The Peace Calendar Vol.1 No.3
Full text version of all articles from The Peace Calendar Vol.1 No.3.
Lynn Harrison and Neil Macdonald — April 1983
On April 23 1983 there will be a demonstration at Queen’s Park in Toronto It will he a chance for people to say that they don’t support the testing of the cruise missile in Canada. The outcry of enough Canadians could influence political leaders to block testing of the missile. The demonstration will mark the first anniversary of the Peace Walk held in Vancouver last year, in which more than 30,000 people took part — the largest peace demonstration ever held in Canada.
ACT, a coalition of over 40 peace groups, representing labour, religious, community, and political organizations, has planned the April 23 demonstration in order to make a public statement to the Canadian government. ACT also organized the first major demonstration against the cruise, two days after the signing of the agreement that opened the door to testing various American weaponry in Canada.
Angela Browning, the chairperson of ACT, points Out that the signing of this agreement, the “Canada/U.S (CANUS) Test and Evaluation Program”, was shrouded in secrecy, perhaps because during the months preceding the negotiation, heavy opposition had emerged to ward it. Browning notes that while each specific testing project must be applied for separately, allowing opportunities for Canada to block individual proposals, the agreement states that the Canadian and U.S. governments will together determine the amount of information to be disclosed to the public. There is no guarantee, therefore, that the public will be fully informed of other developments following the signing of the agreement. It is for this reason Browning states, that the public must raise its voice now.
If that voice is not loud enough, government action could be swift, as with the February 10 agreement, which was announced while it was being signed in Washington. By providing for future secrecy. the accord could keep Canadians from being able to respond. And Browning stresses that by demonstrating on April 23, the public can make a strong statement before testing of American nuclear weapons here becomes a reality. Cruise missile testing will define Canada’s role in the Soviet-American arms race, and public reaction to the cruise can forestall that outcome.
As to Canada’s role in the pursuit of world security, Browning feels that here again we must not simply trust the effectiveness of negotiations between political leaders. Many people feel that in international relations Canada should encourage arms control talks between the United States and the Soviet Union. But Browning says that it will be the statement of the people of the world, collectively, rather than a discussion between politicians, that will lead to disarmament. The peace movement is strengthened by the fact, for example, that Canadian protests against the cruise missile are in solidarity with their counterparts in Europe.
The B.C. chapter of Science for Peace says in its paper The Cruise Missile: A Canadian Perspective, “If governments of nations committed to the goal of disarmament were to support the people, very much more could be achieved.” The public opinion may be there, but it must be demonstrated. This is why Angela Browning and ACT are working so hard to bring people together. and why your presence at the April 23 demonstration is so important.
Neil Macdonald — April 1983
The weapons testing agreement signed between the Canadian and American governments has made possible the testing of a frightening new weapon in Canada — the cruise missile. The cruise is unlike any weapon yet developed, and puts an entirely new face on “nuclear diplomacy.”
On February 10, l983. the Canadian and American governments capped off months of negotiations by signing an agreement on the Canada-US Test and Evaluation Program. By signing this umbrella agreement, Canada has opened the way for new weapons, including the cruise, to be tested in Canada.
When Canadians first learned of the negotiations, nearly a year ago, they expressed their opposition in demonstrations, referenda, and public opinion polls. Nonetheless. Allan MacEachen. Canada’s Minister for External Affairs. only announced to the House of Commons that the Program was ratified at the same time as the agreement was being signed in a secret ceremony in Washington D.C.
Unfortunately, this secrecy is all too typical of the way in which the Liberal government runs its affairs. Ottawa entered into this agreement against the wishes of the Canadian public and without consulting Parliament. In effect, our democratic process has been ignored.
Although the Program is an umbrella agreement, whereby each weapon test must be individually approved by the two governments before it can be held, Parliament will have no part in approving any test. This is to be left up to the Cabinet. It is by no means certain that we can depend on the government to keep the cruise missile out of Canada.
Three characteristics of the cruise set it apart from any other nuclear weapon yet developed: (1) its sophisticated guidance system; (2) its pinpoint accuracy; and (3) its size.
The cruise missile has a highly advanced navigation system, combining an inertial guidance device with a course correction mechanism called a TERCOM “terrain contour matching.”
The TERCOM stores data in digital form of the terrain along its intended flight path. These data are compared with readings of the terrain constantly taken by the missile’s radar altimeter during the missile’s flight.
In this manner, the TERCOM corrects the inertial guidance system, bringing the missile to within 100 m. of the target. The cruise flies at 850 km./h, which is a relatively slow speed for a missile. However, the navigation system permits the missile to fly almost at tree-too level, and its flight can be programmed to take advantage of cover offered by the terrain and to avoid known radar bases. This, along with the fact that the cruise is only 6 m long, makes the missiles virtually undetectable.
Arms control negotiations are taking place to establish treaties that will depend on verifiability. The production of a new weapon that is too small to be verifiable jeopardizes the prospects of reaching such an agreement. From spy satellites that monitor such matters, the cruise will resemble an ordinary torpedo.
