The Big Story

This week, Canada's reckoning with its racist history was interrupted by its racist present. A terrorist attack in London, ON killed four members of a Muslim family and left a nine-year-old boy orphaned and injured. Are we finally past saying things like, "This kind of stuff doesn't happen in Canada"? Are we ready to shed the self-image that has been proven false so many times? Are Canadians ready, en masse, to take it upon themselves to make this country safe and confront Islamophobia? Are politicians ready to shelve the thoughts and prayers and lead us in doing it? Because right now, things are getting worse, not better. GUEST: Fatima Syed We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

Lots of people, when applying for jobs, hope the people doing the hiring can see them as people, instead of as assets that can deliver value for the company. For job seekers with disabilities or neurodivergence, it's just the opposite—they wish that employers could see the real value they'll bring to the business instead of just seeing the atypical applicant they're interviewing. So what happens when businesses make a business decision and hire these applicants? They're often rewarded handsomely and there are many examples of employers who've done this. But how can the rest of Canadian employers learn to see these hires as a competitive advantage instead of an act of charity? GUEST: Katie Lafferty, producer on Employable Me We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

There have been promises in the past. And committees, and commitments and commissions and no shortage of apologies. But in the wake of the 215 children found buried where a residential school once operated near Kamloops, there's a growing sense among Canadians that none of the past work has been enough. Is this reckoning real? Do Indigenous peoples across the country believe it could be different this time? Will average Canadians demand better from their government? And if this time really is different, what happens next? And how horrific will real Truth and Reconciliation be when we learn all there is to learn about that not-so-distant past? GUEST: Eva Jewell, Associate fellow at the Yellowhead Institute, Anishinaabekwe from Deshkan Ziibiing, Chippewas of the Thames First Nation (Learn more about the Yellowhead Institute here.) We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

The promise was pretty clear: During his first successful campaign as Liberal leader, Justin Trudeau told LGBT voters that we would end Canada’s longstanding ban prohibiting men who have sex with men from donating blood. At the time, it seemed like a simple promise to keep. A few years later, he claimed it wasn’t so simple. Now, it’s 2021 and Erin O’Toole is criticizing Trudeau for his failure as the Conservatives seek LGBT support. How is the blood ban still in place? When Trudeau claims his government will “follow the science” what is he referring to? Is a discriminatory approach really still necessary when technology has rapidly advanced and Canada needs blood more than ever? GUEST: Justin Ling, investigative journalist We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

Every time there’s a protest, or dispute, or anything else newsworthy in rural Canada, the media shows up to cover it. And runs into the RCMP. Sometimes, nothing happens. But more often than not, access to the story becomes a story in itself, with the RCMP insisting media aren’t allowed in, or offering access only to “accredited media”. You can imagine where this leads, and probably guess that Indigenous journalists have born the brunt of it. But this time, when the RCMP attempted to stop journalists from access the site of a protest against old-growth forest logging near Port Renfrew, B.C., the media went to court. What happens next will go a long way to determining who gets access to protests attempting to stop natural resource extraction in rural areas, and other contentious issues that happen far away from big cities… GUEST: Brent Jolly, President, Canadian Association of Journalists We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

Less than one percent of the 1.8-billion Covid-19 vaccines used so far have gone to low-income countries. And in those countries new variants are emerging that could impact our vaccine efficacy. Canadians spent the first four months complaining about our slow rollout, but we’re soon to be second in the world among countries with the highest percentage of people receiving at least one dose. This is vaccine inequity in action. And it’s not someone else’s problem. Today, when experts tell you “the pandemic isn’t over until it’s over everywhere” … here’s what they mean. GUEST: Dr. Ananya Tina Banerjee, McGill University We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

Less than two months from now, unless something changes, the postponed 2020 Olympics will begin in Tokyo, Japan. Unless the country’s government listens to both its populace and its doctors, all of whom are urging them not to proceed. Japan has vaccinated less than three percent of its population. A medic this week warned of the Olympics spawning a new ‘Tokyo olympic’ variant of Covid-19. The games could be exactly what the world needs to mark the beginning of the end of this pandemic. Or they could be exactly what the virus needs to keep it going. And we won’t know which, until they happen. If they happen. GUEST: Stephen Brunt, Sportsnet We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal … Canada truly has some of the world’s biggest and most beautiful Pride celebrations. But it also has some of the smallest. In places like Taber, Alberta (POP: 9,000), Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia (POP.: 500) and Norman Wells, Northwest Territories (POP: 800) communities have begun holding Prides of their own, often marked by some of the same traditions you find in big cities. What does that look like? How different is it to walk in a Pride march when you know everybody who is—and isn’t—there? And when everyone will know you attended? How are these events changing what it’s like to grow up queer in small-town Canada? GUEST: Chelle Turingan, co-director, producer, editor, Small Town Pride We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

It’s always been this way but … why? When it comes to everything from routine cleaning appointments and checkups to more complicated procedures like abscesses and crowns, many Canadians scramble to pay for their own dental care. Even for those lucky enough to have insurance, many employers’ plans don’t have enough coverage to take care of the really expensive stuff. Is dental care an afterthought in this country? Was there ever a plan to include it in universal health care? What do other countries do? And does any party have a plan to fix this? GUEST: Anne Thériault, freelance journalist (Read Anne’s piece in The Walrus) We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

We asked a whole bunch of questions, and hundreds of The Big Story’s listeners responded. We’re here for a special episode to share some of the most interesting questions and feedback with you — and to tell you what we’re going to do about it! GUEST HOST: Stefanie Phillips, lead producer, The Big Story GUEST: Jordan Heath-Rawlings, host We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter