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Tag: activism

Topic: human rightsView all posts for the topic: human rights

Masking is a right

Published November 19, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: The Peak
Published on:
By Abigail Streifel

Content warning: brief mentions of genocide.

We’re still in a pandemic nearly five years after the first outbreak of COVID-19, but some places in the US and Canada are criminalizing the use of face masks in public. North Carolina has passed a law that restricts wearing masks, the governor of New York supports similar restrictions, and university campuses in California have enacted policies limiting masks. Here in Canada, people in Toronto have been arrested for wearing masks while protesting. Each of these restrictions seek to stop people from “concealing their identities.” The bans present multiple problems: the first is that they pose a risk to public health, and particularly the safety of disabled people. Second, they specifically target activists protesting against the genocide of Palestinians. Both of these issues are related to the right to keep our communities safe, which should not be questioned.

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Novavax now! We need access to the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine!Photo of two vials of a vaccine and a syringe, accompanied by white and gold text on a blue background reading: Novavax now! We need access to the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine. StillCoviding.ca #NovavaxNow Photo: oasisamuel / Adobe.
Topic: take actionView all posts for the topic: take action

Novavax now! We need access to the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine!

Published August 25, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

📣 Let PHAC and health ministers know you want timely access to the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine this fall

✉️ Send letters to PHAC and health ministers to voice your support for access to the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine this fall. Use our online tool to send emails.

Continue readingNovavax now! We need access to the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine!
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Fallout ensues after the closure of long-COVID outpatient programScreenshot of video from Global News. Petition organizer McKenna Kirby is speaking. She has light brown hair, glasses, and a light blue top.
Topic: AlbertaView all posts for the topic: Alberta

Fallout ensues after the closure of long-COVID outpatient program

Published August 15, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: Global News
Published on:
By Justin Sibbet

Those suffering from long-COVID in Alberta are fighting back after the government informed them the Long-COVID Inter-Professional Outpatient Program was ending.

For some, COVID feels like a distant memory, a time when the world seemed to stop as everyone navigated the pandemic. Yet for many, it’s not in the rearview mirror, it’s still an ever-present reality and daily fight.

Jennifer Hare has had long-COVID for three years.

“Literally, my entire life is planned whereas before, I was a normal human being,” said Hare.

Continue readingFallout ensues after the closure of long-COVID outpatient program
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Topic: OntarioView all posts for the topic: Ontario

Petitions, letter campaigns, questions continue with days to go before province pulls the plug on wastewater surveillance

Published July 22, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: Ottawa Citizen
Published on:
By Elizabeth Payne

With just days to go until the Ontario government stops funding wastewater surveillance, researchers and residents who use the data fear crucial information about COVID risk is about to go dark, just as a new wave is spreading across Ontario.

Earlier this year, the Ontario government confirmed that it would stop funding the province’s widely respected wastewater surveillance program after July 31. At the time, a spokesperson said the government was ending the program, believed to cost in the range of $15 million a year, because the federal government was expanding its wastewater surveillance program and it didn’t want to duplicate the efforts.

The federal government currently operates four testing sites in Ontario — all in the GTA. It has said it wants to expand its program in Ontario to eight to nine potential sites. The Ontario program gathers surveillance at more than 50 sites.

With the end of provincial funding fast approaching — and a summer COVID-19 wave now beginning to surge in the province — there are growing fears that people who rely on the data on COVID-19 and other diseases will be left in the dark.

Continue readingPetitions, letter campaigns, questions continue with days to go before province pulls the plug on wastewater surveillance
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Topic: Ottawa-GatineauView all posts for the topic: Ottawa-Gatineau

Staying COVID-conscious is getting harder to do, advocates say that should change

Published July 20, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: Ottawa Citizen
Published on:
By Elizabeth Payne

It was a familiar scene, but one that is becoming less common in Ottawa and across the country.

On a recent Friday, people arriving for an outdoor concert and dance at Saw Gallery in downtown Ottawa were greeted with signs telling them that masks were mandatory. The same signs thanked them for supporting their community.

Participants happily complied. Some said they have continued to mask and seek out COVID-safe spaces since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. Others said they don’t always wear masks in public, but do so when there is a higher risk or they are protecting those who are more vulnerable.

Continue readingStaying COVID-conscious is getting harder to do, advocates say that should change
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Topic: Y’all masking?View all posts for the topic: Y’all masking?

“Y’all Masking?” hashtag goes viral on X, showing maskers they are not alone

Published July 8, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: Boing Boing
Published on:
By Jennifer Sandlin

If you always feel like the lone masker wherever you go, I have some great news for you – you’re not! And the new “Y’all Masking?” trend on X/Twitter is proving it, much to my utter delight.