The business end of the cruise will carry a nuclear warhead of up to 250 kilotonnes in explosive power. This is small by today’s standards. However, one should keep in mind that this “small warhead” is at least ten times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
The cruise missile can be launched either at sea, from land, or from the air. The missile launchers are mobile, and can be readily concealed, making it almost impossible to verify the number of cruises that would be deployed. The air-launched cruise missile (ALCM), which is launched from specially fitted B-52 bombers, is the version which the Americans want to test at Cold Lake, in Alberta. Alberta was chosen because the terrain there is supposedly similar to the terrain which the missile would encounter in the Soviet Union.
Despite what many arms proponents claim, both superpowers have a rough nuclear parity; that is, they both have the same capacity to destroy civilization. The doctrine of “mutually assured destruction” implicit in this parity has so far helped to prevent a nuclear war, according to deterrence theorists.
However. the cruise threatens to upset this fragile balance. The Americans insist that the cruise is not intended as a first-strike weapon, that it is meant only to strengthen the West’s defences. They may very well be sincere in their claim that the cruise is only meant for added deterrence. Yet if this is the case, the Soviets can no longer feel secure from a limited nuclear attack. The cruise is well-suited for accurate and effective strikes on military bases and missile sites. Given this new vulnerability, the Soviets may conclude that in any attack, their only choices would be either total defeat, or a full-scale nuclear response of their own.
This choice is especially compelling when the Soviets hear American rhetoric bout “winnable nuclear exchanges” or “surgical strikes.” There really is no guarantee that a limited attack will not escalate into full-scale nuclear holocaust.
After all, we will never know what constitutes a reasonable, or limited, response to a nuclear attack, until one is actually upon us. If that ever happened, it would be extremely difficult, in the heat of battle, to react with restraint. Obviously, no one can afford the luxury of experimentation to find out the answer.
The United States has always claimed that they must respond to the Soviets’ buildup of nuclear armaments, and that the cruise is merely another element in the West’s defensive strategy. However, the Americans were the ones who started the arms race in the first place. They invented the atom bomb, and they were the first to use it against human beings.
The Americans have consistently taken the lead in nuclear technology, of which the cruise is the latest, and most sinister, offspring. Meanwhile, they continue to deny their responsibility to end the arms race, claiming that “the whole thing is the other side’s fault to begin with.” The Soviets, of course, are just as guilty of this denial
The cruise missile poses a graver threat than ever before, not just to the security of one nation, but to the survival of the entire world. We cannot permit such a weapon to be tested on Canadian soil. One thing leads to another. Allowing the testing will irrevocably draw Canadians ever deeper into the nuclear arms race In effect, we will be telling the world that we support the Reagan Administration’s suicidal nuclear policies.
Anonymous — April 1983
According to a Toronto Star poll conducted in February, Prime Minister Trudeau and External Affairs Minister Allan MacEachen were among a two-thirds majority of MPs refusing to say yes or no to cruise tests in Canada.
The most adamant “No” reported in a Star article dated March 16 came from another Liberal, Irenee Pelletier (MP — Sherbrooke). “To permit an American neighbour to test the cruise in our back yard it totally ridiculous.” Pelletier said. “We can’t be a part of those who wish to spread the atomic bomb. Sooner or later we could blow this planet up. It’s got to stop.”
The strongest “Yes” reply in favour of cruise tests also came from a Liberal MP — Jesse Flis (Parkdale — High Park) approves of cruise testing in Canada because he said he was “elected to represent my constituency. They are practically 100% behind me on this issue.” Two days after Flis’s statement appeared in the Star several Parkdale constituents picketed his riding office in Toronto. In addition, CANDIS has received calls from Parkdale residents asking for his Ottawa address. You can write to him in care of the House of Commons, Ottawa KIA 0A6, and the postage is free. Parkdale for Peace. a community based group, would also like to hear from you. Contact Rob Fairley at xxx-xxxx or Lisa Makardiuk at xxx-xxxx.
Only four Tories out of 101 questioned said they opposed cruise tests. Most. including Joe Clark, refused to say yes or no. Tory leadership candidates David Crombie, John Gamble and Michael Wilson said they favoured the tests.
All NDP MPs questioned said they are against the testing of the cruise.
What you can do
Your opinion does count, and you can make it heard in a number of ways. Here are a few:
- Walk for peace. Join a demonstration.. In April, thousands of people in cities across Canada will walk for peace. The peace movement involves all kinds of people and that it its primary strength. Demonstrations are happy, positive events attended by young and old, rich and poor, religious and atheist; in short, a broad representation of society united for one reason, the preservation of life. Throughout history, demonstrations have played an essential role in bringing about change. Numbers are important and we are all equal participants. See you on April 23!
- Write to your Member of Parliament. MPs are elected to represent us — their constituents. You may not realise how much power each citizen has but elected officials are very aware of it. You elected your MP and you can vote him or her right out again in the next election.
If enough letters and petitions are sent to MPs, they do stand up and take notice. After all, they want to get reelected. Remember, if you ignore your MP, your MP will ignore you. Address letters and postcards as follows:
M.P.(name) House of Commons Ottawa KIA 0A6
- Also, telephone calls to Ottawa are quick and cost only $.60 a minute. Give the Prime Minister’s assistants an earful or call the Minister of External Affairs, Allan MacEachen at 613-xxx-xxxx.If you want to find out who your M.P. is, call your local Canada Service Bureau. There are many more ways that you can make a difference. After you have tried all these ideas. call CANDIS or visit us in the Peace Chapel and we’ll suggest even more!
