Architecture for Humanity Toronto 2009 Lecture Series

Architecture for Humanity

Friday Foto

I don't know the origins of the photo, or where this took place, but it breaks my heart.

Remembering Naomi Sims: Black is Beautiful

Naomi Sims, Cosmopolitan, August 1973

In the 1960s, at New York's Fashion Institute of Technology, Sims classmates urged her to try modeling. On her first attempt not a single agency would accept her...because she was black.

"Black wasn't beautiful then," Sims later told Black Enterprise magazine.

On her second attempt, Sims approached fashion photographers directly. After a New York Times photographer agreed to shoot her for a 1967 supplement, she mailed the supplement to advertising agencies. AT&T then hired her for a television campaign, and she quickly became a hot commodity, making $1,000 per week doing shoots for top designers.

Her success was viewed as a milestone in the civil rights movement, validating that "black is beautiful."

Washington Post's Robin Givhan wrote this week. "It was a cultural revelation."

Sims quit modeling after a short five years and started her own wig business.

She died from breast cancer, August 1st, 2009.

(March 30, 1948 - August 1, 2009)

Sway goes National!

Sway Magazine is a quarterly magazine that is geared to Black Canadians. The magazine is currently distributed free in the GTA since 2006. Now readers outside the GTA can pick up the magazine for $4.95 at one of the 150 stores across the country (ex: Chapters Indigo). Alan Vernon associate publisher and editorial director at Sway said: “My goal is to make it a national entity that the black community knows, and basically make it our own Essence or Ebony in Canada."
(Information from Marketing Daily, By Matt Semansky, July 15/09)

CBFF Monthly Film Club presents: The Legacy of Frances-Anne Solomon, Sunday July 19th

The Canadian Black Film Festival is thrilled to announce the July session for their monthly Film Club - a tribute to the highly-acclaimed Frances-Anne Solomon, one of the most prolific Film/TV directors, producers and playwrights of her generation! She is best known for her work on the TV series ‘Lord Have Mercy’, and her most recent film, 'A Winter's Tale' that has received many prestigious international awards.

The Canadian Black Film Festival is thrilled to announce the July session for their monthly Film Club - a tribute to the highly-acclaimed Frances-Anne Solomon, one of the most prolific Film/TV directors, producers and playwrights of her generation! She is best known for her work on the TV series ‘Lord Have Mercy’, and her most recent film, 'A Winter's Tale' that has received many prestigious international awards.

In addition to the screenings, we’re pleased to be joined by business and life coach extraordinaire Sonia Byrne after the Q & A for a 45 minute talk entitled ‘Fearless Networking: Making the most of your first impression’. Get powerful advice on the use of networking to increase your contacts and grow your business.

SUN JULY 19 National Film Board of Canada 150 John Street (NW corner of John & Richmond) Time: 1 pm - 5 pm Admission: $10 Gen / $8 Students & Seniors (with valid ID) *NOTE: For advance tickets, please contact Andrew at: andrewmahorn@gmail.com /905-999-2629

Jumping on the Bike Band Wagon

Fingers crossed Toronto may be getting a new bike-sharing program (2 years after BikeShare stopped operating). Hopefully getting off and rolling by Spring 2010 with 3000 bikes around T.O.

Toronto Garbage Strike...

So I'm in Europe for the past couple of weeks...while in London I'm going on and on about how London needs more garbage cans around the city, cuz I have nowhere to toss my gum and that maybe I should write a letter to the Queen. Walking to work downtown Toronto today all the trash bins are still shrink wrapped. The little things we take for granted and come to expect. The good thing although, we seemed to be well conditioned...garbage is "neatly" piled around bins.

Bike through the Trees

Bamboo bike! You can recycle everything! Love it!
Alex Lentati Photo

Israel/Palestine: Mapping Models of Statehood and Paths to Peace

The purpose of this conference is to explore which state model would be the best to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, respecting the rights to self-determination of both Israelis/Jews and Palestinians. Despite the current diplomatic focus on the two-state model, the continued failure to bring peace to the region highlights the necessity of rigorously examining all options for a resolution of the conflict. The conference seeks to systematically measure the two state model against the promise of alternatives; very specifically the potential in the model of a single bi-national state.

Co-sponsored by Queen's University anYork University. An official U50 initiative, part of York University's 50th Anniversary celebrations.

June 22 - 24, 2009.
York University, Toronto.

http://www.yorku.ca/ipconf/
From Centre for Social Justice

Canada's abandoned citizens: public forum

The Canadian Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CAN), Amnesty International Canada, and the Muslim Law Students' Association at the University of Toronto invite you to attend a panel discussion event entitled:

Canada's abandoned citizens:
Abousfian Abdelrazik, Husseyin Celil and Omar Khadr

The event will involve a discussion of the plights of Abdelrazik, Celil and Khadr, the government's duty to protect its citizens abroad and the constitutionality of the government's decisions to date in the three cases.

Confirmed speakers:

Barbara Jackman, Immigration and refugee lawyer
Chris MacLeod, lawyer for Husseyin Celil
Yavar Hameed, lawyer for Abousfian Abdelrazik

Additional speakers to be announced shortly.

Thursday, June 25
Doors open at 6:30pm
Panel discussion begins at 7:00pm
Q&A session follows at 8:30pm
Debates Room
Hart House, University of Toronto
7 Hart House Circle
TTC: Queen's Park

Suggested donation: $5
Light refreshments will be served.

For more information, please e-mail gta@caircan.ca or phone 416-732-2965.
For special accommodations, please contact us at least two weeks in advance.

CAIR-CAN and Amnesty International Canada have also launched a postcard campaign for Abdelrazik, Celil and Khadr. If you would like to participate in this campaign, please e-mail gta@caircan.ca for details.

From Centre for Social Justice