My Thoughts on the Creative Enterprise Initiative funding vote today

Today`s Regional Council vote to continue funding The Creative Enterprise Initiative demonstrated what the city feels the role of art and culture is, a cheap commodity that can be measured not by the value it brings to society, but rather the value it brings in terms of dollars in the pockets of bureaucrats and as a tool of political social and ideological gentrification.

Despite the passionate pleas of artists at the meeting not to fund this monstrosity driven by profit Regional Councillors voted to continue funding this project that is a straight jacket for artistic expression. The CEI and the direction that it is taking is not led by artists but rather artistic managers, CEOs, and big festival promoters who care nothing about creating a local artistic scene which reflects the needs of our community but rather are focused on revenues, profit margins and bringing in sloppy commercial acts simply for profit making it more of a party throwing enterprise then a mirror into peoples soul, which is what art is suppose to be.

By voting to continue to finance this failure and then make comments about the need for unity in the artistic scene here in the region the message sent to artists was quite clear, shut up fall in line, know your place or else.

In older society the court jester was the one who kept the powers that be in check by being able to speak truth to power, even if that truth was one that no one wanted to hear. Over the course of the development of our society this role of truthsayer has fallen to the writers singers poets painters etc. The role of the artist in society has always been to hold up a mirror and show what is regardless of weather the reflection is not appeasing to the powers that be. With the advent of globalization political power rests not so much with politicians but rather corporations and conglomorates that get to call the tune. By funding the CEI and pushing for a profit based artistic expression the Region has stripped this noble role of the artist not by jailing them but by silencing them economically. How many artists can be critical of the destruction of our downtown community when those who pay there wages, or give the artists the venues etc have economic development as one of their key points. How can artists express the frustration at the high levels of police violence when this violence is part and parcel of the development that is one of the goals of the CEI.

Art when it becomes a commodity must be simple catchy and easy to sell. Like our bodies and our communitys for this to happenned it must be made pretty gentrified. Issues like rape culture, suicide, drug addiction, and genocide of Indigenous peoples isnt something that is pretty and as such doesnt sell. These serious topics that art has once explored and created a space for diolauge has gone out the window and like our neighbourhoods is now replaced with nice catchy plastic fake things and in a society where art , the method in which ideas mores and values are passed on and transmitted, becomes a commodity then the whole of a society becomes a commodity.

Todays vote was in many ways an intensification of the war on the poor as council just removed the canarys from the mine so we can just go on digging and digging until none of us can breathe

Terre Chartrand Presentation To Regional Council on The Creative Enterprise Initiative Funding

