A major leader of the global far-right is gearing up to visit Canada this month. For @breachmedia.ca I wrote about the call by @justiceforallcn.bsky.social and 300+ other orgs to stop him from entering the country.

The Breach@breachmedia.ca · last mo.

The leader of the world’s biggest far-right network has plans to visit Canada this month to shore up support for Hindu nationalism. But hundreds of organizations have joined the call for him to be barred from the country, reports @desaima.bsky.social

After a horrendous civilian massacre in Iran, many in the diaspora have been calling for U.S. intervention and even a return to monarchy In our latest @breachmedia.ca podcast, Donya Ziaee and @smohyeddin.bsky.social break down the right-wing power play for Iran youtu.be/Fm-Uc14FZCk?...

Will Canadians say no to a U.S.-led military intervention in Iran?

YouTube video by The Breach

youtu.be

"[P]ower of decentralized organizing." "Scotiabank's latest financial statements show the bank has sold its remaining 165,000 shares in Elbit." "[O]ne of the biggest victories in Canada for the [BDS] movement." #Canada #Gaza #Palestine #Israel #Protest #Genocide #Weapons

A powerful decentralized campaign forced Scotiabank to divest from Israeli arms

A major bank sells its shares in Elbit Systems, in one of Canada's biggest BDS victories to date.

breachmedia.ca

Got to write about the best news of the week: the largest foreign shareholder in Israel’s biggest weapons company has just dumped all its shares. It's a truly historic Canadian BDS victory. breachmedia.ca/major-bds-vi...

A powerful decentralized campaign forced Scotiabank to divest from Israeli arms ⋆ The Breach

A major bank sells its shares in Elbit Systems, in one of Canada’s biggest BDS victories to date

breachmedia.ca

As the search for work gets more desperate, queer and trans workers often see the worst sides of work. But they also come with brilliant solutions. @desaima.bsky.social introduces the five stories in On the Clock, written by this year’s Ken Popert Media Fellows

Work is broken. Queer and trans workers could help fix it | Xtra Magazine

The five stories in Xtra’s On the Clock series show queer and trans workers searching for, fighting for and inventing work that’s fair and meaningful

xtramagazine.com

Okay! @desaima.bsky.social and I (but mostly Saima) have been working on a huge project that launched today. Five Canadian early-career BIPOC journalists came together to produce this editorial package on LGBTQ2S+ people and work @xtramagazine.com. xtramagazine.com/series/on-th...

On the Clock | Xtra Magazine

On the Clock features stories written by the 2025-26 Ken Popert Media Fellows about the state of work for queer and trans people in Canada.

xtramagazine.com

For the past 5 months I've been mentoring 5 brilliant early-career labour journalists at @xtramagazine.com. Today, their articles are published. They tell the stories of queer & trans workers: how we make rent, make meaning, leave the world better than we found it. xtramagazine.com/power/politi...

Work is broken. Queer and trans workers could help fix it | Xtra Magazine

The five stories in Xtra’s On the Clock series show queer and trans workers searching for, fighting for and inventing work that’s fair and meaningful

xtramagazine.com

"[J]ust as right-wing governments team up to demonize trans kids, public sector unions, religious minorities, and people who use drugs, the left must come together." "Saskatchewan shows a model for how this might be done." #Saskatchewan #Ontario #Alberta #Canada #Protest #Drugs #Education #Labour

A Prairie alliance of trans advocates and unions should be a national model

Right-wing premiers are using the notwithstanding clause to target trans kids, workers, Muslims, and drug users. Saskatchewan shows how a united front could stop them.

breachmedia.ca

Trans rights activists have joined forces with labour unions in Saskatchewan to fight anti-trans legislation It's a model that should be employed nationwide to combat laws against vulnerable groups, writes @desaima.bsky.social in our latest for @breachmedia.ca breachmedia.ca/trans-albert...

A Prairie alliance of trans advocates and unions should be a national model ⋆ The Breach

Right-wing premiers are using the notwithstanding clause to target trans kids, workers, Muslims, and drug users. Saskatchewan shows how a united front could stop them

breachmedia.ca

My latest for @breachmedia.ca: When Saskatchewan's government brought in anti-trans laws, unions pushed back. Right-wing premiers are using the notwithstanding clause to attack their culture-war punching bags. Solidarity between unions and trans advocates in SK shows how to put up a fight.