If you’re not on X, I honestly do not blame you at all. I’m literally only still there because it’s one of the few places left where I can get actual news about COVID-19. Over the last few days, the “Y’all Masking?” hashtag has gone viral on the platform, and my feed has been filled with selfies of awesome, smart, kind, beautiful people wearing masks of all sorts of shapes and sizes. Seeing so many folks who are still masking has honestly given me the boost I needed to continue masking and staying safe from COVID-19, especially as we’re currently in yet another surge.

Continue reading“Y’all Masking?” hashtag goes viral on X, showing maskers they are not alone
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Topic: British ColumbiaView all posts for the topic: British Columbia

BC health advocates demand return of mandatory masks in healthcare

Published May 14, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: The Peak
Published on:
By Yashita Dhillon

In response to April’s removal of mandatory mask mandates in healthcare settings, BC’s health advocacy group DoNoHarm BC, joined by Protect Our Province BC and Masks4EastVan, are leading a campaign to urge the provincial government to reinstate these protections. The groups say that BC health authorities have ignored warnings about ongoing COVID-19 risks and other respiratory threats like measles and tuberculosis.

The decision to remove mask mandates in healthcare settings was announced by the Ministry of Health, “the peak of the respiratory illness season has passed.” Though COVID-19 levels typically lessen in the spring, COVID-19 has not been established as a seasonal illness.

The Peak reached out to Dr. Karina Zeidler who organizes with DoNoHarm BC and is the co-founder of Protect Our Province BC for more information. Zeidler referenced a research article from BC Medical Journal which noted that “for some of these most vulnerable patients, the air in the hospital can be deadlier than the diagnosis that brought them in.” This is due to hospital acquired infections, which can then lead to COVID-19 deaths.

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Topic: activismView all posts for the topic: activism

Clean Air Club Is Organizing Musicians to Make COVID-Safer Shows and Spaces

Published April 18, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: Teen Vogue
Published on:
By Mary Retta

Last year, Chicago resident Emily Dupree attended a concert with her partner, who caught COVID-19 at the show. While Dupree treated her sick partner and tried to avoid getting ill in their shared home, some thoughts began to form in her mind. Dupree and her partner still wore masks everywhere they went, and had adopted air purification in their home early in the pandemic to mitigate the risk of transmission. But she knew that wasn’t the case for most people.

Around this time, Dupree came across a question the father of prolific abolitionist organizer Mariame Kaba used to ask her when she was frustrated: “It sounds like this is something you are very upset about. What will you do about it?” That question helped Dupree “channel a lot of despair I was feeling during the pandemic into concrete action,” she told Teen Vogue. And Clean Air Club was born.

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Advocacy group calls for stronger mask requirements in B.C.A young person with long black hair, a red headband and a black respirator holds two yellow signs reading: “1 in 33 in BC are currently infected” and “I’ve had long Covid for 20+ months. Please do not abandon us.” Photo: DoNoHarm BC.
Topic: British ColumbiaView all posts for the topic: British Columbia

Advocacy group calls for stronger mask requirements in B.C.

Published March 16, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: CityNews
Published on:
By Aastha Pandey-Kanaan

Advocacy group launches province-wide campaign to strengthen mask protections in healthcare.

DoNoHarm BC, a grassroots group advocating for public health measures, is campaigning to keep mask protections in the healthcare industry year-long.

In a release, the organization says healthcare workers are not required to stay masked everywhere. Last April, they were able to stop masking in various settings, including in ERs, children’s hospitals, and cancer centres.

“B.C. currently requires masks in hospitals and long-term care for staff, contractors, visitors, and volunteers – but not for patients,” DoNoHarm BC said in a news release.

“While policy-makers have only guaranteed this measure for a “few months” over the winter, DoNoHarm BC notes the last time BC discarded healthcare masking, multiple medical facilities suffered COVID outbreaks.”

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Topic: long COVIDView all posts for the topic: long COVID

Video | International Long COVID Awareness Day

Published March 15, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: CHCH
Published on:

Friday was International Long COVID Awareness Day. The condition affects about 11 per cent of Canadians who get it. More than two hundred symptoms have been connected to long COVID, with shortness of breath and brain fog being the most common.

The symptoms of COVID can last for months and for most, they will subside. But there are many people who don’t recover or remain symptomatic.

A McMaster professor and long COVID researcher says she experienced symptoms for 18 months before recovering and the scariest part for her was the brain fog.

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Topic: long COVIDView all posts for the topic: long COVID

Video | Patients, advocates come to Washington for Long Covid Awareness Day

Published March 15, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: Gray DC
Published on:
By Josh Rultenberg

On Friday, dozens of people went to our nation’s capital to demand more action be taken to address long Covid. Patients, advocates, and activists demonstrated in front of the Lincoln Memorial for the first Long Covid Awareness Day.

“When you become a nurse, you swear to a code of ethics. This code is why I’m standing here today,” said Dara York who organized the rally.

