Tell me more of your musings!!!
Theresa Healy, Ph.D.
Adjunct Professor
Dept. of Gender Studies and the School of Environmental Planning
UNBC, Prince George, BC. V2N 4Z9
email: [log in to unmask]; cell phone: 250-565-1955
"Until lions have their own historian, tales of the hunt will always
reflect the hunter." African proverb.
-----Original Message-----
From: Social Determinants of Health [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
Reena Tandon
Sent: Monday, March 20, 2006 10:52 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [SDOH] inspired to write
Hi Theresa,
i was mulling over the quote (African proverb) at the end of your mail.
It is interesting how the subaltern is relative - i was thinking of the
lamb or the deer...
reena
>>> [log in to unmask] 03/20/06 1:06 PM >>>
Okay, as you can all tell, I was still steaming when I wrote my note to
the list!! The corrected opening lines are below!!
*******
I used to be an inveterate writer of letters to the editor, it was how I
used to vent my spleen. Plus composing them in the middle of the night
when I couldn't sleep seemed a positive use of mental energy. I don't
know when I began to stop...
Anyway Dennis, your challenge inspired me: below is a copy of what I
sent
to the G&M today...
Dear Sirs: I rely on the Globe and Mail for the most intelligent and
forthright discussion of the issues facing Canada and though I may not
agree with you all of the time (and certainly Margaret Wente hardly
ever) I do expect your work and commitment to help shape a progressive
and compassionate coverage of my country's issues. I have to tell you I
now select the hotel chain I travel with based on the fact they give the
Globe and Mail as the free newspaper outside my hotel room door instead
of the infuriatingly bad National Post.
I do feel, however, you are letting me, and many other loyal readers,
down with your coverage of the intersection of health and social issues.
Solid research has demonstrated that individually based approaches to
the current health crises in Canada do nothing to solve the long term
health and social ills facing this country. People's choices regarding
food, exercise, and other "lifestyle" issues are rarely made in a
vacuum. Rather, they are either facilitated or constrained by the social
and economic fabric of their lives. While your coverage continues to
reflect the gross untruth that we are all equally free to join a gym, we
continue to blame people for shortcomings and failures that are
politically and economically designed. This sets up a nice cycle of
guilt, failure and despair that only serves to fuel more of the
supposedly poor behavioral "choices".
As a nation, I believe Canada espouses values of equity and fairness.
These values are not necessarily enshrined in our political system nor
in the economic realities that shape our lives. I do expect the press to
be more vigilant about going beneath the surface of press releases and
ministerial photo ops to provide good journalism.
As you might remember from the recent debacle at the Canadian Medical
Association Journal, work that was based in qualitative research (on
women's experiences with the Plan B contraception option supposedly
freely available through pharmacists) was dismissed as journalism and
relegated from the more "pure" pages of the journal to a news column. In
the ensuing investigation, the review panel stated that such work - what
they termed "non-bureaucratic research" - was considered highly
important and equally valuable. It is this level of research/journalism
I expect from the Globe and Mail: credible, solidly researched and never
quite satisfied with official views. This is an important role for our
national newspaper and one I believe you are currently miserably
failing.
And if I lived in Toronto I'd be at the upstream downtown event. Maybe I
will try to organize a similar "feed the soul and fire the ramparts"
event here....
Theresa Healy, Ph.D.
Adjunct Professor
Dept. of Gender Studies and the School of Environmental Planning
UNBC, Prince George, BC. V2N 4Z9
email: [log in to unmask]; cell phone: 250-565-1955
"Until lions have their own historian, tales of the hunt will always
reflect the hunter." African proverb.
-----Original Message-----
From: Social Determinants of Health [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
Lavell, Shannon
Sent: Monday, March 20, 2006 9:30 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [SDOH] The Upstream Downtown People Over Poverty letter writing
coffee night
Thank you Dennis and others addressing the what to do issue.
I absolutely agree that these simple actions are underestimated and
underused.
I have an idea to have a "one time gathering" (who knows maybe we'll
have fun and want to meet again if the pressure is not huge to commit to
an ongoing group). So I've decided to post an email to my friends and
interested colleagues to attend "The Upstream Downtown People Over
Poverty" evening at a local coffee house in early April where I think we
should focus on actually writing our letters, bring addresses, envelopes
and stamps and all head out to the mailbox together at the end of our
coffee session. Anyone on this list serv attending, please note the
addition to the agenda :)
Shannon Lavell
-----Original Message-----
From: Social Determinants of Health [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
Dennis Raphael
Sent: Saturday, March 18, 2006 5:58 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [SDOH] Poverty and what to do...
I despair at times as well. One of my biggest beefs is that in addition
to the absolute lack of concern by elected representatives, is the
failure of supporters to take the necessary action. What I mean by this
is:
1) How many of you on this list take the time to send letters to
editors, your elected MPs or others? If you do, great, if not, why not.
They will not fire you. They simply count letters, emails, etc.
2) In addition to members of this list, there are literally thousands of
people who read our stuff, attend our lectures, see themselves as
supporters, but do nothing.
The reason the Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, other media, elected reps
-- the Sandra Pupatello's, Gerard Kennedy's the Jack Laytons (whose
platform is good, but dare not speak the word poverty in public) get
away with this is that they see NO consequences for their actions.
If Edward Greenspon and Paul Taylor -- the evil editor and health editor
of the Globe and Mail respectively were told - repeatedly -- that their
health coverage is crap, they might be more receptive to doing something
about it.
So, let's begin right now!
[log in to unmask]
[log in to unmask]
[log in to unmask]
Ontario
[log in to unmask] -- Minister of Community and Social
Services [log in to unmask] -- Former Director Daily Food
Bank, now Minister of Education [log in to unmask] -
Premier of Ontario
Provide similar emails to the list for your province/state!
By the way, the following appeared yesterday in the Toronto Star, but
not in the internet version...
------------------------------------------
Re: Protecting our social programs, March 16, 2006. While in
Opposition, Sandra Pupatello made the rounds of anti-poverty and Faith
groups groups commiserating with them about how awful the Conservative
government was treating people on social assistance. Her party promised
to end the claw-back of the National Child Benefit to families on social
assistance. Once elected, they changed their mind. Enough said.
Dennis Raphael
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