz musicians who passed through the Marsalis classrooms; others include trumpeters Nicholas Payton and Terence Blanchard, saxophonists Donald Harrison and Victor Goines, and bassist Reginald Veal.

Marsalis was born in New Orleans, son of the operator of a hotel where Marsalis met touring black musicians who could not stay at the segregated downtown hotels where they performed. He played saxophone in high school but was also playing piano by the time he went to Dillard University.

Although New Orleans was steeped in traditional jazz, and rock 'n' roll was the new sound in the city's studios in the 1950s, Marsalis preferred bebop and modern jazz.


Modern Jazz: Although New Orleans was steeped in traditional jazz, and rock 'n' roll was the new sound in the city's studios in the 1950s, Marsalis preferred bebop and modern jazz

Spitzer described Marsalis as a 'modernist in a town of traditionalists.'

'His great love was jazz a la bebop - he was a lover of Thelonious Monk and the idea that bebop was a music of freedom. But when he had to feed his family he played R 'n' B and soul and rock and roll on Bourbon Street,' said Spitzer.

The musician's college quartet included drummer Ed Blackwell, clarinetist Alvin Batiste and saxophonist Harold Battiste playing modern.

Ornette Coleman was in town at the time, and in 1956 when Coleman headed to California, Marsalis and the others went with him, but after a few months Marsalis came back home. He told the New Orleans Times-Picayune years later, when he and Coleman were old men, that he never did figure out what a pianist could do behind the free form of Coleman's jazz.


Quartet: The musician's college quartet included drummer Ed Blackwell, clarinetist Alvin Batiste and saxophonist Harold Battiste playing modern

Back in New Orleans, Marsalis joined the Marine Corps and was assigned to accompany soloists on the service's weekly TV programs on CBS in New York. It was there, he said, that he learned to handle all kinds of different music styles.

On returning home, he worked at the Playboy Club and ventured into running his own club, which quickly went bust. In 1967 trumpeter Al Hirt hired him. When not on Bourbon Street, Hirt's band was appearing on national TV - doing headline shows on The Tonight Show and The Ed Sullivan Show, among others.

Marsalis got into education about the same time, teaching improvisation at Xavier University in New Orleans, and in the mid-1970s joined the faculty at the New Orleans magnet high school where he influenced a new generation of young jazz musicians.

When asked how he could teach something as free-wheeling as jazz improvisation, Marsalis once said, 'We don't teach jazz, we teach students.'


Jazz studies: In 1986 he moved to Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond as coordinator of Jazz Studies, a post he kept until 1989 when the University of New Orleans lured him back to set up a program of jazz studies at home

In 1986 he moved to Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond as coordinator of Jazz Studies, a post he kept until 1989 when the University of New Orleans lured him back to set up a program of jazz studies at home.

Marsalis retired from UNO in 2001, but continued to perform, particularly at Snug Harbor in New Orleans, a small jazz club that anchored the city's contemporary jazz scene - frequently backing young musicians who had promise.

His melodic style, with running improvisations in the right hand, has been described variously as romantic, contemporary, or simply 'Louisiana jazz.' He is always on acoustic piano, never electric, and even in interpreting the old standards there´s a clear link to the driving bebop chords and rhythms of his early years.

He founded his own record company, ELM (taken from his initials), but his recording was limited until his sons became famous. After that he joined them and other musicians on mainstream labels and headlined his own releases, many full of his own compositions.

He often played at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. For more than three decades he played two 75-minute sets every Friday night at Snug Harbor until he decided it had become too exhausting. But even then he still performed there on occasion as a special guest.

Marsalis' wife, Dolores, died in 2017. He is survived by his sons Branford, Wynton, Ellis III, Delfeayo, Mboya and Jason.


Family: Marsalis' wife, Dolores, died in 2017. He is survived by his sons Branford, Wynton, Ellis III, Delfeayo, Mboya and Jason

---30---

CAPITALISM COLLAPSES IN THE USA 

COVID-19 PANDEMIC CREATES 

MASS UNEMPLOYMENT NOT SEEN SINCE THE GREAT DEPRESSION

(WHAT WAS GREAT ABOUT IT WAS IT COULD HAVE LED TO)

A MASS STRIKE FOR SOCIALISM

NO MORE PROTESTS TIME TO REVOLT

Get out of Iraq once and for all


A message in support of this petition from Mairead Maguire, Nobel Peace Laureate:
"I was in Iraq during the sanctions put on by USA and was horrified to visit hospitals where Iraq children died, without medicine as a result of these barbaric sanctions and war against Iraq. It is estimated that over half a million Iraqi children under age 6 died as a result of sanctions, and I am very sorry and ask for the forgiveness of all those who lost children and families due to the perpetual sanctions and war against their country. It is overdue that USA respect the wishes of Iraqi people and their government and leave Iraq immediately."

