Dr. Ursula Franklin contributed to peace in her work for disarmament, social justice, science policy and human rights.

“Peace is not the absence of war. It is the presence of justice and the absence of fear.”

As a Quaker, Ursula has been actively involved in work for peace and justice, international understanding, and issues related to women.  As an active member of the Voice of Women, and a member of its national council, she has been involved in many of the organization’s activities, from coordinating the collection of children’s teeth for strontium-90 radiation measurements in the early 1960s, to co- drafting submissions to the Senate inquiry into science policy.

German by birth, Canadian by nationality, Ursula’s energy and intellect have kept her in the forefront of these critical global issues for years.  By her actions, in support of, or in opposition to ideas and policies, she has changed the thinking, the assumptions, the directions of the lives of those who have welcomed her clarity, her honesty, her beautiful and often humorous language, her constant search for truth and her ability to share her knowledge with others

“Apathy sets in when individuals, especially young people, feel that no one is listening to their concerns.”

As an example to protest the war in Iraq, Franklin led a parade of professors in full academic attire out of Convocation Hall at the University of Toronto when then-U.S.-President George W. Bush was honored with a doctor of law degree.

A Toronto high School, Ursula Franklin Academy, has been named in her honour.

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Athlete Advocates, like Fox, Hansen, Keith, Hughes, & Kennedy, contribute to peace through advocacy. #Canada150

We celebrate 5 outstanding Canadian athletes and advocates (Terry Fox, Rick Hansen, Vicki Keith, Clara Hughes, and Sheldon Kennedy), all members of the Order of Canada, all of whom have contributed in their own unique ways to making Canada a more peaceful society.  Whether through raising funds or increasing public awareness and understanding of social issues, their efforts have constructively impacted on the lives of hundreds of thousands of Canadians.

Terry Fox (b. 1958; d.1981) was a Canadian athlete, humanitarian, and cancer research activist. In 1980, with one leg having been amputated, he began the Marathon of Hope, a cross-country run to raise money for cancer research. He hoped to raise one dollar from each of Canada’s 24 million people. He began with little fanfare from St. John’s, Newfoundland, in April and ran the equivalent of a full marathon every day. Fox had become a national star by the time he reached Ontario. He made numerous public appearances with businessmen, athletes, and politicians in his efforts to raise money. Although the spread of his cancer eventually forced him to end his quest after 143 days and 5,373 kilometers, and ultimately cost him his life, his efforts resulted in a lasting, worldwide legacy. The annual Terry Fox Run, first held in 1981, has grown to involve millions of participants in over 60 countries and is now the world’s largest one-day fundraiser for cancer research; over $650 million has been raised in his name.

He was the youngest person ever named a Companion of the Order of Canada. He won the 1980 Lou Marsh Award as the nation’s top sportsman and was named Canada’s Newsmaker of the Year in both 1980 and 1981. Terry Fox is considered a national hero and continues to inspire people in their efforts to find a cure for cancer.

Rick Hansen’s Man In Motion World Tour was inspired by the dream of creating an accessible and inclusive world and finding a cure for spinal cord injury (SCI). For 26 months, he and his team wheeled over 40,000 km through 34 countries raising awareness about the potential of people with disabilities, creating accessible and inclusive communities, and finding a cure. The Rick Hansen Foundation was established in 1988, following the completion of the Man In Motion World Tour, to continue raising funds and awareness to create a world without barriers for people with disabilities. For nearly 30 years, the Foundation has been actively improving the lives of people with disabilities, changing perceptions and breaking down barriers. The vision of the organization is to create an inclusive world where people with disabilities can reach their full potential. Through programs, collaboration and leadership, the Foundation has increased awareness and solutions for the barriers people with disabilities face, created more accessible spaces, improved the quality of life and health outcomes for people with spinal cord injuries, mobility issues and other disabilities.

