COMMONS

The Oka Crisis was the biggest military confrontation on Canadian soil in more than a century. On its face, it was about a golf course expansion. But for the Mohawks who took up arms, it was the culmination of a centuries-long fight for recognition of their sovereignty and their land. Featured in this episode: Thaioronióhte Dan David, Loreen Pindera, Geoffrey York (Globe and Mail) To learn more:People of the Pines: The Warriors and Legacy of Oka by Loreen Pindera and Geoffrey YorkKanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance by Alanis ObomsawinRocks at Whiskey Trench by Alanis Obomsawin“The Oka Crisis — looking forward after 30 years” by Thaioronióhte Dan David in CBC News Additional music from Audio NetworkThis episode is sponsored by Dispatch Coffee, Value(s) by Mark Carney and BankSwitch.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Real estate mania is at an all time high in this country. And in no place is this more true than in Vancouver. But nobody can even agree on what went wrong. Have snooty property owners, overreaching bureaucrats, and gutless politicians allowed the housing supply to dwindle to nothing? Or has a network of transnational criminals turned Vancouver into a narco-capital built on dirty money? Featured in this episode: Frances Bula, Sam Cooper, Lindsey Murphy, Jesse Donaldson To learn more:“Vancouver's affordable housing announcements remain unfulfilled years later” by Frances Bula in The Globe and MailWilful Blindness: How a Network of Narcos, Tycoons and CCP Agents Infiltrated the West by Sam Cooper“Inside Vancouver City Hall's Housing Wars” by Doug Ward in The Tyee Additional music from Audio NetworkThis episode is sponsored by Dispatch Coffee and Value(s) by Mark CarneySupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Vancouver is obsessed with real estate. But what most people don't realize, is that it's been this way from the beginning. Three stories of the swindlers, segregationists and profiteers that made Terminal City what it is. Featured in this episode: Jesse Donaldson, Jordan Stanger-Ross, Michael Abe, Stephen Learey To learn more:Land of Destiny: A History of Vancouver Real Estate by Jesse DonaldsonLandscapes of Injustice: A New Perspective on the Internment and Dispossession of Japanese Canadians edited by Jordan Stanger-Ross“Expo 86 evictions: remembering the fair's dark side” by Rafferty Baker in CBC News Additional music from Audio NetworkThis episode is sponsored by Dispatch Coffee and Value(s) by Mark Carney Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Africville was one of Canada's oldest Black settlements, a proud community of more than 400 people. And then the City of Halifax decided to utterly obliterate it. There was one man who simply refused to leave. Eddie Carvery may not have been the best man for the job. But for half a century, he has never stopped fighting for his home.  Featured in this episode: Eddie Carvery, Jon Tattrie To learn more:The Hermit of Africville: The Life of Eddie Carvery by Jon TattrieRemember Africville by Shelagh MackenzieAdditional music from Audio NetworkThis episode is sponsored by Images Festival and Dispatch CoffeeSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Bridle Path is one of the most exclusive neighbourhoods in Canada, home to the ultra-wealthy and the famous. But behind their locked gates, some of Canada's elite try to scheme their way into even greater wealth on the property market — not always legally.  And their ambitions have a way of becoming problems for the rest of us. Featured in this episode: Kozeta Izeti, Norma WaltonNOTE: The original version of this episode contained an additional story, which we will publish separately.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stories about Canada's real estate obsession. The first episode drops on April 28, 2021.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Almost a year after the worst mass shooting in modern Canadian history, Nova Scotians are still in the dark about what exactly happened. A gunman, dressed in an RCMP uniform, driving an RCMP cruiser killed 22 people.In the months since, the Mounties have been short on answers. And it's left people wondering whether they have something to hide. Featured in this episode: Stephen Maher, Paul Palango, Sandra McCulloch To learn more:“13 deadly hours” from The Fifth Estate by CBC News“How the Nova Scotia shooting victims' families won a public inquiry into the tragedy,” by Stephen Maher in Maclean's“The Nova Scotia shooter case has hallmarks of an undercover operation” by Paul Palango, Stephen Maher, Shannon Gormley in Maclean's Additional music from Audio Network This episode is sponsored by Rotman, Cullen's Foods, and Hello Fresh.