Just the phase of the mass killing and destruction of Iraq that began 17 years ago, assessed by the most scientifically respected measures available, killed over 1.4 million Iraqis.

Join us now in demanding once and for all: U.S. troops out of Iraq!



While U.S. troops have been reduced in Iraq, they have never been removed. In January, the Iraqi Parliament voted that all U.S. troops should leave. The U.S. government has refused to leave, and has instead proposed installing ("defensive") missiles in Iraq targeting Iran.

While Iran is depicted in U.S. media as an evil enemy, the U.S. military does not claim that Iran is a threat to the actual United States, only to U.S. troops near Iran and U.S. "interests." The refusal to leave and the decision to install missiles endanger Iraq, Iran, the entire region, and a world at risk of nuclear escalation and climate collapse that cannot afford any more wars.


The aerial bombardment of Baghdad 17 years ago, which was intended to “shock and awe” people into terror and submission, followed months of pro-war propaganda in U.S. corporate media and from the U.S. government.

Senate Foreign Relations Chair Joe Biden promoted the White House’s lies about weapons of mass destruction, pushed hard for war, and orchestrated hearings that excluded dissenting voices.

Many were fooled or claimed to be. Donald Trump’s last public comment on the war before it started was that he supported it.

It is now popular in U.S. politics to deny having supported the war, even to claim to have ended it. But there is virtually no discussion of the moral and practical necessity of complying with the wishes of the Iraqi government – wishes that line up with a demand that many of us have been making for 17 years – to withdraw all U.S. troops and mercenaries and bases and weapons from Iraqi soil.Click here to join us in making that demand. We'll be able to do more with this petition if you've signed it and if you've asked others to sign it too.



After signing the petition, please use the tools on the next webpage to share it with your friends.

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-- The RootsAction.org Team

P.S. RootsAction is an independent online force endorsed by Jim Hightower, Barbara Ehrenreich, Cornel West, Daniel Ellsberg, Glenn Greenwald, Naomi Klein, Bill Fletcher Jr., Laura Flanders, former U.S. Senator James Abourezk, Frances Fox Piven, Phil Donahue, Sonali Kolhatkar, and many others.

Background:
>> CNN: “Iraqi Parliament Votes for Plan to End U.S. Troop Presence in Iraq After Soleimani Killing”
>> Mideast Eye: “U.S. Offers Iraq Partial Pullback”
>> Newsweek: “U.S. Sending Missile Defense [sic] to Iraq”
>> David Swanson: “Ever More Shocked, Never Yet Awed”
>> Video: “Worth the Price: Joe Biden and the Launch of the Iraq War”
>> FactCheck.org: “Donald Trump and the Iraq War”

ALL WE HAVE IS EACH OTHER MUTUAL AID PM PRESS

Read, listen, and watch the latest from our authors, artists, and comrades during these dark times. All we have is each other! Diary of a Plague Month— By Meg Elison Open Letter to My Landlord— By David Rovics Human life or *some* human life? – By Gabriel Kuhn Know Your Rights During COVID-19 from the National Lawyers Guild A Health Crisis, as Seen From Inside a Prison— By David Gilbert in the New York Times An Idea We Take For Granted Has Made The Outbreak Much Worse— By Lee Camp Unprecedented Precedents— By David Rovics Teaching College-Age Students Online with Compassion and Love in the Age of Covid-19– By Michelle Cruz Gonzales Social Distances— By Nisi Shawl The Forms of Isolation— By David Rovics Overcoming Personal and Collective Trauma in the Age of COVID-19— By Dani Burlison Fight or Flee— By Peter Marshall Bodge— By Robb Johnson Money Alone Cannot Overcome Coronavirus Crisis– with Chris Hedges and Lee Camp, et al Fighting the Cuomo Virus to Free Imprisoned Elders— By Susie Day If Social Distancing Is Impossible in Prisons, People Should Be Freed— By Vikki Law Coronavirus— By Leon Rosselson Coronavirus— By Peter Marshall ‘This is what health disparities look like in real life.’— By Adrian Shanker Advertising and the Apocalypse: Another World is Possible— By Vyvian Raoul Don’t Look for the Helpers— By Cory Doctorow Reading The Plague in the Age of Social Distancing— By Simone Zelitch Going Viral ? Cartographies of panic and precaution in the age of precarity– By Phil Cohen Feature article on Pennsylvania’s response to COVID-19– By Dr. Rachel Levine #MutualAid– By scott crow We’re On Our Own: Don’t Wait For The Ruling Elite (Web Exclusive) By Lee Camp Coronavirus and Democracy– By Dr. Michael Fine Honest Government Ad | Coronavirus: Flatten The Curve– By The Juice Media Viral Solidarity– By David Rovics Lessons from the Spanish Influenza— On KPFA's Against the Grain Coronavirus Updates Daily (M-F) on GoLocal LIVE at 12 noon– By Dr. Michael Fine