Anonymous — April 1983
Toronto area
Friday 1
Ecumenical Lenten vigil for peace — all peace groups. Good Friday service; 12:30 at City Hall.
Contact: Ted Schmidt at xxx-xxxx
Saturday 2
Parkdale for Peace: Demonstration at M.P.‘s office. 2:00PM Corner of Windermere and Bloor West —2 blocks west of Runnymede subway.
Contact: John Friesen at xxx-xxxx
Sunday 3
Christian Movement for Peace: Counterbomb Renga: a CBC radio broadcast on 94.1 FM at 9:05. Contact: Linda Smith at xxx-xxxx
Monday 4
Lenten vigil for peace Continues. Celebration of Resurrection and Hope. 7:30 PM. Bloor Street United Church.
Contact: Ted Schmidt at xxx-xxxx.
ACT (Against Cruise Testing): General Meeting, 7:30 PM. Bathurst St. United Church, 730 Bathurst St.
Contact office: xxx-xxxx
Toronto Disarmament Network: General meeting. 7:50 PM. Bloor St. United Church.
Contact: Coleen Hefoer at xxx-xxxx.
Wednesday 6
Peace Tax Fund: General Meeting. 7:30 PM. 209 Arlington Ave. Contact: R. Shapeott, xxx-xxxx
Thursday 7
Planetary Initiative Night. For details see Thursday April 14.
Union Disarmament Committee: 5:30 PM, OPSEU Headquarters, 1901 Yonge St.
Contact: Boris Evans, xxx-xxxx.
Friday 8
New Democratic Party: NDP anti-war conference, tonight and all day tomorrow. Keynote speakers, wine and cheese. 7:30 PM. Cody Hall, 50 St.George St., Rm. 107.
Contact: G. Doctorow, xxx-xxxx; Kimberly Wilde, 46~I307; Laura Pascoe, xxx-xxxx. If you need day care, phone before April 4.
Peace and Social Action C’tee: Quaker Peace testimony 1660 until today. Speakers: Ken Hancock and Carl Stieren. 7 PM, Friends House, 60 Lowther Rd.
Contact: C. Stieren, xxx-xxxx.
Saturday 9
New Democratic Party: NDP Anti-war Conference Cont’d: panel discussions, 10 AM to 5 PM, Faculty of Education, 371 Bloor W.
Contact: Gord Dcctorow, xxx-xxxx.
Tuesday 12
Voice of Women: Monthly Mtg. 7:30 PM. 175 Canton St.
Contact : xxx-xxxx.
Operation Dismantle: General Meeting. 7:30 PM. Metropolitan Library, 789 Yonge
Contact: Ted Johnson, xxx-xxxx.
Wednesday 13
Parkdale for Peace: General Mtg 7;30 PM. Firehall— Cowan, south of Queen,
Contact: Rob Fairley, xxx-xxxx
Mixed Company: Life on the Line… A New Wave Musical Satire about Life and Job Search: Nuclear Madness and Political Predicament. Starring Steven Bush. Young People’s Theatre, 165 Front St. East. Running April 13 — May 8th. $6-8 (group rates available).
Contact: Box office, xxx-xxxx.
Science for Peace. Public Forum: “Canadian and World Referenda” with Jim Stark of Operation Dismantle and Don Munton, Research Director of Can. Institute of International Affairs. 8:00 PM, Rm. 1105 Sandford Fleming Bldg. 10 King’s College Rd. (off College).
Contact: B. Gombay: xxx-xxxx.
Thursday 14
Planetary Initiative: Planetary Initiative Night. Movie: The Hundredth Monkey, talk and workshop to follow. 8:00-10:30 PM. OISE, 252 Bloor St. West, suggested donation $3.00.
Contact Steve Beltz, xxx-xxxx.
Friday 15
Peace Tax Movement: Edith Adamson will speak on the history and current status of tax fund. 7:30 PM. Workshop on redirection of taxes at 9 PM. Friends’ House, 60 Lowther Ave.
Contact: R. Shapcott, xxx-xxxx or xxx-xxxx.
Monday 18
Unitarian Church: Film: In the King of Prussia. 7:30 PM, Unitarian Church, 84 South Service Rd. Mississauga. Admission $3.00.
Contact: Helen Tracy, xxx-xxxx.
Itala-Canadesi Per la Pace: Proiezione de film, Per tutu quelli che amano la pace, con de attito publico. 8:00 PM. St. Clair/Dufferin Library at 1625 Dufferin St.
ACT: General Meeting. 7:30 pm at Bathurst St. United Church, 730 Bathurst St.
Contact office: xxx-xxxx.
Tuesday 19
East End Peace Action: General Meeting. A talk: International Peace Movement. 7:30 PM. Kew Beach School, 101 Kippendavie Rd.
Contact: Jeremy Agar, xxx-xxxx
Wednesday 20
Science for Peace: Film: No First Use, followed by discussion of the proposed policy of increasing conventional forces in Europe while disarming nuclear forces. 5:30 PM. McLennan Physical Labs. .60 St. George St. at U of T.
Contact: B. Gombay. xxx-xxxx.