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For three decades, much of Northern Ontario has been engaged in an unprecedented experiment in policing. It's called the Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service. And the idea is simple: the old, colonial cops shouldn't be policing Indigenous territory. Instead, Indigenous people should police themselves.Featured in this episode: Kyle Edwards, Christian LeuprechtTo learn more:“Inside the impossible work of Canada's biggest Indigenous police force” by Kyle Edwards in Maclean's“Force 2.0: Fixing the Governance, Leadership, and Structure of the RCMP” by Christian Leuprecht“Memories of a fire” by Mark Blackburn in APTN NewsAdditional music from Audio NetworkThis episode is sponsored by Dispatch Coffee, Rotman, Cullen's Foods, and Manscaped. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When John and Susan Pruyn came to Toronto, they were hoping to protest against the G20 and then spend some time with their daughter. Instead, they would be caught up in a whirlwind of police misconduct with few precedents in Canadian history.Featured in this episode: Jesse Rosenfeld, John Pruyn, Susan Pruyn, Sarah Pruyn.Jesse Rosenfeld is a Toronto born journalist who has covered the Middle East since 2007. Based in Ramallah, Tel Aviv, Gaza City, Cairo, Beirut, Istanbul, and Athens over the years, he has also reported from Iraq and the Balkans, contributing to The Nation Magazine, The Daily Beast, The Intercept, and Al Jazeera, among others. His work in the region is the basis of the National Film Board of Canada documentary Freelancer on the Front Lines.To learn more:“‘'I will not forget what they have done to me'” in The Toronto StarYou Should Have Stayed At Home by CBC's The Fifth Estate“Rejecting G20's consensus of the few” by Jesse Rosenfeld in The GuardianAdditional music from Audio NetworkSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the first of a two-part series on the G20, two mysterious strangers start volunteering with activist networks in southern Ontario. It's all part of one of the biggest undercover police operations in Canadian history. To learn more:“Unmasked: Searching for lessons in Toronto's 2010 G20 debacle” by Andrea Bennett in Maisonneuve“How police infiltrated groups planning G20 protests” by Adrian Morrow and Kim Mackrael in The Globe and Mail Additional music from Audio NetworkSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Myles Gray was an unarmed man who died after seven Vancouver police officers beat him mercilessly. Half a decade after he died, not only does his family not have justice, they don't even know the names of the people who killed him. Featured in this episode: Bethany Lindsay (CBC Vancouver), Harsha Walia (B.C. Civil Liberties Association), Ronald MacDonald (Independent Investigations Office of B.C.)  To learn more:“The day Myles Gray died” by Cassidy Olivier in The Vancouver Sun“Vancouver police officers won't be charged over unarmed man's 2015 death” by Bethany Lindsay in CBC Vancouver“No charges against officers in case of Myles Gray who died during encounter with Vancouver police” by Amy Judd and Sarah MacDonald in Global NewsAdditional music from Audio NetworkSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Toronto police officer shoots and kills two Black men and is accused of beating another, all within a five-year span. He's never found guilty of committing a crime. And he continues to rise through the ranks.   Featured in this episode: Bruce Livesey, Howard Morton, André Marin, Leora Shemesh  To learn more:“Above The Law” by Bruce Livesey in BuzzFeed News“Defence lawyer alleges Toronto officers diverted 7 kilos of meth into her client's car” by Betsy Powell in The Toronto Star“Shank not guilty of manslaughter” in CBC NewsAdditional music from Audio Network Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Even as a teenager, Neil Stonechild was an inspiration to his friends. And then one day, he was found frozen to death outside of Saskatoon. He was last seen alive in the back of a police cruiser. Thirty years later, we know some of what happened to him. But we still don't have justice. Featured in this episode: Jeffrey Crowe, Donald Worme, Susanne Reber To learn more:Report of the Commission of Inquiry Into Matters Relating to the Death of Neil StonechildStarlight Tour: The Last, Lonely Night of Neil Stonechild by Susanne Reber and Robert RenaudTwo Worlds Colliding by Tasha HubbardOfficer 332 by Kaitlyn Van De WoestyneAdditional music from Audio NetworkThis episode is sponsored by Dispatch Coffee, Audible, Missing From the Village and Canadian True Crime.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A teenage boy and his friends start robbing banks in Toronto. A future Prime Minister is deported from Montreal. A Black Panther in Baltimore goes to prison for four decades. And the RCMP is split apart by the biggest scandal in the force's history. At the heart of it all is one man. He calls himself the General. Featured in this episode: Ricky Atkinson, David Austin, Robin Philpot, Lennox Farrell, Gary Cristall To learn more:The Life, Crimes and Hard Times of Ricky Atkinson, Leader of the Dirty Tricks Gang by Richard Atkinson with Joe FioritoFear of a Black Nation: Race, Sex & Security in Sixties Montreal by David Austin Ninth Floor by Mina Shum Marshall Law: The Life & Times of a Baltimore Black Panther by Marshall “Eddie” Conway Additional music from Audio NetworkSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support us: canadaland.com/joinThe