- How Trump’s big lies loom over the U.S. government
Friday, June 11th 2021
Guest: Edward Keenan, the Toronto Star's Washington Bureau Chief
While former president Donald Trump has effectively been muzzled on social media, his power and influence continue to grow as Republicans line up behind the man who still casts a long shadow over the party. His Big Lie — that the last election was rigged so he wouldn’t win — continues to gain support across the GOP’s base, and is being used to fuel restrictive voting bills in several states, prompting experts to warn that American democracy is at a breaking point.
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- ‘Walk the walk.’ Canada’s Muslims want action, not words against rising Islamophobia
Thursday, June 10th 2021
Guest: Noor Javed, Toronto Star reporter
Muslim Canadians have felt profound grief in the wake of the hateful attack in London that left four members of the Afzaal family dead, and one 9-year-old boy orphaned. There is also a sense of betrayal and anger that despite political promises and platitudes, Islamophobia continues to rise in Canada, unchecked. Toronto Star reporter Noor Javed joins “This Matters” to talk about her frustration and fears, sentiments shared by many Muslim women and families across Canada right now.For those experiencing grief, confusion and trauma as a result of these events, Naseeha provides mental health tools to the Muslim community. You can call for support at 1-866-627-3342
- The reckoning and push for ‘X University’ at a Toronto school
Wednesday, June 9th 2021
Guest: Hayden King, educator and director of the Yellowhead Institute
It was a powerful image seen across Canada: the statue of Egerton Ryerson, chief architect of the residential school system, torn down at the namesake university campus in Toronto. More than 300 signatures from students, faculty and associate deans from Ryerson University back the sentiment behind the event. They want the name to be abolished and (for now) replaced as “X University.” The pressure continues to mount after the discovery of remains of 215 Indigenous children at a former residential school site in Kamloops, B.C. We dive into why this fight at one university campus is a reflection of the much bigger reckoning of truth and decolonization in Canada.
- Your one (or two?) dose summer guide to reopenings and travel
Tuesday, June 8th 2021
Guest: Dr. Fahad Razak, epidemiologist and internist at St. Michael’s Hospital, and member of Ontario’s Science Advisory Table
With 58 per cent of Canadians (and counting) having received a first dose of a COVID vaccine, many are eagerly diving into a “one-dose” summer. Now, Ontario is moving up its Step 1 reopening plans and with more vaccine shipments on the way, it will be a “two-dose” vaccinated summer for some. Today, we answer the many questions for the months ahead. How much protection does one jab give you? What does a safe reopening look like? When can we travel again?
If you would like to support the journalism of the Toronto Star, you can subscribe at thestar.com/subscribingmatters.
- Buttergate, the dairy conspiracy theory, explained
Monday, June 7th 2021
Guest: Karon Liu, food reporter for the Toronto Star
What’s going on with Canadian butter? For more than a year, hawk-eyed bakers, chefs and food experts stuck at home have noticed something odd, a hypothesis that has morphed into a low-stakes but viral conspiracy theory: the butter we’re now using is physically firmer and melts slower. Is this true? How would we prove or disprove ‘Buttergate’? Toronto Star’s food reporter takes us down the winding path of food scientists, palm oil plantations, dairy farms and the ultimate arbiter of butter: his dad.
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