🗞️ HRM's eyebrow-raising plans for the Windsor Street Exchange

Happy Friday,

It would be remiss of us to be a Halifax newspaper and not have a section devoted today to the life—and peaceful passing at the age of 86—of a true icon. Most native Haligonians (or those who have spent a considerable amount of time here) have core memories of Harold Brenton Anderson and his famous high heels.

I remember when I was very young, he was what I only had the language to describe as a ‘business man in fancy lady shoes.’ For a while—from the ankles up—he was gender conforming. But as society began to grow and evolve, so too did Harold’s confidence as he graduated to pencil skirts and WWII era seamed nylons. But the heels were always the thing.

In a beautifully written tribute to Harold on Facebook—aptly titled The Reluctant Gender Pioneer—Lisa Cochrane explains that public Harold and private Harold were always at odds until the elder Trudeau declared that the state had no business in the bedroom of the nation. Emboldened—and after checking in with Halifax police to make sure it was legal for him to do so—he took to the streets in his signature stilettos. 

Uncomfortable with the ‘cross dresser’ label, Harold insisted he dressed in whatever way made him feel happiest inside. 

In the spirit of Harold, let’s all be happy, brave and just a little bit fancy this long weekend 👠

– Julie

🇨🇦 Important Canada Day Announcement

The Coast is joining #FireworksHurt in imploring you to NOT set off private fireworks in your neighbourhoods.

Unexpected fireworks can have long-lasting negative consequences on veterans and victims of gun violence, people with PTSD, autism and even Alzheimer's and dementia.

Fireworks can cause terror, pain and even death to animals (both wildlife and pets). Wildlife have become so disoriented they have been unable to find their way back to their young, leaving them vulnerable to predators or starvation. Even birds can be affected by fireworks, causing them to fly into buildings and other obstacles.

The shock of fireworks can cause animals to flee blindly, putting them in danger of sustaining a life-threatening fall, or running into traffic with the potential to cause serious or fatal injury to themselves, drivers and passengers.

Please don’t do it Halifax.

🌡️ Traffic & Weather

Today: 🌤️ 21°

Tomorrow: ☀️ 24°

Next Day: 🌨️ 19°

7-day forecast

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

💨 Here is Halifax’s Air Quality Index and the smoke report.

EDUCATION

Protecting free speech and academic freedom from university codes of conduct

David Robinson is the executive director of the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT), a group that advocates for more than 70,000 teachers, librarians, researchers and other academic staff at 125 universities and colleges across Canada, including academic workers at Halifax’s six universities. The CAUT is a defender of academic freedom and investigates instances of said freedom being threatened on campus.

In February, Robinson spoke with the magazine University Affairs about what defines academic freedom and how tensions over Israel-Hamas playing out on university campuses have led to threats or perceived threats to this guiding principle of academia. 

On Wednesday, Robinson joined The Coast for a conversation about the intersection of academic freedom, free speech and violations of university codes of conduct, in light of the recently released report from Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) into whether students’ violated their code in October 2023 when they signed a student letter that was labelled as antisemitism by the school. 

The Coast has covered the Halifax student movement for Palestine, that asks for institutional disclosure and divestment, since May.

Read Robinson’s full Q&A with The Coast’s education reporter Lauren Phillips.

🤔 Need To Know

🩺 The health minister is defending the government’s track record on health care after news this week that the list of people in need of a family doctor has grown again.

🎭 Support4Culture, is dedicated to fostering artistic endeavours, and cultural enrichment within the film industry. See the impact Support4Culture makes here.*

🍁 Celebrate Canada Day at the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21. Features FREE admission, activities, and entertainment for all ages. (Also- parking!)*

🗣️ The Halifax Regional Municipality is inviting residents to share their ideas and vision on the future of the Young District.*

*Sponsored Post

LISTEN

The Coast Podcast Corner

In a blitz of a Wednesday Matt went out and recorded four podcasts in one day!

In this episode of the Wanderer Grounds titled Sweet, Sweet Victory Matt and Martin recap the Halifax Wanderers' club record-setting 4-0 victory over Vancouver FC (a Nimick brace! a Telfer brace! A brace of braces!) and crunch the numbers on the path ahead to earning a playoff spot. Plus, in honour of Landon Donovan's Euro Cup gaffe, Matt and Martin trade bad hairdo stories.

🎧 LISTEN TO THE WANDERER GROUNDS NOW

In this episode of the Grande Parade, titled The Windsor Street Sobriety Test, Matt and Martin discuss HRM staff's eyebrow-raising plans for redesigning the Windsor Street Exchange while making transit worse, plus how councillors aren't using the powers they have at their disposal. 

🎧 LISTEN TO GRAND PARADE NOW

Matt also recorded two more episodes in the ongoing HFX Votes 2024 series. Next week in your Grand Parade feeds you will see two episodes about Halifax’s property tax cap. The first is a discussion with local economist Deny Sullivan who explains the outcomes of the tax cap and council’s decision to keep taxes low. Then, in part two Matt interviews former premier Darrel Dexter to find out why we have a property tax cap at all.

🗞️ In Other News

🏛️ Minister of National Defence Bill Blair is in Halifax to meet with business leaders and to mark a major milestone for the navy and for the Irving shipyard.

🚨A teacher in Tatamagouche is facing multiple sexual offence charges after allegedly assaulting a student and sending explicit photos.