First, I would like to draw attention to the presentation on the screen. During the last CEI presentation, the arts community were dismayed that the presentation showcased art from outside of the region as an example of what could exist here. I asked artists for the use of images and received over 300 photographs of events, art, and packed out crowds gathered to partake in art in Waterloo Region.
Thank you, Councilors for allowing me to come and speak with you tonight.
For those of you who don’t know me, I have lived in Waterloo Region for the better part of 20 years – I owned a house in Waterloo, I rented in Cambridge, I lived in Doon, I spent 7 years downtown Kitchener, and now live in beautiful New Dundee. I moved here as a tech worker, worked as a teacher, and have now been a professional artist for going on 10 years.
In my time here, I have seen arts go from vibrant and thrumming, to something of a difficult battle field of closed door meetings discussing what we need to do to end the single most difficult problem we have had to tackle in our careers. This question of the CEI has plagued us for years. Many of my colleagues approached it with hope. We are, after all, artists.
You don’t go into art to make money. You don’t go into art thinking that anything will be easy. But you only stay in art because you are an unquenchable optimist, truly believing that things will get better. You rapidly learn to budget tight funds and you build something out of nothing. You stretch countless dimes and make pennies bleed. You continue to apply for grants, and work endlessly to keep building your practice.
Art has this remarkable knock on effect for making money for everyone but those who are closest to it. The artists struggle, and they struggle here enormously. The organizations who present and support most directly have to stringently build and defend budgets that always present shortfalls. Restaurants, cafes, and small business around art thrive and are well supported by the artists and their excited crowds.
In this case, most embarrassingly, and perhaps very unique to Waterloo Region, over 1 million in funding over a few years has been poured into an initiative built when the Region recognized that the arts, from individual practitioner to large institution was critically underfunded. 1 million dollars, and just a few years later, and we all still are.
We have dire infrastructure issues with a lack of galleries, studios, jam halls, theatres, rehearsal space and then also seeing these diminish monthly. We are lacking money from private sector after most of it was siphoned into this new venture built to “help the arts”. We have seen almost no growth in sustainability and innovation for small to medium organizations – those that animate the buildings that are also struggling to place programming and fix their roofs, maintain their HVAC for the audiences that pack in to see what we build.
The CEI is not, nor has ever been an arts organization. It has built a few, desperately transient bandaids that we rallied together to build before, but now are left with less. I maintained a studio for over 6 years through artist run initiatives. The CEI maintained studios for 2 years, and then never managed to build sustainable infrastructure, sustainable funding, sustainable resources in any way at all whatsoever. It’s barely an arts supporting initiative, and certainly needs to no longer be viewed, or called an arts organization. Nor should it take part in being funded as one, whether that money comes from a dedicated arts budget or otherwise.
I am taking this platform right now as an artist in Waterloo Region to state that the CEI is not an arts organization. I am calling on my colleagues to do the same. I am calling on my colleagues to turn their backs to this thorn-in-the-side failed project and recognize that they are not among us and their failure was not ours. We were not the CEI and they were not us. They don’t represent us. Arguably at this point, and stated in their own literature, they are diverting good money to duplication.
I no longer have a studio. I can’t afford one even though my career is stronger than ever.
I am taking this platform right now as an artist in Waterloo Region to make it clear that we are not culture industries, big film or music. We animate your region daily. We would perhaps benefit by their presence, but we are not them.
I am taking this platform right now as an artist in Waterloo Region to declare that we are not content creators. We are not glorified advertisers or marketing initiatives. We make works of art.
I am taking this platform right now as an artist in Waterloo Region with a brand new non-profit in the arts to say that I speak because I have nothing left to lose.
There is no capacity for me, or my other emerging colleagues to make things here. I have watched countless colleagues leave, and I am on the verge of doing the same. This bleed will not end with me when I go.

32CSM Statement at Toronto Meeting on National Sovereignty , POWS and Land Defenders

On behalf of the 32 csm I would like to send revolutionary greetings to everyone attending today’s event. Particularly those comrades from Latin America in the struggle of national liberation against U.S. control the continent
And indigenous comrades fighting to defend their land and sovereignty.

The 32 csm is a grass-roots pressure movements organized all across Ireland on a political basis that Irish people have the unalienable right to determine their own destiny free from political or economic
Control by the British.

This issue of political sovereignty
Is inalienable which means that it is not something that needs to be voted on our negotiable but rather something that exists as a basic right of all nations.

This includes full control of the resources the land, water and the all the inherit rights that come with being indigenous to the land of island
As long as the British occupy the six counties in the north of Ireland, Irish sovereignty is violated and as such the Irish people have a right and obligation to resist this attack on basic rights.

With the coming off the centenary of the 1916 uprising around the corner many reactionary forces are attempting to rewrite history in the hopes of negating this key issue of sovereignty
We of the 32csm reflect the revisionism and call on all or people to support our just struggle for liberation from British rule at this time we call on people to read or submission and support and promote this document
We thank you for letting us participate in this event and wish you successes in your struggle our day will come

Police officer sexually assaults protestor at Pro Venezuela protest

This was written by a friend of mine Torri Denby who accompanied me to a protest yesterday to support the Bolivarian process yesterday in Toronto.Accompanying this is a picture of said cop reaching for her ass. This is sick.

