On Being Good Neighbours

A poster displayed with London, ON City Hall in the background. The poster reads: "This city is an open grave filled to overflowing with the present absence of all my dead friends. This city is a slaughterhouse and nobody is criminally responsible just fiscally responsible. This city is a ghostland, hey there’s Nikki I think to myself. Hey there’s Cam I say before remembering they’re all dead. This city rewards the greedy and destroys the kind. This city is in other words a secure investment. Rejoice you bankers. Take heart you real estate investors. All your properties will appreciate in value and all your enemies will be dead. XOXO"

[CONTEXT: On Monday, January 26, 2026, the Committee and Protective Services Committee (CPSC) is meeting at City Hall to discuss a proposal that, if passed, would cause serious harm to some of the most oppressed and vulnerable Londoners, as well as those who do what they can to provide care to said Londoners. This proposal was added at the last minute to the meeting agenda, so that the deadline to apply to speak to the CPSC passed before most people were aware that it had been added. Since that time, numerous people have asked the CPSC Chair, Elizabeth Peloza, to…

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Nightmares and Dreams of Iranian Republicanism: The Responsibility of Intellectuals

The following is an account of an Iranian student at Western University reflecting on the current protests in Iran and its promises and dangers. The situation in Iran is so dark and stark that it leaves anyone too overwhelmed for sober and comprehensive analysis.  It is important, however, not to fall for a simplifying framing that distorts the picture into a mere battle between the so-called brutal medieval mindset of political Islam against the secular mentality of modern Iranians. This framing is based on Orientalism, cultural essentialism, and dissociating cultural and political conflicts from the history of class and economic development…

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“Grounding: States of Gender”: Persian calligraphy documents memoir of womanhood in Iran 

“What are the ways in which gender — our gender as women — has actually conditioned our life?” asked Iranian artist Gita Hashemi, introducing her performance Grounding: States of Gender at Western University’s John Labatt Visual Arts Centre on January 8. Curated by Soheila Esfahani, the exhibit will be displayed at the artLAB Gallery until January 29.  Grounding features Persian calligraphy in red and black ink that tells the story of a woman in Tehran named Zahra. The swaying script is written on twenty-two scrolls that cover the gallery walls, circling audiences from all sides. Live-streamed footage of Hashemi writing…

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Londoners gather at London Courthouse in support of local activist

Yesterday morning, a crowd of Londoners gathered to support longtime activist David Heap at his court hearing. Heap faces charges related to protesting the ‘Best Defence’ weapons manufacturing conference held in London in October 2025. Heap, an associate professor at Western University, was charged with one count of obstructing a peace officer after the London Police Service (LPS) Street Crime Unit executed search warrants at his home on November 25. In their press release, the LPS announced that a variety of items had been seized, including computers, cell phones, radios and protest placards during their pre-dawn searches at activists’ homes…

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“We are waiting to rebuild Gaza as scholars”: Canadian government stalls visas for students in Gaza admitted to Ontario universities

Audio excerpts of interviews with Nour, Khaled, and Raneen – students in Gaza accepted to Canadian universities: “I am Nour from Gaza. I have got a PhD acceptance in the civil engineering department at Toronto University since May 2024. I want to complete my PhD in order to get back to Gaza and rebuild it after the destruction happened in the war,” says Nour over a WhatsApp audio call from Gaza City on Wednesday, December 3. “Here, the destruction is very huge, the buildings are destructed, infrastructure is destructed, streets destructed, so we dream about this — a good education…

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Housing crisis brings community organizations together

On November 29, within the backdrop of the increasing housing crisis that affects both Canada and the city of London, a collection of leftists organizations in the city, volunteers and community members, all came together to find concrete solutions to a problem that has been affecting the city of London for several years. With the passing of the controversial Bill 60 by the Ontario Provincial Government led by Premier Doug Ford; that housing crisis has expanded in scope and complexity in the last few years.  The Democratic Socialists of Canada, Forest City Solidarity, Spring Socialist Network, the East of Adelaide…

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