Vicki Keith remains one of the most successful marathon swimmers in the history of the sport, holding 18 world records. After her marathon swimming career, Vicki took on a new challenge. While coaching at Variety Village, in the early 90’s, she found that swimmers with physical disabilities were invited to participate in only 3 meets a year…all of them for disabled athletes only. She immediately started pushing the boundaries, by getting the team invited to able-bodied meets.

Vicki has coached 22 athletes with a disability to the national level in competitive swimming, 5 athletes to the international level in competitive swimming and triathlon and 4 athletes with a disability to world records in marathon swimming. She has been appointed as a member of the Order of Canada.

Bonus Editor’s content: Vicki manages her own blog about coaching on wordpress here.

Clara Hughes is a Canadian cyclist and speed skater who has won multiple Olympic medals in both sports. She is one of the few athletes who have competed in both the Summer and Winter Olympic games.   Hughes is one of only five people to have podium finishes in the Winter and Summer versions of the games, and is the only person ever to have won multiple medals in both.  Hughes is also the only Canadian to have won medals in both the Summer and Winter Olympics.

In 2009, she agreed to become the national spokesperson for Bell Canada’s Let’s Talk campaign which is trying to remove the stigma of depression and other mental health issues. Clara’s story is particularly important, because it reminds us that anyone can suffer from depression, and it is not a sign of weakness. Many people blame themselves and try to work harder to “get over it”. They tell no one and suffer alone, afraid they will be judged. A 2006 study called mental illness the No.1 cause of workplace disability. Hughes encourages people who think that they may be suffering from depression, not to blame themselves and to reach out to resources that are there to help.

Sheldon Kennedy was a Canadian former professional ice hockey player throughout the 1990s. He played for the Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins and Calgary Flames in the NHL.

Kennedy devoted his post hockey career to child abuse prevention and education. Along with his business partner, Wayne McNeil, he owns and operates Respect Group Inc. which provides training to thousands of people empowering people involved in amateur sport and education systems to prevent bullying, harassment, and abuse.

On June 15, 2012 Kennedy was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Fraser Valley for his work supporting victims of child abuse and promoting education and awareness of the topic. On June 8, 2015 Kennedy was awarded with an Honorary degree, Doctor of Laws, from the University of Calgary for his extraordinary commitment to violence and abuse prevention programs in Canada.

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Moses Coady contributed to peace by improving the lives of others through adult education and cooperatives. #Canada150

A Roman Catholic Priest, adult educator and co-operative entrepreneur, Coady was concerned about the poverty afflicting farmers, fishers, miners and other disadvantaged groups in Eastern Canada and the exodus of maritimers to other parts of Canada.

In 1924, regional economic conditions were difficult for many people. There was labour unrest in the Cape Breton coal mines and continuing out-migration caused by economic decline. These factors profoundly affected the Diocese of Antigonish whose socially minded priests were searching for ways to counteract these problems.

In his early career while working for St. Francis Xavier Highschool in Truro, NS, Coady was dissatisfied with the working conditions and pay of the teachers. He suggested the Teachers Association strike an organizing committee, hire a paid organizer, and start a magazine for teachers. Members agreed and appointed him to the task; by early 1923, one-half of Nova Scotia teachers were paid members of the union. He started the teachers bulletin, and as editor, lobbied hard for higher teachers’ salaries and other benefits.

He developed what became known as the Antigonish Movement.  The project helped Coady put into practice his theory that “the short, quick, scientific way to progress in the world, even in the field of formal education of youth, was through the enlightenment and education of adults.” The leaders of this movement viewed their task as developing the full economic, social and cultural potential of the people in their region. Dr. Coady and his associates used adult education, group action, and development of cooperative business models to meet the immediate economic needs of the local people.

After World War II, increasing numbers of people interested in the co-op movement were coming to St.F.X., many of them Catholic clergy and leaders from third world countries in Latin America and Southeast Asia. The high profile of the Antigonish Movement and the renewed interest from abroad attracted some attention from the American government that saw it as a promising means to combat communism in the Cold War era.

Bonus Editor’s content: We found this great documentary on Youtube here. In the first minute, a Nova Scotia MP, and colleague of Coady’s shares stories from the time they first met.