Today I arrived from out of town with a friend for a demonstration to defend venezulas bolivarian revolution. My friend Uli said to the man in photo with me hey hold this side I want to take a picture. Standing there for a photo I had an officer approach me from behind. He pressed his body against mine and wrapped his arm around me clenched on my waist. I then said dont touch me. I didmt realize who it was at first, but then I realized it was a cop and panicked. I went blank. He is in a place of power and he inappropriately touched me. I feel violated. When I said a second time dont touch me, he said he was photobombing my photo and walked away. You dont need to grope or touch someone in anyway at all in order to photobomb. I have been having panic attacks and can still feel his arm on my waist and his body pressed against mine. This isnt okay. If it was a random man I would have started screaming and pushed him off me immediately. But he was a cop and if I did hed arrest me.

Public Meeting for Refugees in Kitchener and demonstration In Cambridge build framework to resist racist attacks and demonizations

Today people in Kitchener gathered for a demonstration at Kitchener City Hall to say Refugees are welcome, but due to the presence of fascist boneheads and all the people who were there for the market, it was decided that instead of having a demo that would simply turn into a confrontation and scare people or play into the stereotypes of violence etc. it was decided that instead a public meeting will be held.

This meeting was attended by over twenty people and a variety of issues were discussed about how we can create a more friendly atmosphere and have an actual three categories of political work were set up. The first is to assist the various humanitarian projects, the second is to set up a phoneline/ email address where people can call in fascist attacks etc. and a phone tree be set up for a rapid response and the third was to hold public meetings to raise awareness of the true conditions that the refugees here face, the political crisis and its cause as well as the political implication of all of this.

This meeting is a continuation of the project started last week in Cambridge with a demonstration and march denouncing racist attacks as well as the myth of homegrown radicalization and the increased attacks on people right to conscience.

In the new years there will be a variety of public meeting and actions in the tri cities as we put forward an alternative to these attacks.

soon the door slams behind me with a wack and i know its to late to turn back…..on my recent stay in Cloverhill remand centre in Ireland

So i decided that I was going to go to Ireland and interview my comrade Gary Donnelley who is a councilor in Derry as well as an active Republican and organizer with the Creggan Community Collective, a centre that works to resist the marginalization of poor people, as his work is similar to stuff that I do here. We chatted several time and I told him the type of programs we would need as well as equipment and such and as I had my plane ticket etc I prepared myself to leave.

I arrived with two friends at the airport and scanned my passport to get my boarding pass and of course the computer tells me to head to the Air Canada counter and check in manually. Myself and my two friends head to the counter and hand over my passport only to be told after several swipes etc. that he had to make a call, i asked whom did he have to call and my fear was confirmed, homeland security, they asked the air canada guy if i was traveling alone and how much luggage I have where I am traveling and my reason why, he kept on asking the air canada guy these questions again and again to the point where he was getting frustrated. He hands me my boarding pass which states ssss which means to search and due to the fact that I was standing for so long I should get a wheelchair, which I got, I got wheeled through the airport till I got to security, the person who was supposed to search me complained and explained to me what the story is, why he had to search me and how it was crap that I was getting searched and how there was nothing random about my search, I looked at his name tag and wrote it down after in case I needed it for anything esp since he seemed sympathetic. I got up and assumed the position to get this nasty peace of business over with. I got through after this and went and boarded the plane.