RCMP is one of the most famous police forces in the world — the red serge and stetson hat are practically synonymous with Canada. But that image obscures the profound power the Mounties have held throughout Canadian history. And the dark legacy of ethnic cleansing and genocide at their core.Featured in this episode: Jean Teillet, Sean Carleton, Steve HewittTo learn more:The North-West Is Our Mother: The Story of Louis Riel's People, the Métis Nation by Jean TeilletClearing the Plains by James DaschukRiding to the Rescue: The Transformation of the RCMP in Alberta and Saskatchewan by Steve HewittAdditional music from Audio NetworkSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Canada is a big, interesting, and complicated place and COMMONS is committed to bringing you thoughtfully crafted and illuminating stories that will challenge everything you think you know about this country.This past year, we have brought you stories from all across the country. We told your stories about some of Canada's most powerful families. We launched an emergency season to cover the COVID-19 crisis in long-term care. And right now, we're taking a hard look at how the police operate in this country. We want to keep doing this work. So this week we're reflecting on the year behind us and talking about our goals for the future. Please consider supporting the work that we do. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Julian Fantino may be the most famous cop in Canadian history. He was the chief of four different police forces. And for decades, he was one of the most influential voices in law enforcement. But during his rise, people critical of the police had a way of finding themselves in the crosshairs. They were smeared, surveilled, intimidated and arrested.The police are a singularly powerful institution in this country. How far are the cops willing to go to keep it that way?Featured in this episode: Lennox Farrell, Jerry Amernic, Susan Eng, Derek Finkle To learn more:“Toronto Police Farce” by Derek Finkle in Eye WeeklyDudley Speaks for Me by Ngardy Conteh GeorgeHogtown: The Politics of Policing by Min Sook LeeThe Trials of London by Max Allen in CBC IdeasDuty: The Life of a Cop by Julian Fantino and Jerry Amernic Additional music from Audio NetworkSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stories about the power that police wield in Canada, and about the lengths they're willing to go to hold on to it. First episode drops Wednesday, October 14. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support us at commonspodcast.com In the final episode in our series about the COVID-19 pandemic and the crisis in long-term care, we’re going to tell you a different kind of story. A story of hope. About how the people we treat as disposable, can have lives of joy and dignity. And about one place where they were given exactly that. COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Moira Welsh (Toronto Star), Mary Connell To learn more: “The Fix” by Moira Welsh in The Toronto Star “To Fix Long-Term Care, Homes Must See Residents As People, Not Patients” by Sherina Harris in HuffPost “We Must Do More To Protect People With Dementia” by André Picard in The Globe and Mail Additional music from Audio Network “I Am a Man Who Will Fight for Your Honor” by Chris Zabriskie, adapted. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support us at commonspodcast.com Four months after the first outbreak in a Canadian nursing home, over 7000 long-term residents have died of COVID-19. But if you look at the news or social media or our political debates, it seems like we’ve already moved on. Maybe that’s because it feels like this kind of tragedy was inevitable during a pandemic. It wasn’t. And we know that because in some places in Canada, politicians and public health officials made decisions that saved hundreds, if not thousands of lives. COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Samir Sinha, Isobel Mackenzie, Michael Schwandt, Kieran Moore To learn more: “If you can get your relatives out of seniors’ homes, try to do so as fast as you can” by André Picard in The Globe and Mail “With an early focus on seniors’ residences, Kingston has so far avoided the brunt of COVID-19” by Karen Howlett in The Globe and Mail Luck and timing: How B.C. has managed to avoid the worst-case COVID-19 scenario by Briar Stewart in CBC News This episode is sponsored by Rotman’s MBA Essentials Online “Clean Soul” by Kevin Macleod, adapted. Additional music from Audio NetworkSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support us at commonspodcast.com Jonathan Marchand is one of the thousands of young disabled people living in long-term care. But Marchand doesn’t want to fix the system. He doesn’t think it can be reformed. Marchand is an abolitionist. For a century and a half, Canada has hidden away disabled people in institutions where they were neglected and abused. Is long-term care just the latest incarnation of this dark history? COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Jonathan Marchand, Sharon J. Riley (The Walrus), Kenneth Jackson (APTN News), Madeline