READ MORE FROM THE BLOG

Canada’s UN Security Council Seat Campaign Full Steam Ahead Despite Coronavirus Pandemic

Francois-Philippe Champagne says Canada has "a voice that is needed."

SINCE IT INCEPTION CANADA HAS BEEN A FOUNDING MEMBER OF THE UN

WE PARTICIPATED IN THE FOUNDATION WITH THE ILO AND THE WRITING OF THE UN CHARTER OF HUMAN RIGHTS. WE HAD A CHAIR ON THE SECURITY COUNCIL SINCE THE SEVENTIES, AND IT WAS ABANDONED BY THE RIGHT WING ANTI UN HARPER CONSERVATIVES.

Mike BlanchfieldCanadian Press

ADRIAN WYLD/CP
Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne responds to a question during a news conference in Ottawa on March 9, 2020.

OTTAWA — The COVID-19 pandemic ended the secret handshakes and deal-making in the world’s power corridors, but Canada’s campaign for a temporary seat on the United Nations Security Council is full steam ahead.

Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne and International Development Minister Karina Gould confirmed the continuing campaigning in separate interviews with The Canadian Press this past week.

They say Canada’s voice on the world’s most powerful decision-making body is needed more than ever because of the big decisions that lie ahead in managing the pandemic and its aftermath.

Canada faces tough competition from Norway and Ireland for the two available seats for a temporary two-year term that would start next year.

Both countries are viewed widely as having an advantage because they spend far more than Canada on international development to poor countries and have far more military personnel deployed on UN peacekeeping missions — two key issues for UN member countries.

Champagne and Gould say that Canada’s international stature has grown because of its response to the COVID-19 outbreak, which so far includes a $50-million foreign aid package, but some ex-diplomats say Canada needs to spend more in that area to win votes.

“The UN Security Council is the body that determines how the world reacts to issues of global security and instability,” said Gould, adding that it has never been more important to have a “rational voice” on the 10 rotating, non-permanent members of the council.

“It just demonstrates why it is important for Canada to sit on the UN Security Council. That campaign carries on, but in a different way.”

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PLAYING REALPOLITIK FOR VOTES AT THE UN

After taking part in a teleconference with fellow G7 foreign ministers this past week, Champagne said Canada’s membership in that exclusive club of leading nations would help it in the ongoing UN campaign.

“Canada has been chairing or organizing a number of calls with G7 countries,” he said. He said Canada has “a voice that is much needed in the world where we need to co-operate, co-ordinate and work together. I think Canada brings something unique to the table.

“I think more and more countries want to see their voice amplified through Canada.”

That includes during the pandemic itself, he said, “but also once we will be in the post-COVID world (we) will need countries like Canada to be there.”

Canada’s international credibility has also risen in recent months because of the role it has taken in leading the quest to get answers from Iran about its January downing of a Ukrainian passenger plane, as well its recent completion of a new North American trade deal, said Colin Robertson, a seasoned ex-diplomat.

“The new responsibilities of middle-power status, especially G7 and G20 membership, differentiates us from Norway and Ireland,” said Robertson, vice-president of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute.
Peacekeeping, foreign aid could be crippling factor

Canada’s shortfalls in peacekeeping and foreign aid remain a crippling factor in the UN bid, but the COVID-19 crisis gives it an opportunity to make up for it that, said Stephen Lewis, Canada’s UN ambassador in the 1980s.

Canada received negative reviews for its “brief peacekeeping mission in Mali” and for pulling out earlier than the UN wanted, said Lewis, who remains active in UN circles as one of the leaders of an international organization trying to stamp out abuse by peacekeepers.

“Although Canada may consider that trivial, it registers deeply with the international peacekeeping community around the world, countries whose vote Canada would want,” said Lewis.

That can be rectified by giving cash — “several hundred million” — to the African Union for its peacekeeping operations and increasing its foreign aid contribution to COVID-19 well beyond the current $50 million, which Lewis calls, “woefully inadequate.” He said Canada’s fair share would be $140 million at minimum.

“The government espouses generosity: in fact, they’re begrudging pretenders,” said Lewis.

