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Getting Crafty at NDG Arts Week

by FRDC on

Guest post by the fabulous Robyn Fadden, member of the Head & Hands Board of Directors

The neighbourhood of Notre-Dame-de-Grace is as creative as it is cozy – and the upcoming NDG Arts week, August 18-26, proves the case. Along with artists of all stripes, photographer, crafter and organizer extraordinaire Melinda Carrière contributes to the arty happening with a second edition of the wittily named All the Rage Craft Fair, on August 19.

With an expanded fair this year – Montreal artisans and designers will be selling everything from hand-made jewelry and beauty products to children’s clothes and vintage items – located at a new venue, Le Manoir (5319 Notre-Dame-de-Grace), a big turnout is expected. The proceeds from table rentals at this summer’s craft fair will all go to Head & Hands, as they did from last year’s holiday craft fair, also organized by Melinda.

Presence in the neighbourhood was one reason Head & Hands stood out as the obvious choice, but personal experience was also a factor: “I’ve had friends who had volunteered or worked there previously. One of them said to me that he realized how much of an impact he made as a volunteer there – kids would come up to him on the street and say hi and tell him how awesome he was for them.”

Before heading into a BFA in Photography, Melinda had thoughts about becoming a teacher – she aligns that interest in education and youth with her appreciation for Head & Hands: “The fact that there’s an organization like this available to young people is amazing. I come from a small town and there just aren’t programs like that around. The Sense Project as well – that wasn’t done years ago, and it’s so necessary. I just want to support that.”

Melinda was supported in organizing this year’s fair by friend, fellow crafter and NDG-dweller Jessie Evans, who co-curated the fair via submissions from crafters in NDG and other Montreal neighbourhoods. “Ideally we want to bring NDG crafters to the forefront,” says Jessie. “Once you start networking with other crafters, you realize how some of the bigger craft fairs are quite hard to get into,” adds Melinda, “especially for newer crafters and those outside the Plateau and Mile End – there was still an opportunity for another craft fair of a different sort.”

All the Rage is a far cry from shopping at the mall. “A lot of the crafters we have also do up-cycled and recycled work and clothing, making new things out of discarded but perfectly workable objects,” says Melinda. “It’s a positive trend right now, a part of being a conscious consumer.”

In another nod to NDG’s family-friendly atmosphere, events and workshops for kids and teens will be going on at the same time as the craft fair in different rooms at Le Manoir, so parents can peruse the tables while their kids are otherwise occupied.

All the Rage Craft Fair, Sunday, August 19, 12-5 p.m. At Le Manoir (5319 Notre-Dame-de-Grace), up the hill from Girouard Park.

Melinda makes feathered creations as Mielcoeur (http://www.wix.com/melindacarriere/mielcoeur)

Jessie’s vintage clothing and button jewelry can be found at Crime Is Beauty (http://www.etsy.com/shop/crimeisbeauty)

Legal Workshop on Bill 78

by Head & Hands on

What is Bill 78? Are all public gatherings illegal? How do you contest a ticket? You can find the answers to all these questions and more at the workshop we’re offering on August 6th from 6:00 – 7:30 pm! Come join Andrée Bourbeau, member of the CLASSE legal committee and UQAM law student, who will discuss the impact of Bill 78 and give an update on the tribunal proceedings contesting this law. This will be followed by a presentation on how to contest a ticket from Daniel Barza, a lawyer who volunteers his expertise in criminal and civil law at our legal clinic. If you have questions or concerns about this important issue, we invite you to come out and participate in this night of information sharing, at our offices at 5833 Sherbrooke St. West!

Let’s set the record straight before back-to-school this fall!

Allies in HIV Work: CATIE Youth Symposium Opened Many Dialogues

by Sense Project on

(This article was originally published on CATIE’s website! Our two Health Educators attended and enjoyed this symposium earlier this year.)

It’s been 22 years in the making but worth the wait. On February 4-5, 2012, healthcare and frontline service providers, youth leaders, researchers, and policy makers, from across the country serving youth living with, or affected by HIV, gathered in Toronto to discuss their work and the communities they serve at the second national HIV and youth knowledge exchange symposium.

The first national conference that focused on HIV and youth was held back in 1992, at the height of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Organized by Toronto-based Youthlink-Inner City and its Program Manager Laurie Edmiston, coincidentally now CATIE’s Executive Director, the conference aimed to raise awareness about the issues and effects of HIV/AIDS on youth, and to act as a catalyst for developing strategies to cope with the epidemic. Twenty-two years later, the evidence suggests that youth, and marginalized youth in particular, continue to be at risk for HIV, HCV and STIs. In 2009 alone (the latest available statistics) 582 new cases of HIV among Canadian youth were reported. The continuing fact of Canadian youth being at risk of contracting the virus underscores the importance of facilitating young people’s understanding and ensuring an ongoing dialogue around issues concerning sexual health and harm reduction. (more…)

Know Your Rights: Interacting with the Police

by Head & Hands on

This week, Head & Hands would like to remind you of your basic rights when interacting with the police:

  • You can stay silent and refuse to talk to police or answer their questions, unless you are in a bar or a movie theatre, driving a car, or they say you broke the law. In those cases, you must give your name, birth date, and address, or show your ID, but you do not have to say more.
  • You can say no if police ask to search you or your belongings. Saying no does not mean you have something to hide.
  • You can leave unless you are being detained or arrested.
  • If you are being detained or arrested, you have the right to know why, and the right to speak to a lawyer in private without delay, even if you can’t pay.
  • You can only be strip-searched in private and by officers of the “same” sex.
  • You have the right to know an officer’s name and badge number.
  • You can report an officer who abuses you, swears at you, or violates your rights.

At Head & Hands, our legal services include information, support, and accompaniment in the case of arrest or violation of rights. We also have twice weekly, by-appointment legal clinics where you can get legal advice from a lawyer, and we offer community workshops on a variety of legal issues.

The above legal information is based on Pivot Legal‘s  “Statement for Police” cards, available at our offices. These cards can be read aloud and then given to police in case of detention or arrest.

The above information should not be taken as legal advice or relied upon in legal proceedings–if you require legal advice, you should contact a lawyer.

Solidarity With the Quebec Student General Strike

by Head & Hands on

Head & Hands envisions a society in which all youth are full participants inspired by the endless possibilities open to them. We write today in support of Quebec’s youth-led student movement for accessible education and affordable tuition. We stand in solidarity with the Coalition Large de l’Association pour une Solidarité Syndicale Étudiante (CLASSE) and other student organizers. We strongly support their mobilization for accessible education, and applaud their efforts to open larger discussions of social justice linked to the structure and function of post-secondary education in our society.

Working to support youth on a daily basis, we experience the positive effects of accessible education and affirm its fundamental contribution to the well-being of our communities. We believe strongly in the power of politically engaged youth to create positive change in our societies, and recognize the tangible products of student strikes throughout decades past in Quebec. We hope this mobilization will extend to address the multiple systemic barriers that marginalize youth for reasons of race, class, status, ability, gender, or sexuality, among others.

We warmly invite youth from the student movement to contact us for social counselling, legal information or advice, and medical support. All our services are free, confidential, and non-judgemental. We can be reached by phone at 514-481-0277, or in person at 5833 rue Sherbrooke Ouest.