Harper's Chopping Block

Harper's Chopping Block (An Unofficial List of Orgs & Agencies the Harper Gov't Has 

Gutted, "Defunded" and Otherwise Destroyed)

By Lynette Casserole Bondarchuk on Wednesday, March 11, 2011

Harper's Chopping Block

An unofficial list of organizations and government agencies that the Harper government has gutted, "defunded" and otherwise destroyed

by Judith Szabo and Pearl Eliadis (from X-Ray Magazine http://xraymagazine.ca/18/4/)

Organizations and watchdogs whose staff have been fired, forced out, publicly maligned, or who have resigned in protest:

• Canada Firearms Program (Chief Supt. Marty Cheliak, fired)

• Canadian Wheat Board (Adrian Measner, fired)

• Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (Linda Keen, fired)

• Foreign Affairs (Richard Colvin, silenced by prorogation)

• Military Police Complaints Commission (Peter Tinsley, forced out)

• Ombudsman for the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces (Yves Coté, resigned)

• Parliamentary Budget Officer (Kevin Page, publicly maligned) 

• RCMP Police Complaints Commission (Paul Kennedy, fired)

• Rights & Democracy  (Rémy Beauregard, died of heart attack)

• Statistics Canada (Munir Sheikh, resigned in protest)

• Veterans Ombudsman (Col. Pat Stogran, forced out)

• Victims of Crime, Ombudsman (Steve Sullivan, forced out)

Community organizations, NGOs and research bodies reported to have been cut or "defunded" [1]:

• Aboriginal Healing Foundation (addition)

• Action travail des femmes

• Afghan Association of Ontario, Canada Toronto

• Alberta Network of Immigrant Women

• Alternatives (Quebec)

• Association féminine d’éducation et d’action sociale (AFEAS)

• Bloor Information and Life Skills Centre[2]

• Brampton Neighbourhood Services (Ontario) [3]

• Canadian Arab Federation

• Canadian Child Care Federation

• Canadian Council for International Cooperation

• Canadian Council on Learning

• Canadian Council on Social Development

• Canadian Heritage Centre for Research and Information on Canada

• Canadian International Development Agency, Office of Democratic Governance[4]

• Canadian Labour Business Centre

• Canada Policy Research Networks

• Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women

• Canada School of Public Service

• Canadian Teachers' Federation International porgram

• Canadian Volunteerism Initiative

• Centre de documentation sur l’éducation des adultes et la condition feminine

• Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation (CERA.)

• Centre for Spanish Speaking Peoples (Toronto

• Child Care Advocacy Association of Canada

• Childcare Resource and Research Unit, Specialink

• Climate Action Network

• Community Access Program, internet access for communities at libraries, post offices, community centers

• Community Action Resource Centre (CARC)

• Conseil d’intervention pour l’accès des femmes au travail  (CIAFT)

• Court Challenges Program (except language rights cases and legacy cases)

• Davenport-Perth Neighbourhood Centre Toronto: (Funding cut by CIC in December 2010).

• Democracy Council[5]

• Department of Foreign Affairs, Democracy Unit[6]

• Elspeth Heyworth Centre for Women Toronto: (Funding cut by CIC in December 2010).

• Environment: Youth International Internship Program

• Eritrean Canadian Community Centre of Metropolitan Toronto (Funding cut by CIC in December 2010)

• Feminists for Just and Equitable Public Policy (FemJEPP) in Nova Scotia

• First Nations Child and Family Caring Society

• First Nations and Inuit Tobacco Control Program

• Forum of Federations

• Global Environmental Monitoring System

• HRD Adult Learning and Literacy programs

• HRD Youth Employment Programs

• Hamilton’s Settlement and Integration Services Organization  (Ontario) [7]

• Immigrant settlement programs

• Inter-Cultural Neighbourhood Social Services (Peel)[8]

• International Planned Parenthood Federation

• Kairos[9]

• Law Reform Commission of Canada

• Mada Al-Carmel Arab Centre

• Marie Stopes International, a maternal health agency (has received only  a promise of "conditional funding IF it avoids any and all connection with abortion).

• MATCH International

• National association of Women and the Law (NAWL)

• Native Women’s Association of Canada

• New Brunswick Coalition for Pay Equity

• Northwood Neighbourhood Services (Toronto: (Funding cut by CIC in December 2010).

• Ontario Association of Interval and Transition Houses (OAITH)

• Ontario Association of Transitional Housing (OAITH)

• Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care

• Pride Toronto

• Réseau des Tables régionales de groupes de femmes du Québec

• Riverdale Women’s Centre in Toronto

• Sierra Club of BC

• Sisters in Spirit

• Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada

• South Asian Women’s Centre[10]

• Status of Women (mandate also changed to exclude "gender equality and political justice" and to ban all advocacy, policy research and lobbying)

• Tropicana Community Services

• Womanspace Resource Centre (Lethbridge, Alberta)

• Women’s Innovative Justice Initiative – Nova Scotia

• Workplace Equity/Employment Equity Program

• York-Weston Community Services Centre Toronto

Compiled by Judith Szabo and Pearl Eliadis for “Voices”, a coalition of organizations and individuals “united in defence of democracy, free speech and transparency in Canada”.

NOTES

[1]  “Defunding”  is the term used by Jason Kenney. In many instances, it is about turning down grant applications rather than cutting off funding midstream, but for organizations who rely on renewed program funding to support their work, and have done so for many years, it amounts to the same thing.

[2] Citizenship and Immigration Canada Cut or significantly reduced their principal funding - approximately $471,000. Source: Globe and Mail.

[3] Cut in the last few years by federal government because of alleged mismanagement: Sourcehttp://www.canadianimmigrant.ca/learn/newsitems/article/7935

[4] The Office of Democratic Governance, which channelled much of Canada’s democracy funding, has been disbanded by CIDA.

[5] A forum for discussion and collaboration among Canadian democracy promotion agencies. It has reportedly disappeared despite stated earlier commitments and interest from both government and NGOs to see it continue and even expand.

[6] Folded into the Francophonie and Commonwealth division.

[7] Cut in the last few years by federal government because of alleged mismanagement: Sourcehttp://www.canadianimmigrant.ca/learn/newsitems/article/7935

[8] Cut in the last few years by federal government because of alleged mismanagement: Sourcehttp://www.canadianimmigrant.ca/learn/newsitems/article/7935

[9] Including Anglican Church of Canada, Christian Reformed Church in North America, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, Mennonite Central Committee, Presbyterian Church in Canada, United Church of Canada, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace, Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, Canadian Religious Conference, and the Primate's World Relief and Development Fund.

[10] The Centre has lost $571,000---all of its federal funding---which represents nearly 70 per cent of its overall budget. Source: Globe and Mail.

ALSO SEE THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES:

Voices-Voix Coalition: http://www.voices-voix.ca or on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Voices-Voix/160152067366348?sk=wall

UnSeat Harper: http://www.unseatHarper.ca

PHOTO/IMAGE CREDIT: 

http://dennisgruending.ca/pulpitandpolitics/2011/03/25/stephen-harpers-hit-list