Several hours after I landed in Dublin and got in line to go through customs. When I went through Customs and the guy got my passport his face changed( with the passport was my info as well as the contact info for Gary Donnelly including his number and the fact that I was staying with him etc.), I was able to look at the screen and see that the picture that was taken of me from my last stay as a result of interrogation from homeland security was on the screen and that there was alot of writing but since my glasses were pretty dirty I did not get to see what this writing was. He asked me about my previous two visits in Ireland and asked what I did I told him the truth visited friends and interviewed people for my show. He asked me the names of my friends and I said I didnt remember as I know a few people.He asked about why homeland security talked to me last time and what WB means which was on my passport I told him I didn’t know and that they denied me entry on my way home last time.He asked why and I said I don’t know. He asked if I was affiliated with any trouble makers and about my record I answered that I have one conviction in 2001 and that it was awhile ago and ignored the question about troublemakers. He asked what my purpose of my trip was and I stated that I was visiting Gary Donnelly to Interview him. As I was doing this I pulled out my book and was ready to read his info to give to them, he said that it seemed to him that I was making stuff up and was just reading from a book, and that I don’t really know anyone Gary Donnelly and he is probably someone I met on the Internet, I said this was not true and that I have interviewed him before and he should contact Gary Donnelly and see what the story was (this is interesting as I told Brazilian customs that the people who bought my ti ticket when I went to Brazil were people I met on the net and pretty much what they said was word for word what I told them I have used this excuse on other trips so it seems someone is writing this shit down). He asked for my mobile phone at this point and my laptop and I said I had neither, and I asked him if he could just ring Donnelly to conform this. He said If I pulled out my mobile I could ring him, at which point I said I did not have a mobile. I was told to take a seat and I did and there were several other people who had taken a seat and as they were going through many of them backpackers and hippies I thought I would be good. The guy then comes and asks me for the names of some of my friends again and there phone numbers and again I say I am there to see Donnelly and I don’t have my friends names or phone numbers. He then asks how much money I have and I looked in my pockets and pulled out two hundred twenty-six dollars. He says one sec and after waiting while he comes back and is like last chance why are you here who are you here to see and who are your friends, I state I am here to see Gary Donnelly to do interviews. He said If I was here to do interviews were is your equipment I said that Gary had it. At this point in time I ask for a lawyer, at which he replied that as this is not a criminal charge I don’t need a lawyer.

He came back with a piece of paper that stated that I was being denied entry on the grounds that A. That the non-national is not in a position to support himself or herself and any accompanying dependents and asked me to sign this which I said no i would not sign this as clearly if this was the reason they would contact Donnelly and confirm if I was staying with him and not ask me so many questions about my friends and about my previous visits and such and ask me only last how much money I had. We argued awhile and finally he gave me the paper without my signature and write passenger refuses to sign. At this point Gardia Immigration come and take us to a room in the airport for holding. As we went outside to the car I asked if I could quickly light a smoke as i have not had one for quite some time and they said that I would have a chance to smoke later. I was brought to a room where several other people were being held, most people escaping the conflict in the middle east trying to break into fortress Europe. People were there from Tunisia Syria and other countries and the walls were covered in different names and slogans such as I miss my son, I will return, no one is illegal (which brought a smile to my face) and other such things. After a bit an immigration guy comes and asks me if I knew a certain person, I stood their and said nothing, he asked if I spoke in english to which I replied I’m from kkkanada, not Romania, he then asked me again if I knew this person as he was on the phone, he handed me a piece of paper with a phone number and I followed him. I sat down and dialed the number and it was no trick it was my friend. The guy from immigration was hovering over my shoulder and said to hurry the call up and not be too long. I talked to this person for about three minutes and he asked how I was doing, would they let me stay if he gave me money, I asked the guy who was hovering over my shoulder he said no because it was two separate agency’s and the desision was already made. he then asked me if I have been given a cup of tea or anything and I said no, at which point he said I did have rights, he also informed me that I would be held until sunday and be put in jail until then and to find out what jail so people could visit etc. we ended the phone call with me asking if he could contact someone for me and he said he would tell my roommate, in terms of what jail I would be sent to I was greeted with silence.