The Breach@breachmedia.ca · 10mo ago

Right-wing premiers across Canada are using the notwithstanding clause to target trans kids, public sector workers, and people who use drugs with laws that violate their rights. @desaima.bsky.social writes about how Saskatchewan has shown you can build unlikely alliances to try to stop them.

Canadian artists are bracing for cuts as PM Mark Carney signals austerity ahead of Tuesday's federal budget. Arts groups warn that slashing 15% could devastate a sector still recovering from the pandemic, @tombeedham.bsky.social reports. www.thegrindmag.ca/canadian-art...

Canadian Artists Brace for Austerity: ‘Cuts Will Hurt Everyone’

With ministers instructed to reduce spending, Canada’s arts sector fears a major rollback of promised cultural investments. Advocates say austerity could shutter venues, erase jobs — and silence…

thegrindmag.ca

New from me in @breachmedia.ca: It's easy to see Ford's war on bike lanes as a personal vendetta and an attempt to stir up a culture war. But more than that, it's part of a bigger pattern of Ford serving corporate interests – from real estate firms to Uber.

The Breach@breachmedia.ca · 11mo ago

Doug Ford’s new omnibus bill hides a major gift to corporate lobbyists: a ban on turning car lanes into bike lanes. @desaima.bsky.social notes that the move mirrors demands from the Toronto Region Board of Trade. It won’t fix traffic—but it will keep oil companies and Uber happy.

I'm running a paid mentorship program at @xtramagazine.com! I'll be mentoring five early-career BIPOC LGBTQ2S+ journalists to publish a package of writing about work. Mentees will be paid $1,000. Apply by Oct 27 & help me spread the word! #CdnMediaJobs xtramagazine.com/inside-xtra/...

Queers at work: Xtra seeks mentees to contribute to a new editorial package | Xtra Magazine

Applications for Xtra’s mentorship program for early-career BIPOC journalists are open through Oct. 27

xtramagazine.com

On Saturday, Sept. 20, an unusual coalition of climate, migrant, and Indigenous groups are getting together to draw a line. They're pushing back against @mark-carney.bsky.social's hard right turn against Indigenous Peoples and migrants. I spoke to organizers about what the road ahead looks like:

The Grind@thegrindto.bsky.social · last yr.

As Canada's new prime minister bends to big business and Donald Trump, a coalition of climate, migrant, Indigenous and anti-war activists are putting up a fight. Draw The Line rallies are being held across Canada on Saturday, including in Toronto. By @desaima.bsky.social.

I want to live in a Toronto that can support a paper like The Grind. Because a city that can sustain local indie media is a city that can be shaped by local indie media. Help The Grind reach our summer fundraising goal!

The Grind@thegrindto.bsky.social · last yr.

We've been so busy publishing this summer that we didn't push our fundraising campaign, and the season is almost wrapped! Can you chip in so The Grind can keep putting out hard-hitting stories in Toronto? Support here: www.thegrindmag.ca/support-the-...

Over two thirds of Canadians live in suburbs. And when the left neglects organizing in those suburbs, we give up on reversing the right-wing tide across Canada. Aniket Kali and I talked to the organizers in the GTA who are working to turn the tide:

The Breach@breachmedia.ca · last yr.

Conservatives have captured working-class, visible-minority voters in suburbs—in the GTA and across the country. @desaima.bsky.social and Aniket Kali report on the Left organizers developing a playbook to turn the tide and win them back. breachmedia.ca/to-start-win...

@btlbooks.com is halfway to their goal of funding a new graphic novel on the history of anti-fascism. I don't need to tell you how important it is to bring the lessons of anti-fascist resistance into the present right now. Pitch in to help BTL publish! www.kickstarter.com/projects/139...

PARTISANS: A Graphic History of Anti-Fascist Resistance

Eleven new graphic histories by legendary & emerging creators flipping the script on anti-Nazi and anti-fascist resistance.

kickstarter.com

The Grind is doing a food issue! Pitch us stories about the GTA's best roti, the food truck turf wars, the working conditions at your favourite restaurant, etc. Pitches due April 25 – but sooner is better.

The Grind@thegrindto.bsky.social · last yr.

