Milestone for local black history journal

The only ongoing black history journal in Canada hit a milestone this year with the release of its 10th volume….The Northern Terminus: The African-Canadian History Jounal is the polar opposite of a scholarly journal, said York University Professor Naomi Norquay who is co-editor of the journal. “This is a community journal, and it’s that community aspect that to me makes it really exciting.” The latest volume was unveiled Saturday at Grey Roots Museum as part of Black History Month, reported the Owen Sound Sun Times Feb. 24. Read full story.

Listservs provide way for community members to connect
Some sociologists who research online socializing no longer like the concept of “virtual”. Dr. David Toews of York University believes that “scholarship is moving away from the distinction between virtual and real, and I’m glad for that.” In the Toronto Star Feb. 24, he argues that “human social interactions have always had a dimension of meaning that is symbolic and hence virtual.” Read full story.

Finding the right mix for your RRSP
RRSP investors can trip up by thinking all the assets in an RRSP belong to them, reported The Globe and Mail Feb. 24. Part represents taxes that will eventually be payable to the government, writes York University Professor Moshe Milevsky in his book Your Money Questions. If your tax rate in retirement is 32 per cent, you really own just 68 per cent of your RRSP. Read full story.

Oscar-nominated Asad strikes chord for producer Mino Jarjoura
Arriving at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel for the annual lunch honouring Canada’s Oscar nominees on Thursday, Toronto-raised producer Mino Jarjoura had reason to be buoyant. It went beyond the glow of being a nominee for the live-action short Asad….For months he and his partners had tried everything to get the passports and visas for the two young Somali brothers Harun and Ali Mohamed, the refugees who were chosen to star in this strikingly authentic snapshot of human aspirations in the face of devastating civil war and famine…. Jarjoura attended York University, planning a career in business before he got involved in the film business almost by accident, reported the Toronto Star Feb. 23. Read full story.

Toronto activist Susan Gapka battles for transgender human rights
“I ended up on the streets for about 10 years,” says Susan Gapka, who calls that period his – for she was still a he then – “lost years, dark ages.”…In 1997, Gapka was able to get into recovery. That while volunteering at the Daily Food Bank and at Parkdale’s Community Health Centre. In 1999, she won CAMH’s Courage to Come Back Award. In 2000, she graduated with honours from the Community Worker Program at George Brown College. A political science degree from York University would come in 2009. All this helped her find the self-confidence and the self-acceptance to finally come out as Susan, reported the Toronto Star Feb. 24. Read full story.

Profiles: The faces of precarious work
Nadia Habib calls her life “a portrait of financial decisions.” She can see those decisions all around her in her co-op apartment in Toronto’s east end. A photograph from a trip to Egypt, instead of a dishwasher. A paid credit card bill, instead of a new couch. These are choices she’s had to make as a York University contract lecturer and as a single mother. “It’s expensive to support yourself and someone else, and it’s particularly difficult when you’re not sure what’s coming next,” she said in the Toronto Star Feb. 23. Read full story.

More victims come forward after York University football coach charged with child luring, police say
News that Daniel Younis, a now-suspended football coach at York University, is charged with child luring and attempting to manufacture child pornography has prompted other complainants to step forward and their allegations are being investigated, reported The Globe and Mail and others Feb. 22. Read full story.