🗞️ Council crystal ball

Good mourning Halifax,

I went to the Sacred Heart School, and when I was in Grade 7, our religious studies teacher was badly beaten in an attempted murder by her husband—who was a high-powered judge at the time—before he took his own life. 

I remember that the story was all over the front page of the local newspapers (remember those?), but neither my parents nor school staff talked to me about intimate partner violence in the wake of it all. In fact, the school gathered us hundreds of young women in an assembly and told us that the beloved teacher had bruises on her face because she had slipped in the shower.

It was confusing, and taught me that clearly this kind of violence was not to be discussed. And I would hope that things had changed a bit since then, but now I read that RCMP say the deaths of a couple in Cole Harbour this week—both in their 70s—was an incident of intimate partner violence. I can’t help thinking about how horrible this poor woman’s life must have been, and for so long. 

The RCMP tell us not to be worried, because this case poses no risk to the public. And I get what they mean from a technical standpoint. But I would argue that gender-based violence—which includes, but is certainly not limited to, intimate partner violence—poses one of the largest risks to the public of any public health crisis. It just might not be the particular public that they care about protecting.

Gender-based violence thrives in silence and darkness. Just like when I was a kid at Sacred Heart, people still don’t love talking about it. But that’s not protecting anyone—it certainly didn’t protect me.

Nova Scotia has the highest rate of gender-based violence in the country—and that’s just people who report, which we know is a mere fraction of those suffering or surviving. Let’s talk about it and demand that it be given the attention—and funding—it so desperately needs.

Love and light out there 💞

– Julie

🌡️ Traffic & Weather

Today: 🌦️ 12°

Tomorrow: ☀️ 9°

Next Day: ☁️ 4°

7-day forecast

🚗 Driving, biking or busing today? Check out the current traffic conditions and ongoing road closures.

CITY HALL 2.0

Making predictions about Halifax’s new council

We are well in the swing of a very democratic fall for Haligonians. Fresh off the heels of a municipal election, the provincial election kicked off with more than a few familiar faces from municipal politics. And it’s hard to avoid getting sucked into the politics south of the border as the United States cast their ballots and decided to become the bad guys in future generations’ textbooks. There is a lot of uncertainty in the air about the future for Haligonians—uncertainty that’s not being helped by the fact the air itself is warm in November, unnervingly refusing to become the crisp fall air we’re used to. 

But on Tuesday evening, a bit of normalcy returned to municipal democracy as our new councillors were sworn in at O’Regan Hall in the Central Library on Spring Garden Road. Thanks to our extensive election questionnaire and The Coast happening to have the longest-tenured active City Hall reporter in Halifax, we are able to provide a little bit of certainty about how the new council will perform.

Get some educated guesses about Halifax’s future from reporter Matt Stickland. 

🤔 Need To Know

🏢 NS Liberal leader Zach Churchill has promised to improve rent controls and close loopholes in the province’s regulations for fixed-term leases if elected—the plan also calls for establishing a provincial rent bank that would provide zero-interest loans to renters who can’t pay their bills.

🖼️ Art Gallery of Nova Scotia’s latest exhibition, Jennifer Marman & Daniel Borins: Three Dimensions, is now on view! Interact with installations and explore authenticity in the digital age.*

🩺 Provincial NDP Leader Claudia Chender said if the New Democrats win the election, her government will open 15 doctor clinics across the province in their first year to clear the backlog of Nova Scotians on the waitlist for a family doctor.

*Sponsored Post

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ARTS + CULTURE

In this economy, try art

I will not doomscroll news about the election(s).

I will not doomscroll news about the election(s).

I will not doomscroll news about the election(s).

There’s nothing like a day packed with art shows, lectures and discussions to take your mind off whatever else might be going on in the world, and today happens to fit the bill perfectly. Plus it’s all free!

To start things off on this super arty Thursday, from 12-1pm, scholar, DJ, author and curator Mark Campbell will be giving a lecture, An Archival State of Mind: Hip-Hop's Polyphonies of Preservation, in the Joseph Strug Concert Hall at Dalhousie University’s Fountain School of Performing Arts. The talk is part of the school’s David Schroeder Music & Culture Lecture Series, and is open to everyone.

Later in the day, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia is opening its doors late—as it does every Thursday—for free entry from 5pm until 9pm. Current exhibitions at the big downtown gallery include Jennifer Marman & Daniel Borins: Three Dimensions on view until Jan 26, and permanent works like Kent Monkman’s “Miss Chief’s Wet Dream.”

You’ll have to time your AGNS visit carefully to maximize Thursday’s artistic potential, because back on Dal’s campus from 6-8pm, the Dalhousie Art Gallery will be posting a panel discussion on its current exhibition, Graeme Patterson’s Strange Birds, which is up until Nov 10.

