Maya Rolbin-Ghanie

The Martin Luther King Project, D250, and racism in Nova Scotia

Maya — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 18:31:14 +0000

An interview with David Sparks

Maya Rolbin-Ghanie: Why don't you introduce yourself and talk a bit about how the Martin Luther King Project Association got started?

David Sparks: My name is David Sparks. I'm a fifth generation African-Nova Scotian, and I'm currently President and founder of the Martin Luther King (MLK) Project Association, which was launched officially on January 21st, 2008. This idea came out of a peace march that was held in the Prestons in January 2007 in response to a double murder that took place there in 2006. We decided that we needed to address the issue of youth violence—black on black violence in particular. There were two young men who were tragically shot by two other black men, and we felt that we had to do something about that. What we tried to do is introduce Dr. King's philosophy of non-violence as a mechanism for social change. So we're trying to introduce that to youth—we're going into schools, communities, and trying to get people to look at the whole concept of non-violence, and how that can be used to create positive social change.

MRG: What kinds of initiatives has the MLK been a part of, so far?

Grants for Guns?

dru — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 20:31:02 +0000

Students protest weapons manufacturer at university job fair

Two dozen protesters with picket signs and megaphones gathered outside the Cunard Centre on Marginal Street in Halifax today to demonstrate their opposition to a job fair for students of Mount Saint Vincent University, Dalhousie, and Saint Mary's. The job fair included recruiters for Lockheed Martin, the world's largest arms manufacturer.

Asaf Rashid of the Student's Coalition Against War (SCAW) dressed in a white lab coat and an orange hardhat, spoke to the crowd through a megaphone. "This is not the only action" students are taking against Lockheed Martin, he said.

Pamphlets distributed at the demonstration highlight Lockheed Martin's profits from war, pointing out that the company's share price more than doubled after former US president Bush's "War on Terror," and that Lockheed makes the F-16 fighter jets used in the recent attacks on Gaza in which Israeli forces killed over 1,300 Palestinians.

On January 20 of this year, the student groups STRAX and community allies shut down a similar event, officially denouncing the presence of Lockheed Martin representatives on campus and the company's reps' intent to recruit students.

Rashid then introduced himself as Dr. Clusterbomb of the Weapons Inspection Team. "Inside [the job fair] are some dangerous elements: the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), Lockheed Martin, and [Canadian military] defence," he said.

Dr. Clusterbomb announced his intention to enter the job fair "just to see how everyone's doing."

"Not only does Lockheed Martin produce weapons of mass destruction, but also weapons of mass deception," he said. Clusterbomb then tried to enter the fair, trailed by a dozen reporters. He was denied entry by private security and police. A job fair organizer told him he needed to hold a valid student ID to gain access to the event.

Grants for Guns? (Audio)

dru — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 19:47:31 +0000

Students protest weapons manufacturer at university job fair

Audio report of Grants for Guns?

Anti-Colonial Thanksgiving

dru — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 03:44:22 +0000

Spirit Train Protest in Montreal

dru — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 03:37:15 +0000

More photos on the way!