The following discussion of strategy for social change, by Umair Muhammad, was first published under the title “An Altered Position,” as an afterword to the second edition of his book Confronting Injustice: Social Activism in the Age of Individualism.
The Leap Manifesto has recently found itself at the centre of controversy, with pipelines in particular acting as a wedge between various factions and regional representatives of the NDP.
The Manifesto effectively calls for a moratorium on :infrastructure projects that lock us into increased extraction decades into the future." As a supporter of the social and ecological principles that undergird Leap, I can get behind this statement.
April 13, 2016 - When Rachel Notley's NDP came to power last spring in Alberta, Gordon Laxer's book, After the Sands: Energy and Ecological Security for Canadians, on ecological renewal and Canadian petro-politics was already at the publisher. And so, he was given a week to do some major rewriting because he had not foreseen this political earthquake in the making.
[One 'translation' offered by Marv Gandall on the Socialist Project list: "We’re working on a vague climate change resolution which will preempt debate at the riding level, ensure that we’re not saddled with anything remotely resembling the Leap Manifesto, and align the party with the fossil fuel dependent NDP government in Alberta."]
One of the NDP's longest-serving MPs says the party can survive the controversial Leap Manifesto, and is already at work behind closed doors to bridge its recently very public divides.
April 14, 2016 - Well, the Leap is certainly in the news. Many articles have been filled with errors and misrepresentations, which isn't surprising. It makes perfect sense that right-leaning publications and competing political parties would seek to bury the NDP at a time when it is engaged in a process of open soul-searching. We should expect more, however, from commentators on the left.
Apr. 11, 2016 - B.C. NDP Leader John Horgan wants to form a common front with the Alberta NDP government in opposition to the federal party’s proposed policy manifesto aiming to wean Canada off fossil fuels by 2050.
Mr. Horgan is currently under fire from labour leaders for his opposition to two major energy projects in B.C. on environmental grounds.
The head of Via Rail says the Crown corporation has investors in place and is ready to start construction in early 2017 on a plan that would dramatically improve service in the Montreal-Ottawa-Toronto corridor.