Thursday 21
Planetary Initiative: Planetary Initiative Night. Movie: The Hundredth Monkey, talk and workshop to follow. 8:00-10:30 PM, OISE. 252 Bloor St. West, suggested donation: $3.00.
Contact: Steve Beltz, xxx-xxxx
Saturday 23
Join Canadians across Canada in demonstrating against cruise missile testing. Stop implementation of the umbrella agreement. Rally at 1:00 PM at Queen’s Park, walk down Yonge St. to City Hall.
Contact: ACT office, xxx-xxxx.
Wednesday 27
Science for Peace: Public Forum: “Survivalism and Peace Education” by Joe Vise, Parents for Peace, and Roger Calverly, teacher of a Survival course. 5:30 PM, Room 102 McLennan Physics Labs, 60 St. George St.
Contact: Brydon Gombay xxx-xxxx
Thursday 25
Planetary Initiative: Planetary Initiative Night. Movie: The Hundredth Monkey, talk and workshop to follow. 8:00-10:30 PM, OISE, 252 Bloor St. West, suggested donation $3.00.
Contact: Steve Belts, xxx-xxxx. 235 Manse Road, no.76 West Hill, MIE 4X7. call xxx-xxxx.
Friday 29
Hiroshima-Nagasaki Relived: New film: The Lost Generation, produced by the Japanese citizens for UNSSOD II. lecture by Prof. C. Powles (U of T), “The threat of remilitarization in Japan.” 7:30 PM, Holy Trinity Church.
Contact: Setsuko Thurlow, xxx-xxxx
OTHER APRIL EYENTS
Canadian Youth for Peace. April general meeting.
Contact: Mike Connelly, xxx-xxxx.
Probably last week of April or early May:
Women from England’s Greenham Common Peace Camp will tour Canada.
Contact: your local Voice of Women.
Events in Early May
Tuesday 3
Toronto Disarmament Network: General Meeting. Bloor St. United Church. 730 Bloor St. W., 7:30 PM
Contact: Colleen Heffner, xxx-xxxx
Thursday 5
Planetary Initiative: Planetary Initiative Night. Movie: The Hundredth Monkey. Talk and Seminar to follow. 8:00 to 10:30 PM, OISE at 252 Bloor St. West, suggested donation $3.00.
Contact: Steve Belte, xxx-xxxx
Wednesday 11
Parkdale for Peace: General Meeting, at Firehall, Cowan south of Queen. 7:30PM
Contact: Rob Fairley, xxx-xxxx
Across Canada
VICTORIA
Sun. April 24.
Greater Victoria Disarmament Group. Walk for Peace. Noon to 2 p.m. Meet at Centennial Square, walk to Beacon Hill Park for rally.
VANCOUVER
Sat. April 23.
Walk For Peace. Gather at Kitsilano Park at noon. Cross Burrard St. Bridge, walk to Sunset Beach. The walk is endorsed by over 200 organisations and the city of Vancouver.
COLD LAKE — EDMONTON
March 22 — April 3.
Peace Walk, 293 km. Ending in Edmonton on Easter Sunday for a rally.
contact:(403) xxx-xxxx.
REGINA
Sun. April 24.
March for Peace. Start in Victoria Park. Noon to 2p.m.
contact: Donna Hatsson, xxx-xxxx.
SASKATOON
April 15, 16 Extension Division, University of Saskatchewan. “World Economy at the Crossroads”: Economic interdependence including effects of the Arms Race. TraveLodge Motor Hotel. contact: University Conference Office.
April 19
Lecture: Admiral Eugene Carroll, from the Center for Defense Information, Washington. 8 PM Saskatoon Public Library.
April 23
Peace March: “Saskatoon Against the Cruise. Springfest, Protest!” Starts 1 p.m., University Campus, goes to City Hall. 2-6 p.m. Speakers, music, information booths.
PRINCE ALBERT
April 25
March For Peace. For details, call City Hall.
WINNIPEG
April
Lecture: History of the Peace Tax Fund. Speaker is Edith Adamson. 1:00 to 4:00 pm. Westminster United Church.
April 23
Anti-Cruise Coffee House.
Contact: Winnipeg Coordinating Committee for Disarmament. 320 Lipton Street, Winnipeg.
WATERLOO
April
Waterloo Peace Network Public Lecture: Dr. Henry Wiseman. “You Can’t Trust the Russians? The Meaning of Deterrence in the Nuclear Age”. Unitarian Church, 136 Allen St. E. Waterloo, 8 p.m.
contact: Ross Beauchamps, xxx-xxxx.
WINDSOR
April 2
Refuse the Cruise March. Starts at Dieppe Park, proceeds to City Hall Square, where there will be speakers at the cenotaph. 2-4 PM. contact: John McArthur, xxx-xxxx.
LONDON
April 9
Project Ploughshares Dance. St. Peter’s School, 533 Clarence St. 7 PM.
contact: Michael CoIdwell, xxx-xxxx.
HAMILTON
April 10
Hamilton Disarmament Coalition. Film: In the King of Prussia. Kirkendall-Strathcona Community Centre, 210 Napier St. 7 p.m. $3.00
contact: Hannah Schayer. xxx-xxxx
OTTAWA
April 17
CUSO Public awareness programme on health, disarmament, and development. Public Archives Bldg. 4.30 p.m. contact: Peter Lewis 613-xxx-xxxx, Cat. 264.