We're doing a food issue! Toronto is a food city with amazing eats, but it also comes with a hidden underbelly. We want stories about all of it. See the call for pitches and get in touch by April 25.

I had the great honour (and great fun) of judging features for @canadamediaawards.bsky.social this year. Keep an eye out for nominations soon. 👀

National Media Awards Foundation@canadamediaawards.bsky.social · last yr.

✨ Meet a National Magazine Awards Judge! @desaima.bsky.social is an editor, writer, and indie media diehard. She was previously the editor of @briarpatchmag.bsky.social, where she won Issue Grand Prix at the 2022 NMAs. Nominees announced May 1! 🗓️ Full jury here: zurl.co/RiJ63

"The device, which reads the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the air, showed CO2 levels as high as 3,500 parts per million (ppm) in his classroom." That's insane.

Saima Desai@desaima.bsky.social · last yr.

When kids are living with pandemics, wildfires, and pollution, filtering the air in their schools is a simple fix. So why is it such an uphill battle in Toronto? In the newest issue of @thegrindto.bsky.social I wrote about the parents fighting for clean air in Toronto classrooms:

Crowded classrooms mean kids are breathing in viruses and pollution. Parents are trying to make the air safer, but hitting roadblocks. www.thegrindmag.ca/airborne-dan... @desaima.bsky.social @theingredientslist.bsky.social @mjnabuurs.bsky.social 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸𝗹𝘆 𝘂𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀: CanadaHealthwatch.ca/newsletter 🍁

When kids are living with pandemics, wildfires, and pollution, filtering the air in their schools is a simple fix. So why is it such an uphill battle in Toronto? In the newest issue of @thegrindto.bsky.social I wrote about the parents fighting for clean air in Toronto classrooms:

The Grind@thegrindto.bsky.social · last yr.

Stuffy, crowded classrooms mean kids are breathing in viruses and pollution. Parents are trying to make the air safer, but hitting roadblocks. By @desaima.bsky.social.

SPECIAL ISSUE ANNOUNCEMENT Doug Ford called a snap election, so we're publishing an issue about his seven-year reign, out free in print in two weeks. We need $5,000 to make it happen. Chip in by: - E-transfer info[at]thegrindmag[dot]ca - Credit card: buy.stripe.com/6oE02D00TgZ4...

"Mainstream news [...] began to capitulate before he even took office." My brilliant @truthout.org colleagues @mayaschenwar.bsky.social, @neginowl.bsky.social, & @ziggywest.bsky.social on the urgent need for combative, principled movement media under a Trump presidency: truthout.org/articles/a-c...

A Call to Media Organizations: Don’t Back Down in the Face of Trump’s Threats

Trump’s attacks on press freedom aren’t separate from his attacks on oppressed communities. We must resist them all.

truthout.org

The Hindutva-Conservative alliance in Canada: "you help us dictate the terms of Hindu nationalist education, and we’ll help you dictate the terms of gender and sexual identity education." @desaima.bsky.social and Aniket Kali for @thebreach.bsky.social #canpoli https://buff.ly/4hbidWq

Inside the Conservative Party’s growing alliance with right-wing Hindu groups ⋆ The Breach

Hindu organizations are springing up in Canada, often parroting Conservative talking points about crime, cost of living, and anti-LGBTQ politics

buff.ly

NEW: Aniket Kali and I dig into the growing alliance between Hindu nationalists and the Conservative Party of Canada. The CPC has won over a majority of Hindu voters, with help from right-wing Hindu groups. If the CPC is elected, these groups want Hindu nationalist policy in return. #canpoli

The Breach@breachmedia.ca · 2y ago

Right-wing Hindu organizations have recently been springing up in Canada, often parroting Conservative talking points about crime, cost of living, and anti-LGBTQ politics. @desaima.bsky.social and Aniket Kali investigate this emerging political alliance. breachmedia.ca/hindu-conser...

Written by my sister @emanabdelhadi.bsky.social Has the fire ceased? Have the leaders of institutions that sanctioned our slaughter repented? Have the weapons manufacturers been seized? Have the halls of power been turned over to the masses? inthesetimes.com/article/isra...

Has the Fire Ceased?

We will not stop until Palestine is free.

inthesetimes.com