Spending matters more than ever, especially during the pandemic, and especially in Africa where 54 of the UN General Assembly’s 190-plus countries hold a crucial bloc of votes in the Security Council election, said Bessma Momani, an international affairs expert at the University of Waterloo. 

ADRIAN WYLD/CP
International Development Minister Karina Gould responds to a question in the House of Commons on Dec. 10, 2019 in Ottawa.

So far, Canada’s $50-million pledge looks modest, and individual African countries will want more, she said.

“If I were an African government expecting COVID-19 to knock on my door any minute now, maybe if you’re choosing between Norway and Ireland, I would use that as leverage ... If you want me to vote, where’s my help?” said Momani.

Canada should campaign to address a more pressing need at the Security Council — the fact that it has been missing in action in combatting the pandemic, according to the Canadian-led World Refugee Council. Its leading members include former UN ambassadors Allan Rock and Paul Heinbecker, and Lloyd Axworthy, Canada’s foreign minister when the country last served on the council two decades ago.

“The Security Council’s silence is a troubling symptom of the deep dysfunction that has beset its 15-member body in recent years,” the group said in a statement.

“As Canada campaigns for one of those seats in this year’s election, it should pledge in its platform to bring the Security Council back to life and face up to its responsibilities.”
Will election be held in June?

The pandemic raises questions about whether the General Assembly, whose members are to hold a vote in June, will be able to meet to hold an election.

The Security Council has been meeting recently via video conference so it is conceivable that the General Assembly could convene that way in June, said Adam Chapnick, a Royal Military College professor and author of a new book on the Security Council.

“That said, there is a real chance that this pandemic will be significantly worse (at least in the global south, where it is only beginning) in a few months, so I suspect that we will be in unprecedented territory by the time the meetings are supposed to be held,” Chapnick said.

“Still, I can’t imagine that an election won’t be held, because the seats do have to be filled.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 29, 2020.

Disinfect Your Mailboxes To Stop COVID-19 Spread, Postal Union Says

Keeping things clean will protect essential workers during the pandemic.

The Canadian Press

HUFFPOST CANADA

A mailbox appears in front of a house on Tuesday in Toronto. 

Canada Post says if you have a dog, don't answer the door for the deliveries.

OTTAWA — The union representing Canada Post employees is asking Canadians to disinfect their mailboxes to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) says daily washing and disinfecting of letter boxes, along with handrails and door knobs, will help keep mail carriers safe.

CUPW national president Jan Simpson says Canadians are relying on the postal system to keep packages and letters flowing to them as they self-isolate in their homes during the pandemic.

Simpson says Canadians need to know their mail is safe and keeping things clean will help ensure this.

READ MORE

Canada Post Reduces Hours, Suspends Service To 60 Countries

Air Canada, Vancouver Airport Among Latest Mass Layoffs

Are You An Essential Worker During The Pandemic?

Canada Post workers are considered essential during the pandemic.

Meanwhile, the postal service is asking Canadians with dogs to keep their doors closed during deliveries, whenever possible.

With so many people home during the day now, Canada Post says the number of interactions between postal carriers and dogs has been increasing, making physical distancing difficult and increasing the risk of dog bites.

Four postal workers in Canada have tested positive for COVID-19 infection: one in Calgary, two in St. John’s and one in North Bay, Ont.

With files from HuffPost Canada

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on March 31, 2020.

Tenants Want Rent Freeze From Landlords As April 1 Looms

Over 700,000 people have signed a petition calling for rent payments to be cancelled during the COVID-19 crisis.

By Sherina Harris

CHRISTOPHELEDENT VIA GETTY IMAGES

Many renters are scrambling to make April rent during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In about 30 minutes, Joshna Maharaj’s next three months’ income disintegrated.

Amid growing concerns over the spread of COVID-19, the 44-year-old Toronto-based chef and activist watched as her inbox flooded with cancellations from clients.

A week and a half later, a letter was slipped under her door from her landlord with general information about garbage disposal, use of shared spaces and building operation. It also included a note about rent. The property rental company said it understands there are challenges right now, but it asks tenants to ensure their rent is paid on the first of each month.

“It’s harsh, and it’s meaningless. And I was really surprised. Because that does not feel like the appropriate tone for this moment,” Maharaj told HuffPost Canada. “I wondered when I read this, why they even bothered mentioning [rent] if they weren’t actually going to offer any real understanding.”

Maharaj is curious how other residents feel about the letters — she knows she can’t be the only one who has lost income as a result of the pandemic. She knows she won’t be able to pay her upcoming rent — “Come April 1, the money is just not there” — and is hoping movements to implement a rent break are successful.