🚌 Ayomikun Bus Charters—a tourism company that will offer tours of Black heritage sites and charters to cultural events around the province—has been granted its licence after facing pushback from competitors.

⛴️ Transit users were left scrambling during the Wednesday morning rush hour when ferry service between Halifax and Dartmouth’s Alderney terminal was cancelled suddenly—at first Halifax Transit didn’t give a reason, but later confirmed it was a medical emergency onboard.

💙 An 8-year-old from West Hants bravely alerted police that someone was threatening to hurt them and their family if they didn’t send intimate images through a social media platform—resulting in the arrest of a man in California.

🖼️ The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia is using $1.75M—originally donated to help it build a new home on the Halifax waterfront—on programming instead.

🌳 Over the next few years, a large piece of land in north end Halifax known as the Young District is going to change drastically—and HRM wants the community to have a say in what those changes will be.

🗓️ Things To Do This Weekend

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

🗓 Harbourside Ribfest: Back for its ninth year, this is the biggest food event of the summer and the the largest 100% volunteer-run event hosted by Rotary Halifax Harbour. Proceeds from sponsorship, vendor fees, bar sales, and entry fees support local and international causes. The event will host five unique rib trucks, exciting local vendors and live entertainment. | June 28-July 1 | $2 to enter

🗓 Summer Blast-Off at the Discovery Centre: Get ready for a weekend of scientific fun and adventure, including wild and wonderful science shows, gigantic bubble blowing and Hal-Con superstars. Plus, gear up for the newest immersive HOCKEY experience! | June 29-30 | $14.50

🗓 2024 Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo: We’re always searching for new adventures, and in that stretch of air where the sky meets the Earth and the sea, we find new horizons. The Tattoo celebrates 100 years of the Royal Canadian Air Force, recognizes the innovation of those bold enough to touch the horizon and continues to highlight the vital work of the Canadian Armed Forces. | June 28-July 1 | 7pm | $23

🗓 HOT TO GO - A Chappell Roan Drag Show: Hosted by Colin Sick and Hannibal Lickeder at the Grafton Street Dinner, this epic night of drag features stellar performances by G-Spott, Clarke Kunt, Randi E. Rogenous, and burlesque baddie Elle Lixir! | June 28 | 8pm | $17.31

🗓 Dartmouth Festival Series - Desi Summer Music Fest: An evening celebrating Desi Bollywood, Folk, Middle Eastern, Hollywood & EDM. | June 29 | 6pm | Free

🗓 Supernova Market on the Waterfront: Enjoy an unforgettable day of shopping in the marketplace on the foundation wharf, with vendors from all across Atlantic Canada. The container stage will be booming with live music. | June 29 | 1pm | Free

🗓The Underground - Summer Lovin' Edition: Welcome to an immersive live performance evening in the style of a speakeasy. The performers are a surprise til the last minute, the venue is a surprise until 24 hours in advance. Phones are turned off upon entry and the audience experiences live art in unexpected places. | June 29 | 8pm | $40

🇨🇦 Your Guide to KANA’TA: Canada Day 2024 🇨🇦

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

⚓️ What’s In The Harbour

➡️ The Atlantic Sail container ship leaves Halifax for Liverpool at 12:01am.

➡️ The Vega Vela container ship leaves Halifax for Mariel 12pm.

🛳️ The CGA CGM Leo container ship arrives in Halifax from Colombo at 3:45pm.

🛳️ The Contship Art container ship arrives in Halifax from New York at 4:20pm. 

🛳️➡️ The SFL Composer vehicle carrier arrives in Halifax from Emden at 7:10am and leaves for Davisville at 5pm.

➡️ The Nolhan Ava container ship leaves Halifax for Argentina at 6pm.

➡️ The Oceanex Sanderling container ship leaves Halifax for St. John’s at 6pm.

🛳️➡️ The Zim Iberia container ship arrives in Halifax from Valencia at 5:20am and leaves for New York at 11pm.

🍴 Where To Eat & Drink

🥩🍺 There’s a last minute Asado pop-up happening this Saturday at the Garrison Brewing Co. seaport location. Enjoy barbecue at its finest starting at 11am. Be there or stay hungry!

🍓🥐 Dive into the delightful layers of the Strawberry White Chocolate Croissant at Pane e Circo. Beautifully red, irresistibly delicious!

👀 In Case You Missed It

🌳 The North End New Roots Community Land Trust is looking for the city to divest a parcel of land in the Cogswell District, currently undergoing redevelopment, to create opportunities for African Nova Scotians and right historical wrongs. The project gives the city an opportunity to use more than just words to make up for Africville while giving the North End’s historical Black community a chance to own land, participate in community building, and develop a space that’s right for them. If you’d like to make a contribution to the land trust project, visit their GoFundMe page.

🏫 Stop me when you disagree: Workplace violence is not appropriate. Disproportionate workplace violence is not appropriate. Those being disproportionately harmed should be included in a discussion about ways to address and prevent workplace violence. Those deciding on appropriate witnesses to include in the conversation about violence in public schools showed their disagreement with that last statement at the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) meeting that was called to discuss the auditor general’s recent report, Preventing and Addressing Violence in Public Schools. The Coast’s Lauren Phillips has more on why CUPE school support workers are disappointed and frustrated at being left out of provincial conversations on school violence.

That’s it!

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