Open Sources Guelph - February 27, 2020

This week on Open Sources Guelph, it's more of the same hits as we look at the now expanded rail blockades, and the latest from the race to find the 46th American President. In new stuff, we'll look at the latest test to Canada's laws regarding sex work, and we'll have an appropriately timed conversation with the Minister for Women (and other things).

This Thursday, February 27, at 5 pm, Scotty Hertz and Adam A. Donaldson will discuss:

Trainsclotting. On Monday, the OPP moved in and tore down the rail blockade in the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, and that was the end of it, right? Of course it wasn't, and more rail blockades have turned up across the country, and on even busier stretches of commuter track, which affects even more people. Meanwhile, Teck pulled the plug on their planned Frontier pipeline for business reasons, which is, of course, the fault of the Liberal government. So, what next?

Bern Notice. The fourth presidential contest for the Democratic Party will take place in South Carolina this weekend, and the good money's still on former Vice-President Joe Biden to win even as Senator Bernie Sanders is closing the gap. You know Bernie's the real frontrunner because the knives are out, and everyone's obsessed with an off-hand statement he made about Castro's Cuba. Is this Bernie's game now, or is there time for someone else to upset?

There's Something About Maryam. Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development Maryam Monsef came to the University of Guelph last Friday, and visited a couple of different places on campus, including CFRU. In our interview, Monsef will talk about the urgency of getting broadband internet to rural areas, dealing with activists as a former student activist herself, and her thoughts on how best to move forward after the Dave Scott-Thomas allegations.

Next Work. A provincial judge in Kitchener has ruled that Canada's current prostitution laws are unconstitutional in the case of Tiffany Harvey and Hamad Anwar who were charged in 2015 for running Fantasy World Escorts. This is the first test of the law passed by the Harper Conservatives in 2014, and as the defense argued that law infringed on their right to Free Expression, and the right of sex workers to have a safe workplace. So how will the government respond, and is there any appetite to make real changes to Canada's laws regarding sex work.

Open Sources is live on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca at 5 pm on Thursday.