P-I-Z-Z-A, I WANT PIZZA
FABERGE BARES HIS...HART
HORSES AND BUNS
the newspaper University of Toronto’s Independent Weekly
Vol. XXXIII N0. 9
November 11, 2010
Linda McQuaig speaks at Hart House debate event on the menace of billionaires On Wednesday evening, the Hart House Debates Committee presented “Are Billionaires Dangerous?”, an analysis of the continued concentration of wealth in the uppermost sectors of society. The evening began with a parliamentary-style debate presenting concurring and opposing arguments with respect to the central resolution: “Be it resolved that billionaires are a menace to society.” Following a spirited debate that included thoughtful and articulate cases for both sides, Toronto Star columnist, and coauthor of the book The Trouble With Billionaires, Linda McQuaig took to the microphone to provide her own detailed perspective on why billionaires can be such a danger. McQuaig began with a point that was not addressed in the
HELENE GODERIS
MARTÍN WALDMAN
debate: money can be extracted from extremely wealthy people through the tax system, but our system of taxation has become so eroded and debased that the
burden has shifted dramatically away from elites. The need to redress this policy became an important theme throughout McQuaig’s talk, and its impor-
FF14 fight back The Fight Fees 14 sue U of T and Toronto Police over charter rights violation MARTÍN WALDMAN It’s been more than two and a half years since a group of students and concerned citizens occupied U of T’s Simcoe Hall to voice their opposition to the latest tuition fee hike at the time. That sit-in, in March of 2008, was by many accounts nothing out of the ordinary, but Toronto Police soon burst onto the scene, dispersing protesters and arresting 14 people. Accused of blockading university officials and staff in their offices, the Fight Fees 14 (as they would come to be known, or FF14) were charged with several counts forcible confinement, forcible detainer, and mischief.
All of the charges, against all of the accused, were eventually dropped or stayed. Recently, two of the FF14, Oriel Varga and Christopher Ramsaroop, announced they will sue U of T and Toronto Police for their crackdown on peaceful dissent. They allege that their charter rights were breached not only in the original incident, but in the 17 months that passed until the last of the criminal charges were withdrawn. “The impact on the 14 of us has been massive,” explains Varga. “Having criminal charges, and having that heavy weight upon us has been a major concern in our lives.” Varga and Ramsaroop were the last two of the FF14 to have
their charges dropped, in September 2009. While most of the accused had their charges withdrawn after signing peace bonds, or because of insufficient evidence, Varga and Ramsaroop’s were stayed because of unreasonable delays in the trial, in accordance with Section 11 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In addition to claiming violations of several of the plaintiffs’ charter rights, the new lawsuit claims damages for conspiracy, malicious prosecution, and false arrest. It is not yet clear how much they will be seeking in damages, but the fact that over 100 professors, dozens of student groups, and a growing list of non-parti-
tance was driven home several times with alarming statistics “The wealthiest 1% of the population get 24% of financial resources,” she explained. “This
san organizations have all given their support to the cause suggests they have a strong case. The Fight Fees Coalition (FFC) was formed shortly after the arrests in March 2008, and since then has focused on raising awareness for the FF14. “The response has been fantastic, the FFC has been working hard getting support from the community,” says Varga. “There’s been an overwhelming, immediate response, and there’s an understanding of what happened, that this was the criminalization of dissent.” U of T’s Strategic Communications Office responded: “The University of Toronto, and its staff members who have been unfairly targeted by the plaintiffs, will be defending the claim vigorously. Remarkably, the claim goes so far as to sue the innocent victims who were confined in an office against their will in an incident inside Sim-
strikes me as a fundamental reorganization of our society. Doesn’t this cry out for some sort of justification?” McQuaig gave a particularly impassioned appeal for the importance of universities as vital institutions in modern democracies, “places of dissent where the prevailing wisdom can be challenged.” Taking particular aim at the Munk Centre for International Studies, and citing the contractual agreement between the University of Toronto and Peter Munk, she pointed out that despite assurances of academic freedom and independence, wealthy donors can and will exert a huge influence over the topics and ideas that are discussed at a university. McQuaig left the Hart House Debate Room to a standing ovation, a testament to her side of the argument.
coe Hall in 2008. The University believes the claim to be entirely without merit, and it will be seeking to have it dismissed, with costs.” Such a determined and strongly worded statement illuminates the drastically different versions of events that exist in this case. The fact that not one charge against the FF14 actually made it to court gives some weight to the argument presented by the Fight Fees Coalition, that the arrests and charges in this case were not only arbitrary, but were in fact targeted towards prominent and outspoken student leaders. While this case is now left to the courts for what is likely to be a lengthy process, the eventual result may set an important precedent for our right to express dissent, particularly in the wake of the human rights violations that Toronto saw during the G20 summit.