April 16. Physicians for Social Responsibility. Symposium on Medical Consequences of Nuclear Weapons and Nuclear War. National Archives Auditorium. $30 for doctors; $15 for public. For further information write: P.S.R. Box 4641, Station E, Ottawa, K1S 5M8
Phone Dr. L. Stolbach, 613-xxx-xxxx; Dr. G. Schneider 613-xxx-xxxx.
MONTREAL
April 10-13
Symposium on Mass Media and Disarmament Campaign.
contact: 514 xxx-xxxx ext. 370.
April 30 through May 3
World Conference on Religions for Peace. Peace Sabbath: April 30: “Education for Peace,” with multi-religious service to be held at St. James United Church.
From May 1 through May 3. Conference at Manoir d’Youville at Chateau Guay contact: Father MacBeathe Brown 514 xxx-xxxx Rosemary Sullivan 514 xxx-xxxx.
HALIFAX
April 3
Coalition Against Nuclear War Easter Service. Atlantic School of Theology, 4p.m.
April 21:
Lecture by Ken Hancock. contact: Valerie Osborne, xxx-xxxx.
May Events
May 1, in Ottawa. “Jobs, Not Bombs: A Human Chain of Events.” Meets at 1:00 pm. at Confederation Park (corner Elgin and Laurier). At 1:30 disperse to form a human chain from the Department of National Defence to the Unemployment Insurance Office, thus “making the connection.” Then picnic in the park with entertainment and speakers. Contact Jansie Scott at 613-xxx-xxxx.
May 16, Mothers’ Day: Julia Ward Howe, who first created Mothers Day, designated it as a day for peace. This noble ideal was lost as the day became commercialized. This year we’re turning back to the original purpose. Mothers and grandmothers will send photographs of their children to Mrs. Reagan and Mrs. Andropov that day, asking them to appeal to their husbands to save these children from nuclear war. Promote the idea among your friends.
Look Forward to:
The Salt Spring Island (B.C.) Nuclear Disarmament Group is planning a caravan for peace this summer. Groups will start from both the east and west coasts of Canada, picking up new participants along the way and holding rallies to promote peace. They will meet in Ottawa. If you’re interested, contact Don Erickson at 604-xxx-xxxx.
Save August 28, 1983 for a trip to Washington, D.C. A major demonstration is being planned and will be described further in later issues.
The city of Vancouver will send out a leaflet to all households, describing the consequences of a nuclear attack.
“Institutions for Peace vs. Instruments of War,” Panelists: George Ignatieff, Douglas Roche, Norman Alcock, William Epstein and Arnold Simoni. Moderator: Metta Spencer.
Find out why disarmament is inseparable from U.N. reform and the creation of a reliable international security system. This symposium will change the way you think about disarmament. Sponsored by the United Nations Association, World Federalists of Canada and Toronto 2000. May 14, 1.00 p.m., O.I.S.E. Auditorium. Registration $10. Pay-what-you-can scholarships available. Call Majorie Telling, xxx-xxxx or Dieter Heinrich, xxx-xxxx.
Anonymous — April 1983
- HIGH PARK PEACE CO-OP Call Penny Smith, xxx-xxxx.
- LAWYERS FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, 4700 Keele Street, Downsview, Ontario M3J 2R2. Call Jack Coop, xxx-xxxx.
- SCARBOROUGH PEACE ACTION c/o Warren Kazor.
- SWEEPM Solidarity with the East European Peace Movement. contacts: Brian Burch c/o CMCP xxx-xxxx. Peter Wade, c/o SURPI, Ryerson. xxx-xxxx.
- UNION DISARMAMENT COMMITTEE contact: Boris Evans, xxx-xxxx. Berk Kesser, xxx-xxxx. 1570 King St. W. no. 8A.
- DISARMAMENT HOT LINE xxx-xxxx (585-CALL)
Anonymous — April 1983
The Canadian Disarmament Information Service is a non-profit organization, sponsored by Holy Trinity Church and funded by donations. Our office is in the Peace Chapel of Holy Trinity (behind the Eaton Centre) and we’re open from 9 am. to 5 pm., Monday to Friday and from 12 noon to 5:00pm. on Saturdays.
Visit us any time and pick up your copy of the latest Peace Calendar, brochures, flyers, educational kits, periodicals and resource lists on nuclear arms and disarmament. Our volunteers will answer any questions you may have and you can browse through our reference library or clippings file at your leisure.
CANDIS — What we Offer
CANDIS gathers information from all sources on nuclear arms and disarmament and makes that information available to the public. The Peace Calendar is published monthly and includes an extensive Toronto peace events listing. as well as major events being held across Canada. Annual mailed subscriptions cost $8 — or pick up your copy free at CANDIS.
The Peace Calendar will continue to provide extensive listings of events in Toronto in addition to major events throughout Ontario and the rest of Canada. Correspondents are needed for each of the provinces. Please write to us if you are interested.
The Peace Calendar is also distributed to bookstores, restaurants, libraries, schools, and churches throughout Toronto.
A disarmament hotline is maintained 24 hours a day (xxx-xxxx). When no one is in the office, an answering machine will take your message. We provide information impartially on all peace groups.
