Capers 4 Healthcare

Cape Breton residents protest diminishing health care in the region

On November 16 a group of Cape Breton residents, known as Capers 4 Healthcare, shut down the causeway for an hour to protest the diminishing health care in the region. With more than 150 people, they planned to protest in front the Minister of Health and Wellness’ office in Antigonish; but given the rough weather, the group was forced to turn back for safety reasons. The Minister, Randy Delorey, declined invitations to attend public events hosted by the group, resulting in direct action.

The protest was organized given the recent health care reforms proposed by Stephen McNeil, wherein hospitals in North Sydney and New Waterford would be closed. The local medical community and health workers’ union were not consulted and were only given a few hours notice. With doctor shortages, long waits for procedures and disappearing specialties, the announcements can’t help but make the changes feel drastic and dangerous for the community.

Three months after this announcement, the premier and other members of government gathered to announce the move and replacement of facilities, wherein staff had all been made aware and were supportive. An undermining act adding salt to the wound for the people of Cape Breton. 

The changes will enact the opening of new community health centres, with the teams of health care professionals working collaboratively. Many of the services offered will address the health concerns of the region such as mental heath, addictions, or diabetes; however, for emergencies patients will be redirected to the hospitals at Cape Breton Regional or Glace Bay. The plans are expected to begin taking effect within the next two years. 

The demographics in Cape Breton and all across Nova Scotia are changing as more youth continue to move to cities or out of province for available work. In Antigonish we have a seen a hike in the elderly population and the opening of new senior communities or retirement homes. These changing demographics require the industry to change out of necessity, which makes sense; but if a region already suffers from shortages of health care                                   professionals, one can’t help but wonder how changing the system of approach makes it effective. 

The idea of the new services sounds very nice, but without consultation of current experts in the area, as well as a plan, such as a survey of what prospective new practitioners are seeking, the ideas seem loosely formed and lead to caution or worry. Family practitioners in Nova Scotia earn, on average, between $10 000 and $100 000 less than doctors in other provinces according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information. Not only is there no guarantee of those resources, but the government is eliminating existing services and making it harder to access services in the case of an emergency. 

As a young person from Nova Scotia, this makes me concerned for my parents as they age, as well as the resources available for me. As I finish in the Education program at StFX this year, I could potentially end up in a rural area depending on job availability, if I choose to stay in the province. Knowing that resources may not be available to me in a crisis deters me from wanting to move, which presents the argument of how will the government prevent other resources in the community from leaving, or, how will they pull them in? 

These action items need to be addressed and our current political representative is not doing their part to ensure peace of mind. In fact, our provincial government made a point to show how resources in the city take a higher priority than those in rural communities by consulting with their region. The proposed plans may sound nice, but until they can confirm many of the underlying issues, it is important for the community to stand up and speak. This protest was to voice concern, and it did not get the attention that it deserved, and instead echoed the theme of where attention is placed in our province. 

Pride Matters

How a New Brunswick community lacks understanding

Earlier this week, a small village by the name of Chipman in New Brunswick gained notoriety for flying a flag developed for “straight pride.” The flag was lowered the following morning in response to public outcry. 

This comes mere months after Sussex, NB encountered complaints for implementing rainbow sidewalks and Woodstock, NB had their rainbow sidewalks vandalized.

The pride flag was initially developed in 1978, where Gilbert Baker was pressed by Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man elected to public office in California, to create an emblem of empowerment for the queer community. It consisted of eight colours but would later be redesigned to include six.

In an except from Gilbert Baker’s memoir “I had considered all flag-waving and patriotism in general to be a dangerous joke. But that changed in 1976. The American Bicentennial celebration put the focus on the American flag. It was everywhere, from pop art to fine art, from tacky souvenirs to trashy advertising. On every level, it functioned as a message.

I thought how most flags represented a place. They were primarily nationalistic, territorial, iconic propaganda – all things we questioned in the ‘70s… The rainbow came from earliest recorded history as a symbol of hope… Now the rioters who claimed their freed at the Stonewall Bar in 1969 would have their own symbol of liberation.”

The importance of the rainbow pride flag denotes the different plights suffered by the LGBTQ+ society. From common discrimination, to larger hate crimes and murder, the flag is often interpreted as the freedom for individuals to express themselves in a welcoming space. 

The Chipman council issued a statement saying, “Council’s decision to allow a straight pride flag to be raised in the community was based on our desire to support all groups in our municipality and to respect everyone’s right to freedom of speech in accordance with the Charter of Rights and Freedom.” In their statement they address the understanding that “The straight flag is being seen as a flag of privilege and anti-minorities which our community and our council does not support.” 

Glenn Bishop, the developer of the flag, was shocked to hear of the flag’s removal telling CTV “That’s disgraceful. This is discrimination against straight people.” Bishop claims he is considering legal action against the village.

In an interview with Global News Helen Kennedy, executive director of human rights group Egale Canada, states that the choice to raise the flag “likely stems from the lack of understanding of the real symbolism of the pride flag, as well as a lack of understanding about the hardships faced by Canada’s LGBTQ community”

Kennedy continues, “I think it’s really unfortunate that the community has done this because it further marginalizes LGBTI people and it makes them feel really unsafe in their communities.”