She also notes that a holistic approach is needed — if tenants can’t pay their rent, landlords will also need relief.

“Everybody needs a bit of help here right now,” she said.

Almost half of Canadian working renters don’t have enough savings to pay their bills for more than a month if they lose their job, according to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. A recent Angus Reid poll also indicates one-third of Canadians are worried their household will miss a rent or mortgage payment.

An online petition started by Torontonian Joseph Rutherford, which calls on the federal government to cancel rent and mortgage payments during the COVID-19 crisis, has gathered over 700,000 signatures.

The federal government has approved $107 billion in aid for Canadian workers and businesses. It also announced it would help banks defer mortgage payments during the COVID-19 crisis.

Tenants in British Columbia can receive up to $500 per month for renters whose employment has been affected by the measures put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19. The province also froze annual rent increases.

Many provinces, including British Columbia, Ontario, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Quebec, have taken steps to halt evictions and eviction hearings.

BUT NOT ALBERTA

Landlords are Threatening Cash-Strapped Albertans with Evictions in the Middle of the Coronavirus Pandemic
https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/03/landlords-are-threatening-cash-strapped.html

STEVE RUSSELL VIA GETTY IMAGES

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has said no one will get evicted during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“If you’re down and out, you just don’t have the money, food’s more important to put on the table than pay rent, then put the food on the table,” Premier Doug Ford said at a press conference March 20. He said no one would be evicted during the COVID-19 pandemic.

People should contact the ministry’s rental housing enforcement unit if they’ve been locked out of their unit or threatened with a similar situation, a spokesperson for the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing told HuffPost.

B.C. Premier John Horgan said in a news release March 25 no one should lose their home as a result of the pandemic.

But despite this messaging from politicians, no province has introduced an official rent break — leaving some tenants scrambling as the April 1 deadline approaches.

Several organizations have signed onto the petition calling for rent to be cancelled ahead of April 1.

This is a reality: people were laid off.Alejandra Ruiz Vargas, spokesperson for ACORN Canada

Alejandra Ruiz Vargas, spokesperson for ACORN Canada, a national organization representing low and moderate-income Canadians, said they’re calling for a total break in rent for April. It wants tenants to show landlords proof they lost their employment, and for the landlords to be able to invoice the federal government for that months’ rent, although Ruiz Vargas doesn’t know what that would cost. If businesses stay closed, it would also advocate to extend it to May.


MARTA IWANEK VIA GETTY IMAGES

ACORN spokesperson Alejandra Ruiz Vargas wants to see

 a total rent break for the month of April.

“People don’t have the money,” Ruiz Vargas told HuffPost Canada.

“This was not something that was made up or fabricated. This is a reality: people were laid off. People cannot go to work because they do not have somebody to stay with their kids. So the reality is that people don’t have the money to pay their rent.”
What happens if you don’t pay your rent?

The suspension on evictions means it’s “highly unlikely” a renter would be evicted in the foreseeable future if they don’t pay their rent, according to Caryma Sa’d, a Toronto-based housing lawyer. However, this doesn’t mean renters are immune to eviction once things go back to normal.

There’s been nothing from the provincial or federal government that suggests renters won’t be responsible for their accumulated rent eventually, Sa’d said, though she noted it’s possible that a system could be put in place for tenants to only pay back a portion if the arrears accumulate to a significant amount.

Those payment plans could be ordered by a tribunal or court, or directly negotiated with a landlord, Sa’d said. She said if tenants cannot pay arrears, or fail to negotiate a payment plan, communities may see major disruptions or a “mass exodus” of low to middle-income people who can no longer afford to live in their communities.

Another potential concern is that landlords could take matters into their own hands and change a unit’s locks if a renter doesn’t pay, Sa’d said.


PHOTO BY KARIMA GHEDDAI

Caryma Sa'd, a Toronto-based housing lawyer, said it's unlikely tenants will be evicted in the foreseeable future.

Housing falls under the provincial jurisdiction — the province sets rent control, for example. But given that Canada’s federal government unveiled a national housing strategy in 2017, there may be room for cooperation, Sa’d said.

In Toronto, the municipality is also, in a way, a landlord, through the Toronto Community Housing Corporation, she noted.

With so much changing daily, Sa’d said it’s hard to say whether there will be a rent freeze — meaning renters won’t have to pay rent — by April 1. While she wouldn’t rule it out, she said if tenants take direct action through a rent strike, that could prompt a more serious conversation.

“I think that that may be inevitable if nothing is announced, and possibly the government, at provincial or federal level, is just waiting to see how this plays out and crafting their response.”