I was taken back to my cell where I was provided with a light and boy did I enjoy that smoke. We were then told that we were being taken to accommodations, I asked where are you taking me, the guy said to get a phone have a shower clean up and rest. I asked where he replied Cloverhill remand centre to which I replied that it was a jail not accommodations we drove through Dublin to the immigration detention centre and at that point I thought that I would be dropped off there but that was not to be, they emptied the car out of everyone except me and the Tunisian guy and we were taken to Cloverhill. We got through the gates, the gates shut we got out of the car and we were handed over to prison administration. I was put in a cell with the Tunisian guy, and two Irish lads, one was in there for guns and other was drug charges. We made small talk and I lit a smoke. The guard told me to come out and I was patted down, he asked me for my prescriptions and I handed them over Tamazapham, Percocet and Oxys. He said he would give them to the nurse and then he asked what the thing around my neck was, I told him it was a protection baggie made by a friend for good luck, he also took that. I went to the counter and gave the guy my money, my pouch and that’s all i had in my pockets and they put that in my property. When I asked why my meds were not in my property he said that he gave it to the nurse. I then went to see the nurse and she asked me what health issues I had a for once i decided to cooperate and half way through my medical conditions she said that was fine. I then asked about my meds and she said it was the policy of the jail not to give benzo s or narcotics to patients and that I would get my meds when I got released.At this point in time I feel pretty vindicated about not listening to my doctor and taking my meds every day because if I did I would be going through some pretty fucked up withdrawal, and while it may be true that ignoring pain like I do can cause neurons to misfires and one of the supposed causes of fibromyalgia, that is in some distant future and not now, where as if I always took my meds I would be having the problem now. The nurse also said that she would take my cane away and see how I was doing without it, despite the fact that the guy in my cell had a cane. So no meds, no mobility device pretty much I was fucked for pain. I asked if they could give me some anti inflammatory s or paracetamol or something and she said I could ask the doctor tomorrow. I looked at her computer and said that my last name was spelt wrong she ignored me. I asked what would I get for tonight and was told nothing.

In any case I got thrown back into a cell and waited some more, one of the people in the cell threw me an unopened carton of milk and I asked him if he wanted a smoke and we just waited. The screw came back took me to a desk where I was asked to spread out. I did and got patted down. I then answered some questions and was given a bag. I took the bag and was told to sit. The screw then told me to remove my hat and hand it over, I was then told to remove my sweater, my shirt, my pants my shoes my socks underwear etc. I was given a red towel and told to sit in boss chair. This is kinda ironic because the political prisoners in Maghaberry have been fighting for a BOSS Chair for quite some time so as to avoid degrading cavity searches etc and despite the fact that a jail the size of Maghaberry does not have one there is one in cloverhill. We were then taken to the landing of committals where people spend the first night. As we were entering the landing three screws were dragging out some guy as he was being restrained and was yelling, the landing was noisy . Since there were four of us brought on the landing three went into one cell and I went into the other.The cell was dirty with left over food thrown on the side, fish and such, bodily fluids on the blankets, the toilet was clogged and a bit of a mess and basically the place was a shithole. I took my bag with stuff given to me by the prison admin, pulled out the sheet covered my bed and using the bag as a pillow covered myself with the dirty blanket and tried to sleep. In my head I was back home with my friend she showed up at my house and I was like lets put our cellphones in the bathroom so we could chat, we were telling ourselves all sorts of stuff and I was describing my trip, drinking huge cups of coffee, I was ranting and she was going off telling me stuff about what she was going through etc., the door slams open a screw walks in and I am back in the smelly cell. The screw is visible and I ask to speak to a lawyer and about the phone calls I was promised. He said I would go to see the governor in the morning and would get my calls and have my chance to speak to my attorney tomorrow, two people walk in my cell mates. I offer one of them a cigarette and he says no thanks as it was my last, i said we would split it he said that it was fine he had a pouch of tobacco. I asked the one person why he was in and where he was from, he told me he was from Morocco and was there to be deported as an undesirable, the other guy happened to be from Romania and was in for trying to smuggle a hundred boxes of smokes without paying tax. I started speaking to him in Romanian and we totally got along, all three of us actually happy days, my cellmates at least were class.