Burghardt, Dustin Galer To learn more: “When Is a Senior No Longer Capable of Making Their Own Decisions?” by Sharon J. Riley in The Walrus “‘Sitting duck’: Disabled woman, 27, lives in Toronto seniors home with COVID-19 outbreak” by Kenneth Jackson in APTN News Working Towards Equity: Disability Rights Activism and Employment in Late Twentieth-Century by Dustin Galer Broken: Institutions, Families, and the Construction of Intellectual Disability by Madeline Burghardt Hope Is Not a Plan This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks Additional music from Audio NetworkSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support us at commonspodcast.com After a stroke left him locked in his own body, Rabbi Ronnie Cahana has found ways to lead an incredibly full life. Then the pandemic came. It swept through Quebec, leaving a trail of devastation. Today, Rabbi Cahana is one of the thousands of Quebeckers left stranded in the middle of one of the worst disasters in modern Canadian history. COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Aaron Derfel (Montreal Gazette), Tamara Sussman, Kitra Cahana, Ronnie Cahana To learn more: “Once a retirement plum for Quebec elders, nursing homes are now symbols of neglect” by Les Perreaux in The Globe and Mail “The incredible stupidity of not putting Dr. Joanne Liu in charge of Quebec’s response to the coronavirus” by André Noël in Ricochet “How Montreal's CHSLDs mirrored the Diamond Princess outbreak” by Aaron Derfel in the Montreal Gazette This episode is sponsored by Wealthbar Additional music from Audio Network “I Am a Man Who Will Fight for Your Honor” by Chris Zabriskie, adapted.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support us at commonspodcast.com Innis Ingram’s mother is his hero. But today, she’s living in one of the worst hit long-term care homes in Ontario. She has a terminal illness. Dozens and dozens of people around her have died, including her friend and roommate. And she’s had minimal human contact for three months. But even though he can’t be there with her, Innis is determined to get her the care she needs. COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Innis Ingram, Nathan Stall To learn more: “Ontario LTC whistle-blower saw many incidents of verbal abuse and forced feeding” by Jill Mahoney and Karen Howlett” in The Globe and Mail “It’s time to let families visit long-term care homes” by André Picard in The Globe and Mail “Some Ontario doctors, families worry rules for care home visits causing harm to residents” in CBC News This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks Additional music from Audio Network “Western Shores” by Philipp Weigl, adaptedSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support us at commonspodcast.com We take a break from our PANDEMIC season with an extended interview with Damian Abraham, a guest from our episode about Canada's wrestling dynasty, The Harts. Damian explains the art of juggling the real and the fake, wrestling's dying language and how Canadians helped build World Wrestling Entertainment. Damian Abraham is the host of Turned Out A Punk Podcast, the creator and host of The Wrestlers, and a member of Toronto hardcore band, Fucked Up.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support us at commonspodcast.com Long-term care workers are in the vanguard in the war against COVID-19. They’re not the kinds of workers who get movies or TV shows made about them. In fact, their stories are rarely told. But not only are they battling heroically against this pandemic. They’re fighting for recognition and respect within a system built to marginalize them. COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Joadel Concepcion, Joanna Bulatao, Lisa Burke, Naomi Lightman, Zaid Noorsumar To learn more: “‘We are dropping like flies,’ says Ontario home care nurse” by Zaid Noorsumar in Rank and File “Fear and exhaustion: Working as a PSW in long-term care during the coronavirus” by Alanna Mitchell in Maclean’s “Comparing Care Regimes: Worker Characteristics and Wage Penalties in the Global Care Chain” by Naomi Lightman in Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State & Society This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks Additional music from Audio NetworkSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

$5/month for-adree COMMONS by clicking here. Over the last two months, Nova Scotians have endured tragedy upon tragedy. The worst mass murder in modern Canadian history. A helicopter crash and the death of a Snowbirds’ pilot. And all the while, COVID-19 ravaged the biggest long-term care home in Atlantic Canada. COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Jennifer Henderson (Halifax Examiner), Janice Keefe To learn more: “Nova Scotia's lives lost to the COVID-19 pandemic” by Taryn Grant, Cassidy Chisholm, Elizabeth Chiu and Alex Cooke in CBC Nova Scotia “The Northwood board has been expressing “grave concern” about double occupancy rooms for years” by Jennifer Henderson in the Halifax Examiner “Strang, union clash over COVID-19 concerns at Northwood” by John McPhee in The Chronicle Herald This episode is sponsored by Wealthbar Additional music from Audio Network “I Am a Man Who Will Fight for Your Honor” by Chris Zabriskie, adapted.