Future evictions likely if tenants don’t pay: landlord

William Blake, a member of the Ontario Landlords Association (OLA) who has properties in several provinces, said small landlords are also facing challenges during this time.

“The small landlords are often mom-and-pop operations, or maybe someone’s renting their basement to help cover their own mortgage, or maybe someone bought one investment property and if they don’t pay their mortgage and their insurance and their expenses, they can also get into a lot of financial difficulties,” he said.

Blake has been evaluating the situation with his tenants on a case-by-case basis — the advice he gives to other landlords — and giving some the option to defer their rent if necessary.

He said he understands why people may want or need to go on a rent strike, but warned tenants to be aware of the risks. He said although in Toronto the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) is closed for evictions, just like in many cities around the country, landlords can still file paperwork on April 2 if rent isn’t paid. Although it might be several months for a hearing, he said it’s likely tenants who didn’t pay rent will be eventually given an eviction notice.

Tenants who don’t pay their rent also risk a negative impact on their credit rating.

[The small landlords] can also get into a lot of financial difficulties.William Blake, Ontario Landlords Association member

Blake said if tenants can’t pay their rent, they should document their attempts to work with their landlord for their eventual LTB hearing. Tenants should show they were struggling and have proof they asked their landlord to pay a portion of their rent now and a portion later, he said.

The Toronto-based Keep Your Rent website gives renters a template to communicate with their landlords.

Blake said many landlords he knows have been unable to take advantage of the federal government’s mortgage deferral because many banks won’t qualify investment properties, calling it a “heartbreak” for small landlords who wanted to give their tenants a break.

The OLA is calling for an expanded rent bank for grants and loans so tenants can access funds to pay their rent, as well as for the government to talk to banks and lenders to give them a break, so they can give one to tenants.

READ MORE:

I'm A Landlord Who Waived April Rent. I'll Do It Until July If I Need To.

1/4 Of Canada's Small, Medium-Sized Firms Can't Make Rent Wednesday

Food Is More Important Than Rent, Ford Says At Emotional Press Conference

Issues raised with ‘patchwork’ system

Mazdak Gharibnavaz, a steering committee member on the Vancouver Tenants Union, said the current support programs amount to a “patchwork” system that won’t see money in renters pockets by April 1. He said the $500 per B.C. household is low given that the average cost of a one-bedroom apartment is over $2,000 and a two-bedroom apartment is nearly $3,000.

He also said the $500 is given to landlords, with no guarantee that rent will be lowered for tenants — even though renters are the ones who have to apply. The application system also requires internet access, and might not be accessible for undocumented people, non-English speakers or other marginalized communities — especially with libraries and community centres closed.

“We can’t have business as usual during a crisis, where landlords and property management companies are continuing to make profits, and there’s no income coming to renters,” Gharibnavaz told HuffPost.

He said the Vancouver Tenants Union is telling its members that if they can’t pay rent, they should prioritize feeding their families and taking care of their health.

We can't have business as usual during a crisis.Mazdak Gharibnavaz, steering committee member on the Vancouver Tenants Union

“Essentially, our hope is that people can use this time to organize buildings across the city, and really fight for their rights and not go into a situation where they’re taking on debt or draining their savings,” Gharibnavaz said.

The union also plans to campaign to have outstanding rent and eviction notices cancelled, after the eviction moratorium is lifted.

“We want to ensure that folks remain home after this crisis.”

Alberta Education Cuts Amount To Over 20,000 Likely Support Staff Layoffs
Parents of kids who use educational assistants are panicking about what will happen.

ALBERTA PREMIER KENNEY USES PANDEMIC EMERGENCY POWERS TO BUST UNIONS AND BREAK CONTRACTS
By Melanie Woods

COURTESY DUANE FROESE

Duane Froese's daughter participates in a session with her educational assistant.

Since schools closed two weeks ago, Duane Froese’s daughter has worked with an educational assistant (EA) almost every day using video conferencing.

Froese’s daughter has Rett syndrome, a neurological disorder that affects motor ability. She has worked with her current EA daily in the classroom for the past two years to adapt lesson plans to help her perform on par with the other kids in her Grade 2 class.

“She is nonverbal, she also does not walk, and she has limited hand function,” Froese, who lives in Edmonton, said. “And so the aides really facilitate her learning through adapted communication.”

With recent school closures related to the coronavirus pandemic, those in-class sessions have shifted online. Alberta has moved towards at-home learning for all students, but Froese says the EA has been a vital resource in particular helping his daughter adapt to learning from home.

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But that resource may not be there forever.

