The now-available video of the bar society’s incoming president’s remarks to the annual general meeting puts a new — and more hopeful — spin on what she actually said than the one I suggested in last week’s column. In last week’s column about the annual meeting of the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society — “NS Bar […]
- 07/16/2022
- StephenKimber
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The Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society’s new president, already under fire from within over her speech at the society’s AGM, has hired a Toronto law firm to investigate more allegations from within of “direct and systemic discrimination and harassment.” Photo from the webpage of the Nova Scotia Barrister’s Society illustrating diversity. We can only hope that […]
- 07/09/2022
- StephenKimber
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Can we ever really know why Lionel Desmond killed his wife, daughter and mother, and then himself? Does that matter? Don’t we know enough now about all that went wrong in the years and months leading up to the murder-suicide to begin demanding change on all fronts? Judge Warren Zimmer (Twitter) Was Cpl. Lionel Desmond […]
- 04/30/2022
- StephenKimber
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The case of the “disappeared” governance review. And so it continues. Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society notice. Still trying to move forward. According to a new report on the inner workings of the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society, “some council members are so concerned with being heard that they cannot listen… New members often feel dismissed and […]
- 04/23/2022
- StephenKimber
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Two more members of the society’s council resigned this month as the self-governing organization charged with regulating the legal profession continues to grapple with accusations of systemic discrimination in its ranks. rightswatch.ca I am writing to provide my notice of resignation from [the Bar Society] Council, effective immediately. I am resigning as a result of […]
- 11/26/2021
- StephenKimber
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It’s clear the Houston government has more work to do when it comes to confronting racism in this province and repairing its relations with the Black community. Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston fired an anonymous staffer in the Justice Department for social media comments about Angela Simmonds he says are racist. The news late last […]
- 11/06/2021
- StephenKimber
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What’s the difference between a 71-year-old white lawyer charged with professional misconduct and incompetence, and a 29-year-old Black lawyer accused of the same? Interesting question. rightswatch.ca The allegations against “Sydney’s senior lawyer,” 71-year-old Nash Terrance Brogan, seem, on the face of them, serious matters. According to a bill of particulars filed against him in August […]
- 10/23/2021
- StephenKimber
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What the Mounties are saying is simply this: Yes, street checks do disproportionately affect African Nova Scotians. But no, that’s not our fault. If you get street checked because you’re Black, well… that’s your problem. You’re Black. And so it goes. Photo: Halifax Examiner So, on the one hand, the RCMP “acknowledges the disproportionate harm […]
- 09/18/2021
- StephenKimber
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Houston began his week in office pressing (yet another) reset on our healthcare mess. He ended it needing to press reset on his relations with the province’s African Nova Scotian community. Premier Tim Houston, interim CEO Karen Oldfield and CEO of the Office of Health Care Professionals’ Recruitment Dr. Kevin Orrell. (Communications Nova Scotia) So, […]
- 09/11/2021
- StephenKimber
- 1 Comment
The society claims it wants to “eliminate or mitigate systemic discrimination” in its organization. But will it really come to terms with its Lyle Howe legacy? “There’s something happening here,” Stephen Stills once wrote. “What it is ain’t exactly clear.” Here in this case is inside the traditionally somnambulant corridors of the Nova Scotia Barristers’ […]
- 05/22/2021
- StephenKimber
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STEPHEN KIMBER, a Professor of Journalism at the University of King's College in Halifax and co-founder of its MFA in Creative Nonfiction Program, is an award-winning writer, editor and broadcaster. He is the author of two novels and eight non-fiction books. Buy his books
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