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Here's where you can support us: commonspodcast.com Tracy Rowley lost her surrogate mother to COVID-19 in a long-term care facility. But she’s determined that Shirley Egerdeen doesn’t become just another statistic. Tracy’s suing the company that runs the home. But one of the strangest things in this story is exactly who owns them. COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Tracy Rowley, Sherina Harris (HuffPost Canada), Emma Paling (HuffPost Canada), Zaid Noorsumar To learn more: “COVID-19 Has Killed 164 At Revera's Care Homes. Their Families Want Answers” by Emma Paling and Sherina Harris in HuffPost Canada “Is it Time to Care Yet?” by Zaid Noorsumar in Rank and File “It is time to forget the profits and fix long-term care” by Geoffrey Stevens in The Waterloo Region Record This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks and The Jerry Cans Additional music from Audio NetworkSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Over 1700 Ontarians have already been killed by COVID-19. And the vast majority of them died in long-term care. But if you live in a private, for-profit home, you’re much more likely to die from this virus. The for-profit long-term care industry is politically powerful and deeply entrenched. Is this their moment of reckoning? COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Sharleen Stewart (SEIU Healthcare), Natalie Mehra (Ontario Health Coalition) To learn more: “Party of Profits: Ontario Tories and the profit motive in long-term care” by Zaid Noorsumar in Rank and File “For-profit nursing homes have four times as many COVID-19 deaths as city-run homes, Star analysis finds” by Marco Chown Oved, Brendan Kennedy, Kenyon Wallace, Ed Tubb and Andrew Bailey in The Toronto Star “40 Ontario nursing homes with the highest rates of reported abuse” by Valérie Ouellet, Dexter Brown in CBC Marketplace This episode is sponsored by WealthBar This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. Additional music: I dunno by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, Morusque “Clean Soul” by Kevin Macleod, adapted. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The McKenzie Towne Continuing Care Centre has experienced the deadliest COVID-19 outbreak in Alberta. But some people say that their loved ones were killed by neglect at McKenzie Towne long before the pandemic even began. COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Breanne Sinclair, Shauna Parks To learn more: “'I'm numb': families beg for help as care home outbreak spreads” by Timm Bruch in CTV News Calgary “Grieving granddaughter exposes history of McKenzie Towne continuing care home by Jill Croteau in Global News “Nurses allege lack of cleaning and isolation contributed to deadly COVID-19 outbreak at Calgary care home” by Jennifer Lee in CBC News This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. Additional music: “Unanswered Questions” and “Clean Soul” by Kevin Macleod and “I Am a Man Who Will Fight for Your Honor” by Chris Zabriskie, adapted. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why did Commons drop everything and focus in on long-term care? Because the vast majority of deaths are happening in those homes. Because we should have known that was going to be the case, but we let it happen anyways. And because the level of suffering, isolation and trauma happening in long-term care today is almost too much for us to face up to. Featured in this episode: Nathan Stall, Jane Meadus This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. Additional music: “November”, “modum”, “Sunset”, and “Seeker” by Kai Engel, adapted. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

They were found abandoned in the facility. The conditions were described as “akin to a concentration camp.” Within two weeks, over thirty of them would be dead. The story of the Résidence Herron in Dorval, Quebec is a national shame — and a preview of the carnage still to come. COMMONS: Pandemic is currently focusing on how COVID-19 is affecting long-term care in Canada. Featured in this episode: Aaron Derfel (Montreal Gazette) To learn more: Public health, police find bodies, feces at Dorval seniors’ residence: sources in the Montreal Gazette by Aaron Derfel Records reveal chaos in the days before staff abandoned the Herron in the Montreal Gazette by Aaron Derfel Alleged neglect of seniors at residence in Dorval in CityNews Montreal by Alyssia Rubertucci This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Wealthbar Additional music: “Clean Soul” by Kevin Macleod and “Seeker” by Kai Engel, adapted. “SUNBIRDS” by BOCrew (c) copyright 2012 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: THEDEEPR / THECORNER / feat : FORENSIC /Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