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Naomi Alboim contributes to peace as an advocate for refugees and co-founder of Lifeline Syria. #Canada150

Naomi Alboim is a fellow, adjunct professor and Chair of the Policy Forum at the School of Policy Studies at Queen’s University, Kingston.  She is an active public policy consultant, advising governments and NGOs across Canada and abroad in Europe, the Caribbean, Ghana, Vietnam, Indonesia and Kenya.  She also chairs the Intergovernmental Committee of the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council and is a co-founder of Lifeline Syria.

Lifeline Syria is a charitable organization which seeks to recruit, train and assist sponsor groups as they support Syrian refugees coming to to Canada. The group’s broad goals are to:

• Enrich Canada as every other refugee movement has in the past
• Enhance Canada’s refugee resettlement commitment
• Provide opportunities for ordinary people to respond to a humanitarian crisis
• Assist Syrian fami lies in the Greater Toronto Area to be reunited with their friends and family
• Give refugees an opportunity to restart their lives in Canada

In 2016, the membership at Alboim’s synagogue, Darchei Noam, made headlines in the interfaith community when they decided to sponsor a Syrian refugee family. You can hear the story on CBC’s Tapestry Archive here.

“We, as Jews, understand what it’s like to be a refugee… I think people might be surprised that Jews are helping Muslims… It is irrelevant what the religious denomination is of the groups that we’re helping. They are in need and we want to help.” – Naomi Alboim

She says many members of the congregation are the children and grandchildren of refugees. Others, like Rabbi Grimberg, are refugees themselves. So it made sense for the congregation to sponsor a family.

And doing so brings Rabbi Grimberg’s story full circle. Once she was a scared Soviet teenager arriving in a new country. Now she is welcoming the newcomers and helping them to get settled in their new life.

Ms. Alboim has written extensively on Canadian immigration policy, and advises the federal and provincial governments, universities, colleges, regulatory bodies, and NGO’s on a variety of related topics including immigrant labour market integration and refugee issues.

Ms. Alboim has also worked at senior levels in the Canadian federal and Ontario provincial governments for twenty-five years, including eight years as Deputy Minister in three different portfolios. Her areas of responsibility included immigration, human rights, labour market training, workplace standards, culture, sport and recreation, as well as women’s, seniors’, disability and aboriginal issues. She is a recipient of Queen Elizabeth II’s Gold and Diamond Jubilee Medals and is a member of the Order of Ontario.

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Formal apologies recognize injustices caused by government actions, and help victims to heal.  #Canada150

We wanted to add this to the list because of how strongly we all felt that formal apologies, followed up by appropriate changes in behaviour, are absolutely crucial for healing, forgiveness, and true reconciliation to take place.

• Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologized for Canada’s decision to turn away the ship Komagata Maru in 1914 which carried 376 Sikh migrants from British India because the ship did not make a “continuous journey”, admitting the goal was to keep Canada “white”.
• Prime Minister Stephen Harper made a formal apology to the country’s Chinese community for the discriminatory “head tax” imposed on Chinese immigrants who came to Canada between 1885 and 1923. The tax started at $50 per person in 1885 and rose to $500 per person in 1903, equal to as much as two years’ salary. Again, the unstated goal was to keep Canada “white”.
• Prime Minister Brian Mulroney apologized to Canadians of Japanese ancestry who were forcibly removed from their homes and interned in inhumane conditions during WW II because it was thought that they might be sympathetic to Canada’s enemy, Japan, and commit terrorist acts. Those interned had their property sold and the money raised was used to pay for their imprisonment. They were punished for their heritage.
• Prime Minister Harper apologized to the country’s indigenous populations for the kidnapping of tens of thousands of indigenous children who were placed in boarding schools, removed from their parents and culture, punished for speaking their languages and very often physically and sexually assaulted. The goal was to assimilate them into the new emerging “Canadian” culture.
• On May 30, 2016, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne apologized on behalf of the Government of Ontario for the brutalities committed for generations at residential schools and the continued harm this abuse has caused to Indigenous cultures, communities, families and individuals.