The next days we woke up at six am as the first key turned in the door, shortly after breakfast was brought to us, my celly rolled me several smokes and we puffed away as breakfast other than the tea bag was uneatable. We went to see the governor and he asked why I was in jail, I said they said it was because I only has $226 dollars on me, he asked me if I have been to jail before and I said yes, he then asked if my loved ones and friends knew I was in jail I said no, he said I would be able to make some phone calls and gave me a piece of paper to fill out, he asked if I had a solicitor and told me to put his name on the paper as well, he then asked me again why I was here and I said that because I only had $226 entering the country he said that was bullshit and I agreed and stated since I had a place to stay and friends that were looking after me there was no reason to be denied entry and to be detained in his words in a “real jail”. He then asked me how much a stake dinner was in canada, i said 20 dollars. He laughed and said in that case he wants to move to canada, he then asked me if I every had a steak dinner in my life which i thought was a fucked up question and I must have been giving him a dirty look because he started to be like ten days in Ireland and how much would you spend on food etc. He then started to ask other questions which I did not answer. I looked at my file and told him my last name was spelled wrong he said that is how they spell my name here. We then go to the doctor who said I would not be getting any of my meds for pain nor would I be getting my cane back at this point but they would give me a puffer, which I did not ever get, and anti inflammatory and paracetamol, which the whole stay I did not get.

We were then moved to the B range or roe or landing and luckily I got to keep my cell mates. We set up our beds and the cell was much cleaner, as well people were not yelling all hours of the day and night like the other range. The one cell mate from Morocco recognized the name of the lawyer I wanted to use and asked why I was there I told him that they didn’t let me in because I didn’t have enough money and he said that clearly that was an excuse, he asked if I was a provo or affiliated with them since this lawyer usually defends them and I said I was a communist which was cool with both of them and we chatted for a bit. We filled out our paper for the lawyers and the calls we were allowed to make and handed the papers in. i asked when we would get our calls I was told later. I asked when I would get my mes I was told that they are understaffed and I will get them when they can get them to me we were then told to go to yard. I went to yard and when I was walking outside someone said to me quite loudly that they have not seen a woman in a long time and my hair turns them on. I pretended to ignore this and walked about outside. I stood on the corner of the yard for about two minutes then walked about as it was raining we were quite crowded hanging out under the overhead thing that covered us from the rain. This guy came behind me ran his hand through my hair and tried to cup my genitalia I pushed him away, people were watching and im pretty sure the screws could see it but no one said anything. He said the same thing again and walked over to me and I pushed him away again, and then he was like don’t be like that canada to which I replied fuck you. Some guy came up and started chatting with me he was in for murder, and there were these people with kisses on their neck which i think is some sort of way in which this crew recognises each other. People came over and asked why I was in there, and I said the bullshit fake reason that they gave me which was that I had $226 dollars. I was asked if I had a skin I said no, I was asked if I was a smoker and I said yes. I then went to sit by my cellmate from Morocco who was sitting with the Tunisian. People came up and everyone was asking me if it is true that Trudeau is going to legalize marijuana in Canada and I said yes . We then went back to the cell to prepare for lunch and after lunch which was quite good we were on lock down. No info from the screws on when I would get my meds, nor no word on the phone calls. Over several smokes and cups of tea offered graciously by my cellmate we started to talk about all sorts of things the three of us, from international finance to the war in the middle east to poppies and such and believe it or not I was mostly quietly listening, telling the occasional joke translating between english and Romanian and we continued to talk about other stuff until tea time.