CANDIS serves as an information clearing house for the peace movement. CANDIS exists to facilitate communication between the public and the nearly 100 peace groups in Toronto alone. CANDIS also acts as liaison between the media and the peace movement.
CANDIS needs more information on peace organizations. We are compiling an annotated list of peace groups in Canada and would like to include a small description of your orientation (e.g. church, professional, political, artistic). We also need at least two contact people for each organization, with telephone numbers.
Pamphlets, flyers, brochures. Send us plenty of each if you would like them distributed to visitors at CANDIS.
Books, books and more books.., Our library is growing slowly and we need more book donations. If you have literature on nuclear disarmament that you no longer want, don’t let it sit on your shelf to collect radioactive dust. Donate your books to CANDIS to the rest of us can become just as brilliantly authoritative on the arms race as you are!
Subscribe
To receive your own copy of The Peace Calendar by the first of each month, subscribe. We have been mailing sample copies to many readers who have not sent in subscription orders, but postage costs prevent us from doing so after this issue. Our rates are reasonable-$8.00 for 12 monthly issues each year. Send a cheque payable to CANDIS or The Church of the Holy Trinity, 10 Trinity Sq., Toronto MSG IBI.
Mailing List
If you would like your name to be available to peace groups across Canada, CANDIS will add you to a computerized mailing list for $2.00. This does not, of course, cover the cost of a subscription.
Advertise Here
We’re expecting The Peace Calendar to become largely self-supporting next month by selling advertising space. The most space we sell, the more copies we can afford to print and distribute to the public. You can help educate the Canadian public about the threat of nuclear war and do your business a favor at the same time. Our circulation is now 20,000 and growing fast. For advertising rates, phone Jon Spencer at xxx-xxxx.
From the beginning, committee meetings at CANDIS have always been friendly, productive and harmonious. CANDIS is only three months old and there are still many wrinkles to be ironed out within Committee functions and day-to-day running of the office. Nonetheless, CANDIS is remarkably successful to have come so far in to short a time. Our dedicated volunteers take all the credit for this success, each one offering a completely fresh and creative outlook to the operation. In the May issue of The Peace Calendar we’ll publish their names, but until then, you know who you are! And we truly thank you. Without your commitment CANDIS would not exist.
BR and MS
“Non-cooperation with evil is as much of a duty as cooperation with good.”
-M.K. Gandhi, India 1921.
— April 1983
The Against Cruise Testing (ACT) Coalition is a recent newcomer to the Toronto peace movement. ACT was created at a Jan. 3 meeting of people interested in organizing a campaign to oppose the cruise missile.
ACT has two objectives: to prevent the cruise from being tested on Canadian soil, and to make the public aware of the way in which the Liberal government has disregarded the democratic process in negotiating the weapons testing agreement with the United States.
ACT confines itself to demonstrations and publicity activities; it does not take part in civil disobedience of any kind. ACT’s first mandate was to protest the signing of the weapons testing accord with a 36 hour vigil, ending in a demonstration outside the Liberal Party’s headquarters on King Street East.
Because the weapons agreement was signed with no advance notice, ACT could give no definite date for the protest. Nonetheless, ACT was pleased by the turnout. The vigil, in which the Canadian Youths for Peace, among others, played a large part, started on Feb. 10, the day of the signing, and culminated in a demonstration on Feb. 12 that attracted nearly 5000 people.
To publicize its activities, ACT relies on press releases and information passed on by its member groups. As well, ACT has public speak-outs, or “soapbox forums” in public, four times a week, at the Eaton Centre, Kensington Market, and the St. Lawrence Market. Such speak-outs serve an important purpose, as they are ACT’s closest link to the public. They are intended as exercises in public speech, where leaflets are handed out and ACT buttons are sold. In this way, ACT gains publicity, while getting a feel for the public’s perception of the disarmament issue.
As is the case with most activist disarmament groups, ACT’s funding is on a tenuous, “hand-to-mouth” basis.
Public awareness is essential to ACT, as it is for any peace group. Trish Murphy, a spokesperson for ACT, is optimistic about the impact ACT has been having on that awareness. “The response of the people since the Feb. 12 demonstration has been very favourable,” Ms. Murphy says. At one of the speak-outs, “we were all out of buttons, which is one of our big fund-raisers, and people would come up and spontaneously donate us money. Public support is increasing, says Ms. Murphy, and she feels that this will be reflected in the attendance at Queen’s Park on April 23.
So far, ACT has nothing in the works beyond April 23, though they plan to remain active in Toronto’s peace movement, and will continue to respond to the threat posed by the cruise missile.
Anonymous — April 1983
We are a musical network for performers, songwriters, concert organizers, sound technicians, and other musical people who seek social change through their music. Our styles vary from rock to reggae to Latin American jazz.
Other peace groups should feel frets to call on us for benefit concerts, rally performances, and the like.
Contact David Welsch 416-xxx-xxxx or write to Music For Social Change Network, 20 Albert Frank Place Toronto M5A 4B1
Phillip Abrahams and Kathy Sesto — April 1983
The first in a series of profiles on various long-time peace activists. These profiles may express disparate views on many subjects but there is one over-riding agreement — the need for international nuclear disarmament. We hope you enjoy this series.