“From coast-to-coast-to-coast, the residential school system set out to ‘take the Indian out of the child,’ by removing indigenous children from their homes and systematically stripping them of their languages, cultures, laws and rights. Children were physically, emotionally and sexually abused. Many died…Thank you for finding the strength and courage to come forward and tell your stories — and the stories of those who were lost. In opening our eyes, you have given us this chance to move forward as partners and the opportunity to say we are sorry,”  – – Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne

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Chief Dr. Robert Joseph contributes to peace by working for reconciliation and healing between all Canadians. #Canada150

Chief Robert Joseph was hereditary chief of the Gwawa’enuxw First Nation.  He leads a life dedicated bridging the differences brought about by intolerance, lack of understanding, and racism at home and abroad. He is currently an Ambassador for Reconciliation Canada and a member of the Assembly of First Nations Elders Council, he was formerly the Executive Director of the Indian Residential School Survivors Society and is an Honourary Witness to Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Chief Joseph’s insights into the destructive impact of racism were shaped by his experience with the Canadian Indian Residential School system. He began his life immersed in the rich cultural and family life of the Kwakwaka’wakw People. Unlike many other First Nations, his people were able to maintain much of their traditions due to the isolated and self-sustaining nature of their small village located on the central coast of British Columbia. As a young child of 6 years old, Joseph was removed from his community in order to begin an education designed to “kill the Indian in the child.” Despite the harsh lessons and abuse endured during his 11 years spent at St. Michael’s, Chief Joseph retained a deep understanding of his place in the world and his responsibility to his people.

As one of the last few speakers of the Kwakwaka’wakw language, Chief Joseph is an eloquent and inspiring Ceremonial House Speaker, sharing his knowledge and wisdom in the Big House and as a Language Instructor with the University of British Columbia. Internationally he is also recognized as an art curator, and is the  co-author of “Down from the Shimmering Sky: Masks of the Northwest Coast.”

In 2003, he received an Honorary Doctorate of Law Degree from the University of British Columbia for his distinguished achievements in serving BC and Canada. Chief Joseph is currently the Ambassador for Reconciliation Canada and the Indian Residential School Survivors Society, Chairman of the National Assembly of First Nations Elder Council, and Special Advisor to both Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and Indian Residential School Resolutions Canada.

As Chairman of the Native American Leadership Alliance for Peace and Reconciliation and Ambassador for Peace and Reconciliation with the Inter-religious and International Federation for World Peace (IFWP), Chief Joseph has sat with the leaders of South Africa, Israel, Japan, South Korea, Mongolia and Washington, DC to learn from and share his understanding of faith, hope, healing and reconciliation.

“Let us find a way to belong to this time and place together. Our future, and the well-being of all our children rests with the kind of relationships we build today.” 

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Agnes Macphail contributed to peace as a champion for women’s rights, prison reform, seniors’ pensions and gender equality. #Canada150

 “Agnes Macphail’s approach was very much equal rights, which is the fact that women deserved the vote not because they’re angels and not because they’re special, but because they are people with those rights, and equal rights are an end in themselves. She went into politics for what she could do, not what politics could do for her.”       –Will Ferguson

Agnes Macphail (1890 – 1954) was the first female elected to the House of Commons. She served from 1921 to 1940 and later as one of the first two women elected to the Ontario Provincial Legislature from 1943-1945. She represented ridings in Toronto and Grey-Bruce.

Prior to her political life in the early 1900s, Agnes was growing up in rural Ontario surrounded by farmers talking over the issues of the day. While living in Sharon, Ontario, she was caught up in the increasing enthusiasm of the agrarian community who were feeling that their needs were inadequately represented in Parliament. It wasn’t long before Agnes became involved in local farmer’s organizations and soon joined the United Farmers of Ontario (UFO). The war effort meant Canadian farmers were urged to produce crops and foodstuff as well as give up their young men to conscription. By 1917, their frustrations had peaked; 5,000 farmers travelled to Ottawa demanding reform. The UFO rose to meet that demand by formally entering politics in 1919 with a landslide vote. Agnes Macphail’s represented her County by representing farmers honestly and clearly, demanding that their hard work and productivity be recognized and valued accordingly.