COVID-19 has upended everything, and forced us to change plans. From here on out, COMMONS will be bringing you stories about the people and institutions most impacted by the pandemic. And first up is long-term care. If you or someone you know have any stories about Canada’s long-term care system, get in touch with us at [email protected] COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It began as a mysterious disease from a far off place. It turned into the deadliest plague humanity has faced since the Black Death. AIDS has ravaged and reshaped us in so many ways. But in Canada, the battle against AIDS wasn’t just a fight against a virus. It was a fight against a system that didn’t care if some people lived or died. Featured in this episode: Gary Kinsman, Darien Taylor, John Kozachenko To learn more: Queer Progress: From Homophobia to Homonationalism by Tim McCaskell AIDS Activist: Michael Lynch and the Politics of Community by Ann Silversides Never Going Back: A History of Queer Activism in Canada by Tom Warner This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Wealthbar, Freshbooks & Images FestivalSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There have been books and songs and plays written about Anna Mae Aquash. But she was no folk hero — she was flesh and blood. A young Mi'kmaq woman who took up arms against the United States government, Anna Mae was a revolutionary. But when she was found murdered in the South Dakotan countryside, it tore her movement apart. It took thirty years to find out who pulled the trigger. But that’s not the same thing as knowing who’s responsible for her murder. Featured in this episode: Kevin McKiernan, Steve Hendricks To learn more: From Wounded Knee to Standing Rock: A Reporter's Journey by Kevin McKiernan The Unquiet Grave: The FBI and the Struggle for the Soul of Indian Country by Steve Hendricks The Spirit of Annie Mae by Catherine Anne Martin This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Wealthbar, Freshbooks & Images Festival Additional music: “Unanswered Questions” and “Clean Soul” by Kevin Macleod, “I Am A Man Who Will Fight For Your Honor” by Chris Zabriskie, and “The Wrong Way” by Jahzzar adapted. “I dunno” by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, MorusqueSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s one of the most audacious plots in North American history. Turn a Caribbean island nation into a criminal state — then use the money to fund Neo-Nazis and Klansmen across Canada, the US and Europe. The scariest part? They almost pulled it off. Featured in this episode: Stewart Bell (Global News) To learn more: Bayou of Pigs: The True Story of an Audacious Plot to Turn a Tropical Island into a Criminal Paradise by Stewart Bell Cups Up: How I Organized a Klavern, Plotted a Coup, Survived Prison, Graduated College, Fought Polluters, and Started a Business by George Malvaney This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Wealthbar and Audible. Additional music: “Spheres” (Hip Hop Instrumental) by Robbero (c) copyright 2013 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our new season is about the people on the extremes. The activists, the terrorists, and the revolutionaries who took things right to the edge for what they believe in... for good or for ill.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A new investigative series about the cocaine smuggling ring inside Vice Media. To hear episode 2 right now, subscribe to Cool Mules. Or get all six episodes ad-free for $5/month by clicking here.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Harts are Canada’s first family of professional wrestling and one of the most famous dynasties the country has ever produced. And sure, wrestling is scripted. But what happens when reality begins to invade that fiction? The story of the Harts is one of triumph and tragedy that transcends the world of pro wrestling. Featured in this episode: Damian Abraham, Omar Mouallem To learn more: Wrestling With Shadows by Paul Jay The Squared Circle: Life, Death, and Professional Wrestling by David Shoemaker “The Rise and Fall of Wrestling’s Weed-Dealing, Cat-Breeding Phenom” in Rolling Stone by Omar Mouallem This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Wealthbar and Audible. Additional music: “Unanswered Questions” by Kevin Macleod and “Cylinder Five” by Chris Zabriskie, adapted. “I dunno” by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, Morusque “SUNBIRDS” by BOCrew (c) copyright 2012 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: THEDEEPR / THECORNER / feat : FORENSIC / Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gerald Regan was the premier of Nova Scotia, the founder of a powerful political dynasty, and one of the most prolific sexual predators in Canadian political history. Even after his death last November, few in the establishment are willing to recognize, let alone reckon with, his crimes. This episode contains graphic depictions of sexual violence and won’t be suitable for all listeners. Featured in this episode: Stephen Kimber, Maggie Rahr To learn more: Aphrodisiac: Sex, Politics, Power and Gerald Regan by Stephen Kimber “Uncomfortable silence at Province House” in The Coast by Maggie Rahr “The complicated narrative of Gerald Regan” in The Chronicle Herald by Andrea Gunn