York is a nurse and mother of three from California who is battling long Covid. She and others called on Congress and President Biden to provide more resources for prevention, research and treatment.

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Topic: University of WaterlooView all posts for the topic: University of Waterloo

UW responds to open letter calling for more robust COVID-19 measures

Published March 8, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: Imprint
Published on:
By Veronica Reiner

An open letter calling for UW to implement more robust COVID-19 measures has picked up traction, receiving an endorsement from the World Health Network as well as a response from the university.

The letter was addressed to UW senior administration by the COVID Action, Response, and Equity (CARE) Coalition, a group made up of students, faculty, staff and alumni. It has garnered about 150 signatures so far, including UW Climate Justice Ecosystem, the UW QTPOC KW, and the School of Public Health Sciences Graduate Students’ Association.

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Topic: advocacyView all posts for the topic: advocacy

La Société canadienne de la COVID lancée pour contrer les effets à long terme

Published March 6, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: Radio-Canada
Published on:

A national not-for-profit group called the Canadian Covid Society was launched on Wednesday. Its co-founders say the organization is needed because public health agencies have given up on COVID-19 prevention and awareness campaigns.

“I feel that somehow we are filling a void that public health has left,” explained Dr. Joe Vipond, one of the society’s five co-founders, at a press conference.

In his home province of Alberta, “there is virtually no mention of COVID. There is no mention of long COVID. It really fell off the radar for a lot of public health at this point,” said Dr. Vipond, who is an emergency physician in Calgary.

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Topic: advocacyView all posts for the topic: advocacy

New Canadian Covid Society aims to address long-term effects

Published March 6, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: Global News / The Canadian Press
Published on:
By Nicole Ireland

A national non-profit group called the Canadian Covid Society launched on Wednesday, with co-founders saying the organization is needed as public health agencies have pulled back on COVID-19 prevention measures and awareness campaigns.

“I feel in some ways we’re filling a gap where public health has left open,” Dr. Joe Vipond, one of the society’s five co-founders, said at a news conference.

In his home province of Alberta, “there’s basically no mention of COVID. There’s no mention of long COVID. It’s really fallen off the radar for a lot of public health at this point,” said Vipond, who is an emergency physician in Calgary.

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Topic: advocacyView all posts for the topic: advocacy

Canadian Covid Society launches to address long-term effects, prevent further illness

Published March 6, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: CityNews / The Canadian Press
Published on:
By Nicole Ireland

A national non-profit group called the Canadian Covid Society launched on Wednesday, with co-founders saying the organization is needed as public health agencies have pulled back on COVID-19 prevention measures and awareness campaigns.

“I feel in some ways we’re filling a gap where public health has left open,” Dr. Joe Vipond, one of the society’s five co-founders, said at a news conference.

In his home province of Alberta, “there’s basically no mention of COVID. There’s no mention of long COVID. It’s really fallen off the radar for a lot of public health at this point,” said Vipond, who is an emergency physician in Calgary.

“While the acute phase of the pandemic has ended, the virus continues to cause significant chronic illness,” the Canadian Covid Society’s website says.

COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death across Canada in 2022, behind heart disease and cancer, it says.

“It still continues to be a stressor on our health system up to this present day. It is contributing to poor health and excess deaths,” said Dr. Kashif Pirzada, another co-founder of the society.

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Topic: British ColumbiaView all posts for the topic: British Columbia

Protect Our Province masking message on New West billboard takes aim at COVID

Published February 8, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: New Westminster Record
Published on:

The pandemic has highlighted the lasting health impacts viruses can have, long after the acute infection is over and done with.

Many viruses, not just Covid, play a role in causing more serious long-term diseases. Epstein- Barr Virus (EBV), the mononucleosis or kissing disease virus, is associated with Multiple Sclerosis.

Recently, B.C. rolled out an at home self-test for Human Papilloma Virus, that’s because HPV can cause throat and cervical cancer.

After the Great Influenza of 1918, it took us years to learn that children born in and around that time were later at higher risk for Parkinson’s disease (remember Robert De Niro in the movie Awakenings), not to mention cardiac disease and diabetes.

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“They’re Taking Away Your Right To Be Healthy.”Image of a plague doctor wearing a plague mask and black clothes. The setting appears to be a smoky, dimly-lit room, with a bright light near the centre. Art by нυвιѕ тανєяη on Unsplash.
Topic: activismView all posts for the topic: activism

“They’re Taking Away Your Right To Be Healthy.”

Published January 12, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: OK Doomer
Published on:
By Jessica Wildfire

The tide is turning. Thanks to all the people making noise on social media and bugging their families, while continuing to wear masks and build air purifiers no matter what anyone says, there’s a trace of hope.

—Jessica Wildfire
Continue reading“They’re Taking Away Your Right To Be Healthy.”
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