Macphail worked for two separate parties and promoted her ideas through column-writing, activist organizing, and legislation. The issues that she championed included pensions for seniors and workers’ rights and she was successful in forcing Ontario to adopt its first equal-pay legislation in 1951. Macphail was also the first Canadian woman delegate to the League of Nations in Geneva, Switzerland where she passionately supported disarmament.

In her honour, Agnes Macphail’s name has been attached to schools, awards, a public speaking contest, parks, playgrounds, a youth centre, a food bank, a townhome development, an apartment, a cairn and bronze bust, and a region in Ontario.

In a 2005 contest, Macphail was voted as the Greatest Ontario Woman and in 2015, she appears in an episode of Murdoch Mysteries as a supporter of suffragettes.

Editor’s bonus content: Here is Agnes’ Canadian Heritage Minute on youtube.

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Social Assistance contributes to peace by being a support to reduce the impact of poverty for many Canadians. #Canada150

In Canada, social assistance programs include services provided by all levels of government, including: health care; education; housing; unemployment insurance; income supplements; and supports for the disabled and seniors.

Before the Great Depression, most social services were provided by religious charities and other private groups. Changing government policy between the 1930s and 1960s saw the emergence of a welfare state. Most programs from that era are still in use, although many were scaled back during the 1990s as government priorities shifted towards reducing debt and deficit.

All provinces in Canada provide universal, publicly funded healthcare for those services which are considered “medically necessary”, with their costs partially subsidized by the federal government. Services which are not “listed” (covered by a provincial insurance plan), or have been “delisted” (removed from the plan) may be purchased privately.

In Canada, provinces and territories are responsible for their elementary and secondary schools. Education is compulsory up to the age of 16 in most provinces, 17 and 18 in others. Both elementary and secondary education is provided at a nominal cost. Post-secondary schooling is not free, but is subsidized by the federal and provincial governments. Financial assistance is available through student loans and bursaries.

All provinces maintain income support programs.  The purpose of these programs is to alleviate extreme poverty by providing a monthly payment to people with little or no income. The rules for eligibility and the amount given vary widely between the provinces.  The resulting disparities and short-falls have led to a widening call for a Basic Income Guarantee (BIG).

The basic income idea is to ensure everyone sufficient income to meet basic needs and live with dignity, regardless of work status. In reality, in pilots and in current programs, it can take different forms. In recent months, Canadian political parties have adopted resolutions supporting basic income, prominent mayors have declared leadership on the issue, municipal governments have endorsed it, the government of Quebec has declared its intent to move in the direction of a basic income and the Ontario government announced it is planning a pilot. The federal government appointed a minister who has written on the subject and is now charged with developing a poverty reduction strategy. The federal government is also promising evidence-based policy and greater cooperation with other orders of government, a big change from the politics of the last decade.

Interested in working to improve social assistance in Canada? We recommend the Basic Income Canada Network.

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Sally Armstrong contributes to peace through her work as a journalist and human/women’s rights advocate. #Canada150

Armstrong is an award winning author, journalist and human rights activist, a three-time winner of the Amnesty International Canada media award and the holder of numerous honorary degrees.  She also is a member of the Order of Canada. Armstrong was the first journalist to bring the story of the women of Afghanistan to the world and was relentless when it came to exposing the abuse of women whether on an American university campus or a village in a war zone.

Michele Landsberg, author of Writing the Revolution describes her this way:  “Striding into Taliban-held Afghanistan with a chador over her six-foot frame, playing high-fives with a traumatized child rape survivor in the Congolese jungle, marching with the defiant grandmothers in Swaziland, she explores the darkest reaches of women’s experience and brings back astonishing news of hope, challenge and change. From Tahrir Square to LA, Armstrong discovers that the sisters are doing it for themselves—and revolutionizing the world.”