This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Wealthbar and Audible. Additional music: “Clean Soul” by Kevin Macleod, “Cylinder Five” by Chris Zabriskie, and “Easy Life” by Lee Rosevere, adapted. "I dunno" by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, Morusque "SUNBIRDS" by BOCrew (c) copyright 2012 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: THEDEEPR / THECORNER / feat : FORENSIC /Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For 150 years, the Olands have been one of Canada’s most prominent brewing dynasties, the makers of Moosehead Beer. But in the last decade, they’ve made the news for much darker reasons. Richard Oland was murdered in 2011. And police and prosecutors believe that he was killed by his only son. Featured in this episode: Greg Marquis To learn more: Truth & Honour: The Oland Family Murder Case that Shocked Canada by Greg Marquis Shadow of Doubt: The Trials of Dennis Oland by Bobbi-Jean MacKinnon “Murder and a Maritime dynasty: The Dick Oland case” in Maclean’s by Nicholas Köhler and Tamsin McMahon. This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Wealthbar and Audible. Additional music: “Clean Soul” by Kevin Macleod, “Cylinder Five” by Chris Zabriskie, and “Running Water” by Jason Shaw, adapted. I dunno by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, MorusqueSupport COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Desmarais family is by far the most influential Canadian dynasty of the last half-century. But if you don’t live in Quebec, chances are you haven’t even heard of them. Paul Desmarais had Prime Ministers and Premiers in his pocket and billions of dollars at his disposal. He wasn’t just a Laurentian elite; he was the Laurentian emperor. Featured in this episode: Robin Philpot (Derrière l'État Desmarais: Power) To learn more: Derrière l'État Desmarais: Power by Robin Philpot Rising to Power: Paul Desmarais and Power Corporation by Dave Greber “Chrétien and Bouchard, sitting in a (very expensive) tree” by Martin Patriquin in Macleans’ This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks, Leesa and Wealthbar. Additional music: I dunno by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, Morusque reNovation by airtone (c) copyright 2019 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. “Lee Rosevere” by A List of Ways to Die, adapted. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Sahotas are Vancouver’s most notorious slumlords. For decades they’ve let their buildings rot, leaving their tenants to live in filth and desolation. But the Sahotas are not like any other dynasty you’ve ever heard of. Their story is far stranger, and far darker, than anything you can imagine. Featured in this episode: Jen St. Denis, Christopher Cheung (The Tyee), Sam Dharmapala To learn more: “For low-income residents in Vancouver, a different kind of real estate crisis” by Wendy Stueck and Mike Hager in The Globe and Mail “'Out-of-control' SROs: Everyone wants to help, but no one seems to have the tools” by Denise Ryan in The Vancouver Sun “Room 821” by Crackdown This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks, Audible and Wealthbar. Additional music: I dunno by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, Morusque eighteen pieces (soda) by Soda (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. SUNBIRDS by BOCrew (c) copyright 2012 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: THEDEEPR / THECORNER / feat : FORENSIC / “I Am A Man Who Will Fight For You Honor” by Chris Zabriskie, adapted. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Rizzutos are Canada’s first family of crime. For decades, they dominated Montreal’s underworld with an iron fist. With the help of corrupt politicians and police officers, the Rizzutos built one of the most fearsome and lucrative criminal enterprises this country has ever seen. Their reign was long and bloody. But their fall, was even more gruesome. Featured in this episode: Peter Edwards (Toronto Star), Pietro Poletti To learn more: Business or Blood: Mafia Boss Vito Rizzuto's Last War by Peter Edwards and Antonio Nicaso The Sixth Family: The Collapse of the New York Mafia and the Rise of Vito Rizzuto by Lee Lamothe and Adrian Humphreys “Death of the Don” by CBC’s The Fifth Estate This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks, Leesa and HelloFresh. Additional music: I dunno by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, Morusque Spheres (Hip Hop Instrumental) by Robbero (c) copyright 2013 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. “Cylinder Five” by Chris Zabriskie, adapted. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Canada is a big, interesting, and complicated place and COMMONS is committed to bringing you thoughtfully crafted and illuminating stories that will challenge everything you think you know about this country. We make a complex scripted podcast that’s unlike anything else available in this country and cover stories from all across the nation. We want to keep doing this work, but we need your support. This week we’re going to tell you a little bit about the work that goes into making this show and about what’s next for Canadaland. Click here to see we’re hoping to do with your support. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