Hans Blumenfeld is a small, sprightly man who laughs often as he describes his lifelong commitments. His ideas resulted in his effective classification as a persona non grata in both the Soviet Union and the United Stales, It has also eventually led to his being honoured with the Order of Canada. Now, at the age of 90, he is as active as ever, now as the chairman of the Toronto Coalition for Peace. He also finds time to leach urban planning at the University of Toronto.
Blumenfeld was born in Hamburg in 1892. His father, a successful lawyer, wanted his son to go into business, but the young man, influenced by his mother, chose to study architecture instead. His mother also played a role in the development of his interest in the peace movement: “My mother was a pacifist. She influenced me. I’m not an absolute pacifist; I give exceptions in the case of a totalitarian government or a nation under attack.”
After spending two years in Vienna, Blumenfeld returned to Germany and then, in 1932, went to live in the Soviet Union. He joined the Communist Party and worked for five years as an architect in Moscow and Gorky. This was the period of the Stalinist purges and, in 1935, Blumenfeld was informed that his residence permit would not be renewed. He was never told the reason for his expulsion.
In 1938 he moved to New York and then Philadelphia and became an American citizen in 1944. At that time, the Americans did not ask about his Communist Party affiliation, “perhaps because the U.S. and the Soviet Union were wartime allies.” However, during the McCarthy era he was barred from a number of jobs and, because of his involvement in the peace and civil rights movements, his passport was withdrawn.
In 1955 he became deputy director of the Metro Toronto Planning Board. He was eventually granted Canadian citizenship, after having been turned down once.
In 1961 as he approached 70, his thoughts turned not to retirement but to a new career, and he began to teach urban planning. Since then he has published two books on the modem metropolis.
We asked Blumenfeld how he keeps his apparent optimism and enthusiasm for the peace movement after what he has experienced. Surely persecution by both cold war antagonists must seriously test one’s belief in the possibility of avoiding a nuclear war. His response is unequivocal: “Pessimism is not a useful working hypothesis. You have to do what you can and hope for the best.”
He gives the peace movement no more than a fifty-fifty chance of success but points to several hopeful signs. “I think the peace movement in Europe, particularly in Holland and Germany, is having a decisive impact. The Greens in Germany are probably influencing the right wing people in government.”
He alto praises the efforts of established political and religious figures such as Willy Brandt and the Pope. “The involvement of the Catholic Church is very good. I’m not in agreement with the Pope on many things, but the Church’s stand on nuclear war is good.”
We wonder how, as an architect and city planner, he views the dependence of many urban economies on war-related production. “Every type of work,” he replies, “is futile if you can’t preserve peace. And even though cities do rely on war industries, during the last World War, much more of the economy was devoted to war. At the end of the war, economies were converted back to peacetime production. This shows that it is possible to stop cities’ reliance on war industries.”
For this to happen, he continues, there has to be a serious attempt at disarmament. “I think we’ll have a disarmament, a freeze. It should be possible. The first step is for the US and the USSR to recognize one another.”
But isn’t the exact opposite happening now? we ask. The Cold War is intensifying; the arms buildup continues unabated, and the American and Canadian governments are apparently ignoring peace protests.
Ever the optimist, Blumenfeld argues that the Cold War is not necessarily worsening. He feels that it is “much less widespread than thirty years ago. Reagan is being unrealistic when he says that the USSR does not want disarmament. The Soviet economy can’t afford the arms race. Also, it has enough sleepless nights over Poland without wanting to invade the rest of Europe.”
He adds that “there is much more resistance to Reagan there was to the cold warriors of the fifties. People have become more aware of the dangers of nuclear war. As Kissinger has said, nuclear war is no alternative to existence.”
He believes that people need to be educated for peace, that it is time to set up programs of Peace Studies in the universities. He feels that the major stumbling block to the establishment of such curricula is a shortage of funds. “The students that I meet are certainly worried about a job and their career and may not be as full of protest as students in 1968, but generally students are awake.”
Anyone seeking a reason to join the peace lobby need only heed the example of Hans Blumenfeld:
“When I’m collecting signatures, people ask me if it’s doing any good. I think it can’t do less good than doing nothing. It really isn’t a question of war and peace. It’s a question of survival. We’ve achieved control over the forces of nature. We have to have control over ourselves. I want so believe it is possible for us to live like human beings and not beasts.”
Anonymous — April 1983
Suggested Films
The film, If You Love this Planet is now available in French: Si Cette Planete vous tient a coeur en conference de Docteur Helen Caldicott sur la guerre nucleaire. The new French version was launched in Montréal on March 21 as the inaugural programme of Les Artistes pour La Paix. Those who made the opening a special occasion include Gilles Vignault, Margie Gillis and Raymond Levesque. This event is being followed by workshops to involve artists.
Anyone wishing to screen the film should contact the National Film Board.
Slide Shows
- The Last Slide Show (24 min.)
Available at Scarborough Foreign Mission. $10 a week rental.
- Making a Killing: Canada’s Role In The Arms Race. (25 min.)
Available at Canadian Peace Congress. $5 rental.
- Acceptable Risk. 2 part series.
(35 min.) Available at Scarborough Foreign Mission. $10 rental.
- I Have Three Children of My Own
(20 min.) With Dr. Helen Caldicott.