In 2011, for example, Armstrong travelled to Kenya to interview 160 child rape victims, some as young as three, who were suing the government for not protecting them, and for failing to uphold the 2010 Kenyan constitution’s promise of greater equality for women and girls. First, Armstrong spoke to 11-year-old Emily, who told her about being raped by her own grandfather; then to Charity, who was 11, and her sister Susan, who was six. For these latter two, it was their father.

“When I leave these places, their stories play on the back of my eyelids. I wonder how they’re doing. Often with my stories I get to go back and see them again.” She explains the issues in her powerful but compact style: Emily’s grandfather raped her believing it would cure him of HIV/AIDS. “It made me sad, but more than that, it made me enraged.”

That anger over injustice has propelled Armstrong’s decades-spanning career sharing the tragic and hopeful stories of women in conflict zones.  Often the backstory shows her passion and determination to write, a battle that parallels the ones her sources must endure: while these women fight for their lives and for control over their bodies, she continues to fight to tell their stories wherever she can.

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James Woodsworth contributed to peace by going to great lengths for workers’ rights, social justice, and peace. #Canada150

James Shaver Woodsworth (born Etobicoke, Ont 29 July 1874; died Vancouver 21 Mar 1942) was a Methodist minister, social worker, and politician. As first leader of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), he was the best known of the reform-minded Social Gospel ministers and led many of them into the politics of democratic socialism. Woodsworth moved to Brandon, Man, in 1885 where his father became superintendent of Methodist missions in the Northwest. Ordained in 1896, he spent 2 years as a Methodist circuit rider in Manitoba and a further 2 years studying at Victoria College and Oxford.

Observing the grim results of industrial capitalism in Canada and Britain, Woodsworth concluded that his church’s stress upon personal salvation was wrong. Moving from middle-class pulpits to a city mission, All People’s, Winnipeg, he worked with immigrant slum dwellers 1904-13. At the same time he wrote extensively, expounding the “social gospel” – a creedless movement calling for establishment of the Kingdom of God “here and now.” By 1914 he had become a controversial supporter of trade-union collective bargaining and an ardent democratic socialist – on Fabian and British Labour Party lines.

He was also adamantly pacifist, seeing war as a product of capitalist and imperial competition, and he was fired from a governmental social-research position in 1917 for openly opposing conscription In 1918 he resigned the ministry in protest against church support of the war. To support his young family he joined a longshoremen’s union and worked for a year on the Vancouver docks.

In June 1919 Woodsworth was arrested in Winnipeg and charged with seditious libel for editorials written during the Winnepeg General Strike. Following the arrest of 10 strike leaders on June 17 and “Bloody Saturday,” June 21, when a nonviolent protest parade was broken up by mounted police and soldiers.

When the Depression struck, they joined with various labour and socialist groups to found a federal socialist party in 1932, the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), with Woodsworth as its first leader. Woodsworth said: “I am convinced that we may develop in Canada a distinctive type of Socialism. I refuse to follow slavishly the British model or the American model or the Russian model. We in Canada will solve our problems along our own lines.”

Woodsworth became a master of parliamentary procedure and used the Commons as a public platform. In so doing he helped establish a multiparty political system and his own reputation as the “conscience of Canada”.

In 1926 he demonstrated the worth of the parliamentary process when he bargained his vote (and that of one colleague) in return for a promise from the politically insecure PM Mackenzie King to enact an old age pension plan. Introduced in 1927, the plan was the cornerstone of Canada’s social-security system.

For Woodsworth the tragedy of the Depression was increasingly overshadowed by the impending horror of WWII and he gave his attention to Canada’s international position. Inside the CCF he faced the growing concern of some of his colleagues that Hitler’s threat could only be met by force. Believing that war breeds only war he strove to persuade the government to declare Canada’s right to neutrality. He failed, as he did in the CCF National Council in Sept 1939 which gave limited support to a Canadian declaration of war.