The Coast’s Lauren Phillips on more on all the art shows to help distract and uplift you this week.

🗞️ In Other News

🥀 The Maritime Sikh community is in mourning for Satinder Kaur, a 24-year-old woman who died after being struck by a Halifax Transit bus Thursday. Satinder was living in Canada for three years and recently obtained permanent resident status.

🦞 The Unified Fisheries Conservation Alliance—a commercial lobster fishing group—has gone to court seeking $10M in damages against those it alleges are buying lobster caught illegally in St. Mary’s Bay.

🏥 A Nova Scotia woman who has had to wait almost two weeks for much-needed surgery on her hand—and is also recovering from stage 3 endometrial cancer—is speaking out about how much of a “crisis” the province’s health-care system truly is in.

🛞 The Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board has approved an application from Nova Scotia Power to spend $31M from ratepayers for an electrical upgrade at the Michelin Tire plant in Waterville that should help with brief power disruptions.

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🗓️ Things To Do

Looking for something to do this week? Check out these Coast picks:

🗓 2024 Tech Forward Awards: Digital Nova Scotia is pleased to invite you to the 2024 Tech Forward Awards presented by RBC. Join industry leaders for a night of celebration to highlight and recognize organizations, and individuals who are making a difference in the technology sector in Nova Scotia. | Nov 7 | 9pm | $180

🗓 Mellow Casualty—Paint the Town Yellow Tour: Mellow Casualty comes to Gus’ Pub for their first time in Halifax for the Paint the Town Yellow tour, joined by local bands Green Eyes Witch Hands and Mojo in the Middle for a night of alternative indie rock. | Nov 8 | 8:30pm | $10

🗓 Grease—A DragAlong Spectacular: The film Grease will play on two massive projector screens on-stage, one on each side. In the middle of the stage, drag, hilarity, burlesque and gender-effery will surprise and amaze you as the classic musical parts of the film are played out live by drag, burlesque and pantomime performers. | Nov 8 | 8:30pm | $33

🗓 Jesse Singh—Baby Goat Comedy Tour: The Baby Goat Comedy Tour will feature Jesse’s charming and easygoing personality as he shares hilarious stories about his life that are equal parts goofy and gracious. This tour will also feature Ethan O’Reilly and Johnny Batta. | Nov 8 | 8pm | $23

Have an event to share? Let us know at [email protected].

⚓️ What’s In The Harbour

➡️ The Atlantic Sun container ship leaves Halifax for Liverpool at 1:30am.

➡️ The NYK Romulus container ship leaves Halifax for Southampton at 3am.

🛳️ The MSC Lisa container ship arrives in Halifax from Sines at 5:15am.

➡️ The Phatra Naree bulk carrier leaves Halifax for Rotterdam at 6am.

🛳️➡️ The EF Ava container ship arrives in Halifax from Portland at 8:15am and leaves for Reykjavik at 1pm.

🛳️ The Nolhan Ava container ship arrives in Halifax from St Pierre at 8:15am.

➡️ The MSC Celine container ship leaves Halifax for Freeport at 12pm.

🍴 Where To Eat & Drink

🥯 Craving a bagel and lox but it’s dinner time? 2 Doors Down has you covered: seared Atlantic salmon with smoked salmon and cream cheese mousse, capers, red onion, bagel crisps, everything spice blend, dill, lemon, roasted potatoes.

🥐 The croissant of the week at Two If By Sea is Pizza! Loaded with pizza sauce, mozzarella, Italian seasoning and pepperoni.

👀 In Case You Missed It

🗳️ A pending postal strike has stopped Elections Nova Scotia from issuing voter information cards for the upcoming provincial election, causing confusion and criticism for some voters. According to a media release on Oct 31, Elections Nova Scotia has decided not to print the cards due to the potential for a Canada Post strike, which could interrupt the process of eligible voters receiving their voter information cards. The Coast’s Brendyn Creamer goes over some of the confusion and criticism that has arose from this decision.

💜 Dalhousie University has made a significant change to the way it responds to cases of sexualized violence involving members of its community. In the week following several events hosted by the group Can’t Buy My Silence, or CBMS, in Halifax on banning the misuse of non-disclosure agreements because of their harmful consequences, Dal quietly updated its sexualized violence website. The Coast’s Lauren Phillips spoke with Trauma therapist Kristina Fifield—who specializes in gender-based violence—about the move she calls the “first step of many that Dal needs to take.” 

👀 Police are looking for information after the popular BLT Trail in the Halifax area was vandalized over the weekend—causing “thousands of dollars” worth of damage to 10 gates that prevent motorized access to the trail.

That’s it!

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