Provincial funding cuts announced over the weekend include layoffs to an anticipated 26,000 education support workers in Alberta, which could leave many kids without vital educational supports.

The cuts were unveiled Saturday by Education Minister Adriana LaGrange, who called them a necessity in the wake of the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic.

“COVID-19 has changed both how we provide student learning, and the operational needs of the education system,” LaGrange said in a statement.

“I want to stress that this is a temporary arrangement as schools focus on at-home learning. I have full confidence the system will continue to be equipped to successfully deliver our education continuity plan.”

Around $128 million in funding will be cut from Alberta’s K-12 education systems in areas the province deems unessential in terms of remote learning, including support staff such as educational assistants, bus drivers and custodial staff. The Alberta Teachers Association estimates the cuts will lead to 20,000 layoffs of support staff and up to 6,000 substitute teacher layoffs.

In a statement Saturday, Rory Gill, the president of the Alberta division of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, called the cuts “heartbreaking.”

“With a surprise announcement, lacking in detail, on a Saturday afternoon, the Kenney government has just fired thousands of people who look after and educate our kids,” said Gill.

                              (SO WHAT YOU GONNA DO ABOUT IT RORY?)

 
A big challenge

Froese worries that if his daughter’s EA is laid off, their family and the classroom teacher won’t be able to give her the support she needs.

“We’re not professionals in these areas of, you know, special needs learning,” he said. “We’re parents who are well educated — I’m a professor at the university. We should be OK at doing some of this but, I’m finding it a big challenge.”
We’re not professionals in these areas of, you know, special needs learning.Duane Froese

He said he has long advocated for his daughter and other disabled kids, but he worries about kids who don’t have a strong parental support system.

“Not all kids have parents who are comfortable advocating on their behalf,” he said. “When you think about the impact of EAs who are helping kids and helping families, not all parents are either going to have the capacity or have the ability to potentially work with the kids in the same way as other families.”
The value of assisted learning

Shelly Moore is a doctoral researcher at the University of British Columbia who specializes in inclusive education. She said her “heart hurts” for the families impacted by the cuts.

“The tricky thing about funding cuts in general is that very often some of the most vulnerable learners are the ones that are affected by this,” she said. “And so then to find out on Saturday, but a whole other round of cuts are coming that directly impact kids with disabilities — I really understand why people are upset.”

Moore argued EAs are even more essential in a remote-learning environment in order to help adapt kids to the new learning space and build a bridge between the classroom teachers and parents at home.

Very often some of the most vulnerable learners are the ones that are affected by this.Shelley Moore

“This is going to put a lot of stress on teachers who just physically don’t have the time to be able to meet all the needs of these kids,” she said. “EAs are critical to this process because they know the kids in the family and they have more time to give to kids and families to give that scaffolding, and translate that classroom curriculum to these remote locations.”

Froese said he’s spoken to other parents of special needs kids in Alberta, and that they are “scrambling” to develop strategies to help their kids learn in the coming months without EAs. He also pointed out many kids who have aids are high risk kids, and they will be even more impacted by the cuts.

“There are kids that need the support and need these connections and need the structure that the EAs can provide to them while they’re transitioning to the home learning environment,” he said. “And without that, I would think a lot of these kids are going to be a little bit rudderless.”

Moore said the best thing parents can do is acknowledge this is a huge change in many ways, and take each day one step at a time for their sake and the sake of their kids.

She said no matter your child’s ability, educating from home can be hard, and it’s OK to put academics on the back burner in favour of keeping kids active, connected and feeling safe.

“The expectation is not that they recreate educational programs for their kids,” she said. “Right now I think it’s really about parents working to support each other to support their kids.”

Feds Order Millions Of Masks, Thousands Of Ventilators Amid COVID-19 Fight
$2B is also being spent on the purchase of protective personal equipment.

Canadian Press

JUSTIN TANG/CP

Public Services Minister Anita Anand speaks during a press

 conference on COVID-19 in Ottawa, on March 20, 2020.

Millions of masks and thousands of ventilators have been ordered by the federal government to shore up the national stockpile of supplies needed to treat and fight COVID-19.

Public Services and Procurement Minister Anita Anand said Tuesday the equipment will be added to the Canadian store of essential medical goods in the coming days.

It includes 60 million N95 masks, a specific piece of protection for health care officials, expected to be delivered this week.

Anand says there are 1,570 ventilators also on order, and the government is seeking out 4,000 more.

Toronto-based company making 500 ventilators

Thornhill Medical, a Toronto-based company, says it’s making 500 of them, and expects to deliver them in early April.

Anand says there are also a million more COVID-19 test kits on the way.

