March 2014: Professor Aziza Ahmed on the decriminalization of sex work, actresses Li Li and Liana Montoro from 4000 Miles, American Apparel's Made in Bangladesh ad and the #ItooamOxford campaign

We dedicate this edition of Spitfiyah! to Loretta Saunders.  

This month, we bring you an interview on the intersection between HIV/AIDS prevention, sex work, and harm reduction. Alyssa spoke with Professor Aziza Ahmed about the importance of decriminalizing sex work for HIV-prevention efforts and the rights of sex workers.  

Gau discusses the controversial American Apparel Ad “Made in Bangladesh” featuring the image a topless "former" Muslim woman and her transnational identity testimonial. 

Victoria interviews Montreal actresses Li Li and Liana Montoro, who join us remotely from the Centaur Theatre. They will be performing in the Centaur's production of Amy Herzog's 4000 Miles, which premieres on March 25th. They shared their views on acting, Montreal theatre, films, and what it’s like to be a woman of colour actress in Montreal.

Mercedes addressed the recent social media campaigns of - #ItooamHarvard/Oxford, the stakes involved, and the pushback we’ve been witnessing in our cyberuniverses.

To celebrate the coming of spring, we're playing some of the very best late 1980s and early 1990s WOC tunes throughout the show.

Listen to the show here. 

February 2014 Show: Special Homelessness Marathon edition, Black History Month, Bridget Tolley from Families of Sisters in Spirit, Allison Reid and Nakuset on the "revitalization" of Cabot Square, PTSD in low income neighborhoods and Black-Indigenous collective resistance in Leslie Silko's Almanac of the Dead

This was a special Homelessness Marathon edition of Spitifyah! The Homelessness Marathon is an annual national all day broadcast aiming to raise awareness about homelessness in Canada. Alyssa, Victoria, Mercedes, Gau and Malek hosting this LIVE broadcast from outside the Native Friendship Centre in downtown Montreal.
homeless.

Happy Black History Month to our listeners in Montreal and beyond! In addition to tackling issues related to homelessness, we celebrated Black history throughout this February edition of our show.

Malek brings you an interview with Bridget Tolley, founder of Families of Sisters in Spirit, an emerging grassroots volunteer organization led by families of missing and murdered Aboriginal women and girls.

Victoria brings headlines on grassroots migrant justice activism in Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver.

Gau turns a critical eye on the recent push from the Ville-Marie borough to “revitalize” Cabot square, which would lead to the displacement of marginalized people that currently use the square as a place to convene. She explored the theme of spacial colonisation in gentrification projects and spoke with Allison Reid and Nakuset from the Cabot Square Project at Urban Aboriginal Community Strategy
Network.

Mercedes discussed a recent crisis brought to light by American news sources ProPublica and Colorlines. A disturbing number of post-traumatic stress disorders cases are found in lower income neighbourhoods (such as those with a high concentration of African Americans) in Detroit, Atlanta, Chicago and Philadelphia.

In honour of Black History Month, and the historical connections between Black and Indigenous collective resistance, Alyssa discusses the history of Black-Indigenous connections through the voice of Clinton, a Black Indian depicted in Leslie Silko’s novel Almanac of the Dead. She will read an excerpt from the novel.

Listen to the show here.

January 2014 Show: interviews with Ari Swan and Rosalind Wong, pieces on CeCe McDonald, and Tenelle Star

Up first was a round-up of local and international WOC news stories including the story of CeCe McDonald, an African-American trans woman and activist who was recently released from prison after defending herself from a racist, trans-phobic attack in Minnesota back in 2012.


Victoria had a chance to talk music and culture with recent WOC American artist emigre, Ari Swan.  We discussed her work within the Montreal indie music scene as well as the impact of free improv music in the NDG youth community.  


Malek spoke with migrant-justice activist, Rosalind Wong, about the current climate in Canada for women of colour migrants. 

Mercedes discussed the shocking case of Tenelle Star, an Aboriginal teen who was asked to remove her "Got Land" hoodie in class.

Listen to the show here. 

December 2013 Show: Best of 2013!

Our holiday edition features some of our best pieces from the past year:  Angela Davis and the Birmingham bombing, remembering Renisha McBride, Jackie Wang and the concept of revolutionary loneliness, the use of blackface in Quebec, excerpts from interviews with Nydia Dauphin, Charmaine Nelson, Malika Tirolien, Fariha Roisin, and discussions we had in the past year  on the  controversial proposal to end Kwanzaa, the film Django Unchained and more...

Happy Holidays from your Spitfiyah! hosts,
Lili, Alyssa, Victoria, Malek, and Mercedes.

Listen to the show here.

November 2013 Show: Remembering Renisha McBride, bell hooks and Melissa Harris-Perry, and Sarah Malik on the proposed Quebec Charter of Values

On November 2nd, Renisha McBride, a 19-year old African American woman was shot in the head by Theodore Wafer, a white man, in Dearborn Heights outside of Detroit.  Since the  horrific tragedy, Dearborn police failed to charge Mr. Wafer.  After community pressure and national outrage continued, Mr. Wafer turned himself in.  We aired excerpts from a documentary made by Dream Hampton, a filmmaker and writer based in Detroit.  


We also featured clips from a mind blowing conversation between renowned writer, scholar black feminist - bell hooks, and MSNBC's Melissa Harris-Perry, which took place at the New School for Social Research in early November.  Their dialogue focussed on the black female voice, representation, and subjectivity within imperialist white supremacy capitalist patriarchy.


We also looked closely at the newly-tabled Bill 60, known more popularly as the Quebec Charter of Values. We welcomed Sarah Malik in studio to talk more about the implications of this Bill. Sarah recently hosted a teach-in about the Charter, and is an Equity Educational Advisor at McGill University. The views she expresses are her own, and not the university's.

Listen to the show here.

October 2013 Show: Special funding drive edition, Humera Jabir on the PQ, and Malika Tirolien

Up first,  We take a critical look at the coalition movements that brought the PQ to power in a narrow victory back in September 2012.  As several prominent self-called feminists express their support for the Charter, we ask where are the progressive voices in Quebec denouncing what many are calling racism a la Quebecoise.  We speak with Humera Jabir, a law student at McGill University in Montreal. Her article, “The Hijab is not a Political Tool” appeared in Maisonneuve and was re-printed in the Toronto Star. Her piece  cuts through hardly disguised attack on immigrants, people of colour, and religious minorities in Quebec. 


Malek bring us the women of colour headlines for the month of October covering all the action in another edition of the Spitfiyah news roundup.


Finally, the program featured the music of montreal jazz vocalist, singer and songwriter, Malika Tirolien.  Victoria brings you an exclusive interview with Malika just before she took to the stage with the Kalmunity Jazz Project at Resonance Cafe. 

Listen to the show here.