They call themselves the Canadian Kennedys. And they’re one of the most famous political dynasties to ever exist in this country. But the rise of the Ford family has been marred by violence and self-destruction at almost every turn. The story of the Fords is tragic — for them, for everyone who falls into their orbit, and for the people of Toronto. Featured in this episode: Jonathan Goldsbie (Canadaland). CORRECTION [Nov. 18, 2019]: We state in this episode that Rob Ford died in 2014. He died in March of 2016. We regret the error. To learn more: Crazy Town: The Rob Ford Story by Robyn Doolittle The Only Average Guy: Inside the Uncommon World of Rob Ford by John Filion “The Rob Ford Story” by CBC’s The Fifth Estate This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks and Audible. Additional music: I dunno by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, Morusque ＭＩＬＬＥＮＮＩＡＬＳ by Analog By Nature (c) copyright 2018 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Reverie (small theme) by _ghost (c) copyright 2010 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: Pitx “Unanswered Questions” by Kevin Macleod, adapted. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For almost a century, the Irving family has run New Brunswick like a personal fiefdom. They own the newspapers, the industry, and, according to some, even the government. So how does a single family come to so thoroughly dominate an entire province? And what happens when that family starts to fracture and split apart at the seams? Featured in this episode: Bruce Livesey (Thieves of Bay Street). To learn more: “Are the Irvings Canada's biggest corporate welfare bums?” by Bruce Livesey in National Observer Irving vs. Irving: Canada's Feuding Billionaires and the Stories They Won't Tell by Jacques Poitras “Irving family's fortunate son explains how he fell into a dark depression, and rose again” by Erin Anderssen” in The Globe and Mail This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks and Leesa. Additional music: I dunno by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, Morusque “A List of Ways to Die” by Lee Rosevere, “Easy Life” by Lee Rosevere, and “Androids Always Escape” by Chris Zabriskie, adapted.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Canada is a country ruled by dynasties — political, commercial and criminal. In the first episode of our new series, we bring you the story of an eccentric, billionaire patriarch; his famous, charismatic daughter; a fire-breathing monument the size of the Statue of Liberty; and the battle over one of Canada’s great business empires. Featured in this episode: Robert Fife (Globe and Mail). To learn more: “The $500 Million Family Feud” by Leah McLaren in Toronto Life “A Stronach Family Feud: How things fell apart between the patriarch and his heir apparent” by Barbara Shecter and Geoff Zochodne in the Financial Post “‘They stole the company’: Frank Stronach accuses daughter Belinda of betrayal” by Robert Fife in The Globe and Mail This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. This episode is sponsored by Freshbooks and Audible. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stories about the rich and powerful families who run Canada.Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Canoe-borne bandits strike an underwater town. A new generation of wealthy lobstermen is minted. An island disappears. And hellfire engulfs a highway jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive. Just another normal day amidst Canada’s climate catastrophe. Featured in this episode: Catherine Griwkowsky (Alberta Today), Brendan Kennedy (Toronto Star), Keith Stewart (Greenpeace), Markus Harvey. To learn more: “There will be floods” by Brendan Kennedy in the Toronto Star “Big Oil braced for global warming while it fought regulations” by Amy Lieberman and Susanne Rust in the Los Angeles Times “When climate change hits home” by Nick Purdon in CBC News This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Teck Resources just got approval to build the largest tar sands operation ever. The Frontier mine would have serious and permanent consequences for the local environment, Indigenous peoples and the global climate. So why haven’t you ever heard about it? Featured in this episode: Nikki Way (Pembina Institute), Kecia Kerr (Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society), Cleo Reece (Keepers of the Athabasca), Violet Cheecham Clark. To learn more: “10 things you need to know about the massive new oilsands mine that just got a green light” by Sharon J. Riley in The Narwhal “Teck's Frontier oilsands project heads to McKenna for review” by Alastair Sharp in National Observer “UN says Canada isn’t doing enough to save Wood Buffalo National Park” by Judith Lavoie in The Narwhal This show was brought to you by our patrons. Please consider becoming a monthly supporter. Support COMMONS: http://commonspodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.