The purchases of supplies in those key three areas is a follow-up on an announcement by the federal government on March 20 that it had signed up three companies to help provide critical goods.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday the government has signed letters of intent with five other companies to also produce equipment.

Overall, the government has spoken to 3,000 different firms, he said.

But how much gear the country will need is up to Canadians themselves, Trudeau said.

“We will need more masks, ventilators and testing kits, but how many more we need depends entirely on you,” Trudeau said.

“If you stay home and follow public health recommendations, you can slow the spread.”

Ventilators are considered crucial as COVID-19 is a respiratory disease and in severe cases can make impossible for people to breathe on their own.

Thornhill Medical said it has teamed up with manufacturing company Linamar to make them.

“We are honoured to provide our Canadian-made ventilator system to support Canadians and our health-care system in its efforts to fight COVID-19,” said Lesley Gouldie, the company’s CEO, in a statement.

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The government is also allocating $2 billion for the purchase of protective personal equipment.

“Extraordinary measures are required in these extraordinary times. To limit the spread of COVID-19, protect critical infrastructure and ensure Canada has the supplies required, our government is leaving no stone unturned,” Anand said Tuesday.

“This is all hands on deck.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 31, 2020.

Canadian Underwear Maker Stanfield’s Sets Sights On Making Medical Gowns

The company says it could quickly produce garments for hospital use.

Michael TuttonThe Canadian Press


ANDREW VAUGHAN/THE CANADIAN PRESS

Canadian garment manufacturer Stanfield's is seen here in Truro, N.S., on Tuesday.

HALIFAX — A historic Canadian undergarment factory famed for long johns and boxer shorts is about to rapidly reinvent itself as a domestic producer of medical gowns.

Stanfield’s Ltd. of Truro, N.S., is among five firms that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Tuesday have received letters of intent to manufacture personal protective equipment and clothing for front-line health workers.

Jon Stanfield, the chief executive of the fifth-generation family firm, said in an interview he’s already sourced approved fabric from nearby Intertape Polymer, and is ready to be producing medical clothing within days.

The 48-year-old says once the federal government provides details of its offer, the company could bring back over 75 of its more than 200 staff who were sent home earlier this month as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He describes the restart as a “pivotal” signal that Western governments are moving to ensure there are domestic suppliers of medical gear and gowns crucial to public safety in the future.

Watch: Canadian companies are finding ways to contribute during the COVID-19 pandemic. Story continues below.

Stanfield said the firm has patterns and machinery that would initially produce more than 2,000 gowns daily per shift to help feed a Canadian demand for garments that emerged after the pandemic sliced supply from China.

The businessman — the grand nephew of the late federal Tory leader Robert Stanfield — said he’s being driven by a sense of mission akin to the sudden demands created by wars and shifts in the Canadian economy.

In the 1890s, the company invented shrink-proof heavy woolen underwear used by workers during the Klondike gold rush; in the First World War, the factory was converted to provide wool blankets to keep soldiers warm in the trenches; and in Second World War, it supplied base layers of underclothing.

Innovation and survival is part of his firm’s history, said Stanfield, adding, “my forefathers ... invented the long john.”

Stanfield said he plans to provide some gowns through the company’s overseas supply chain, but also intends to re-establish a Canadian domestic supply that free trade and offshore production have almost wiped out.

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“Isolation gowns, reusable and disposable, are made in China, so to build a small resource base in Canada is important to dealing with crises like this in the future,” he said.

“You can’t have your supply chain be permitted to suddenly fall to zero like this.”

Guillaume Laverdure, the chief operating officer of Montreal-based Medicom, which produces protective masks, said in an interview he also sees a lasting shift occurring.

His firm has factories in China supplying masks, but the company saw a reduction of supply during the initial outbreak in the city of Wuhan.

Laverdure said in the past few days the supply of masks has been flowing again, but Ottawa has signed an agreement with his company to create a Canadian-based factory and supply face masks to health agencies.

ANDREW VAUGHAN/THE CANADIAN PRESS

Jon Stanfield, president and CEO of Stanfield's, stands

 inside a production area at his company's facility in Truro, 

N.S., on Tuesday.

Laverdure said several Western governments his firm is dealing with, including France and Canada, are now looking for his company to produce the mask on their soil.

“They want to have control of such a critical item for their health-care system,” he said in an interview.

Stanfield said he hasn’t been informed yet how large a contract is going to be offered to gown producers under the federal procurement program, but he expects it will be in the millions of dollars.

He expects the details will be worked out and emerge in the days to come.

“We’re ... going to be supporting our people in the front-line defence against COVID-19 with creativity and innovation,” he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on March 31, 2020.