After Tea I asked again about meds and my phone calls which I was told i would get later we finished our tea joked around in our cells and had a relaxing tea then we went back to yard and we were told that we would get our phone cards. In yard bigmouth brought up my femininity again and he said he just wanted to play with my hair and I pushed him away and told him to fuck off, someone else said the same thing so I told him off as well and then the guy who was in for murder told them to shut up and smarten up. I went up to the Romanians and started talking to them as i felt I needed allies if anything happened an most Romanians are ordinary decent criminals if they are criminals they resort to it as a result of being o marginalized by a capitalist society that took a once proud country and brought it to its knees and i started talking, said who my family was where they were from what thy did etc. and we started talking. Most were there for alleged smuggling although some were there as they were accused of going to Dublin Airport and stealing copper pipes which I thought was quite hilarious.It was actually kind of sad hearing there story’s as many were promised decent jobs here only to find out the people who brought them over had a very different idea of what a decent job is , kids being put in the streets to beg by criminal gangs, others made as sexual commodities to be sold as strippers and street workers, others put to work at collecting metals and what have you, it’s quite sad that the nation that built Quaddaffis streets and built Syria trained Palestinians and Irish comrades, and was full of the nest and the brightest like Nadia Commenic the world class gymnast and Mircea Eliadea brought to its knees by the west. Still we walked on the yard as I heard storys from those who worked Romania’s nuclear CANDU reactors now in a cage impoverished trying to send some money back to their family’s, while the corporations like Chevron are taking the resources and stealing stealing stealing. Still I was called over by the guys with the kisses on their neck and they said canada, I came over and one of them gave me a smoke we shared it and chatted a bit about music, his cousin in Alberta, cops who kill in canada, and movies, and at that point the screw came out with our cards, I didn’t look at envelope but pulled the card out and in my head I was already planning my phone call and was so happy. As I got the phone i dialed my pin number and waited for the prompt to press the key in which my numbers were programmed to. I pressed the number two key and the tone told me it was not programmed then i pressed it again, started the whole process agin and then repeated it from every number from 2 to 6. Seeing that no numbers were programmed, I pressed one which was supposed to be the number for the solicitor or lawyer that one wasn’t programmed either. I looked at the envelope and it said don’t have country code for country prisoner wants to dial. At this point in time I went to the screws and asked what was up with that. The screw asked if I could read, to which I replied yes but I told them what the country code was and it’s not to hard to look up canada. After that I asked why my lawyers number wasnt on my card and the screw said maybe it was spelt wrong to which I said no it was not.

Much Later that night still not receiving any medication I was in a pretty bad pain and started to have an asthma episode, I pressed the button to talk to a screw to get the nurse and get me a damn puffer. After about an hour the screw comes to the cell, when I ask to see the nurse, I am told that she is not there, which I know to be not true,when I ask for meds for my asthma attack I am told that nothing can be done. I spend the night trying to breathe and switching positions in my sleep due to pain, at one point almost falling asleep but being woken up by the sound of my cell mate masturbating, which made for a quite awkward moment.The morning light reveals that my mattress is soaked in mucus, blood and other bodily fluids from my asthma attack, as well as wound which is now open.

The next day , after some time I am driven to the airport, placed on a plane and sent back to Canada.But before that I am to learn that my medication was “destroyed” by the screws and I would not be getting it back. In some pub in Dublin I am quite sure there is a screw snorting lines of benzo’s and opiates from a prescription bottle with my name on.

On the flight back I thought of several things that really bugged me about this episode. The big thing being what grounds did air canada have to call homeland security? Homeland security after all is a foreign spy agency, and I am after all a canadian national. Why was a foreign agency contacted, what role did they play in all of this and what information about me was shared by the canadian government with this foreign spy agency. Furthermore given that my rights from speaking to a lawyer to placing phone calls to receiving the medications and healthcare I need were violated I feel that the canadian state is at least partially responsible for this due to information sharing and such and as I sit here in front of a computer in canada, I am quite sure that all this mess is political, yet despite this I will continue doing what I am doing and next time I go over I know what to expect and as such will be prepared to fight back and not allow this to happened again.