Available at Scarborough Foreign Mission. $10 rental.
Suggested Reading
- Nuclear Madness, Dr. Helen Caldicott, 1978.
- Freeze! How You Can Help Prevent Nuclear War, Sen. Edward Kennedy and Sen. Mark Hatfield, 1982.
- Indefensible Weapons: The Political and Psychological Case Against Nuclearism, Robert J. Lifton and Richard Falk, 1982
- Stopping World War, Michael Myerson and Mark Solomon, 1981.
- The Dance of Disarmament: How The U.S. and Russia Run The Arms Race, Alva Myrdal, 1976 and 1982
- Safe and Sound: Disarmament and Development in The Eighties, Clyde Sanger, 1982.
- Protest and Survive, edited by E. P. Thompson and Dan Smith, 1980.
- Superpowers In Collision: The New Cold War, Noam Chomsky, Jonathan Steele, and John Gittings, 1982.
- The Hundredth Monkey, Ken Keyes, Jr., 1982.
Suggested Periodicals
- Ploughshares Monitor Newsreport
Project Ploughshares, Conrad Grebel College, Waterloo, Ont, N2L 3GS. free, 5 times a year.
- The Nuclear Free Press
c/o OPIRG, Trent University, Peterborough, Ont. P0J 7B1. 75 cents. Quarterly.
- Disarmament Campaigns
c/o G. Vandenhaar, 3554 Boxdale, Apt. 3, Memphis, Tenn. 30118. U.S. $17 — 12 issues.
- Nuclear Times
Room 512, 298 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10001. 10 issues/ year. $2 single copy or $22/yr. in Can.
- Sanity, Voice of CND
Sanity Subscriptions, 11 Goodwin St, London N1, England, £6/yr. l2 issues.
Anonymous — April 1983
SPEAK-OUTS … in the ol’ soapbox tradition. Come and make your voice heard, too! Saturdays at the St Lawrence Market and every second Monday starting April 4 at the Eaton Centre (Dundas entrance) Contact Tish Murphy (ACT) for details at xxx-xxxx.
Litton Demonstrators
Trials of protesters arrested on Remembrance Day have been postponed until the end of April. Court will resume in Room 208, East Mall, Etobicoke. Sessions begin at 10.00 AM and end at approximately 4:00 PM. Observers welcome. Contact Paul Murphy for details at xxx-xxxx. For public transportation to court, take Bloor subway west to Kipling station and bus to, 80 The East Mall.
POINT OF VIEW: STUDY
“The main thing keeping Canadians complacent about the threat of nuclear annihilation is ignorance,” says W.M., a Toronto university student. “They are selective about the facts they will listen to. Opinions are useless unless they are in-formed. But I want my peace activist friends to keep informed too. We all need to keep up on this issue by reading and attending lectures. If we do — if everyone did — there would be far less disagreement.
“Facts are facts. Opinions not based on facts are a hindrance to the world.”
You are now entering a Nuclear Weapons Free Zone
Did you know that Toronto is officially a NWFZ? As far as we know, it’s the only municipality in Canada that has pasted a resolution. But other Canadians in cities and towns are lobbying their councils to do the tame and have written CANDIS requesting copies of the Toronto resolution. Wales and Palau are two nations that have become nuclear weapons-free, and all together there are thousands of municipalities around the world that have declared themselves NWFZs.
Operation Dismantle would like to see a global referendum, and say they are very optimistic about the possibility. If you want more information, call CANDIS at xxx-xxxx for Operation Dismantle contacts in Ottawa, Toronto, and other major cities across Canada.
NEW GROUPS LIST
The Central Mennonite Committee has prepared a book listing the peace groups in Canada, as completely as they could make it. You can obtain a copy by sending them $6.00. Their address is 1483 Pembina Highway, Winnipeg, Man.
EXPRESSION
The disarmament movement needs to avoid a danger that has caused us trouble before. We are demanding disarmament, not merely arms control or arms reduction. Among our short-term objectives are such goals as preventing cruise missile testing. But we should not let that become our main goal.
Media analyst Barry Zwicker reminds us that in the last great phase of this movement, the objective was against atomic testing in the atmosphere. Once that was attained, the campaign lost energy and eventually fizzled out. This time we need to remember our purposes beyond the opposition to the cruise. If we win that one, we must not rest on our laurels, feeling satisfied.
One good larger proposal is to make Canada a Nuclear Weapons Free Zone. The trouble is, that goal is a clumsy mouthful to utter. We need a different phrase, as catchy as “Ban the Bomb!” or “Refuse the cruise!” to sum it up. Please write us with your ideas.
Anonymous — April 1983
Publisher:
Jon Spencer
Editors:
Beth Richards, Jon Spencer Metta Spencer
Managing Editor:
Eudora Pendergrast
Editorial Contributors:
Phillip Abrahams, Lynn Harrison, Neil Macdonald, Kathy Sesto
Calendar of Events:
Cameron MacKay, Wendy Moore
Production Manager:
Jon Spencer
Production Assistants:
Clive Russell, Kathy Sesto, Nancy Watt
Editors’ note: Articles reflect the opinions of the individual authors and do not constitute editorial policy. CANDIS is an information clearinghouse for the peace movement. We are in favour of international nuclear disarmament and within that broad context, do not take any official position.
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