Saima Desai

Will Canadians say no to a U.S.-led military intervention in Iran? YouTube video by The Breach

After a horrendous civilian massacre in Iran, many in the diaspora have been calling for U.S. intervention and even a return to monarchy

In our latest @breachmedia.ca podcast, Donya Ziaee and @smohyeddin.bsky.social break down the right-wing power play for Iran

youtu.be/Fm-Uc14FZCk?...

A powerful decentralized campaign forced Scotiabank to divest from Israeli arms A major bank sells its shares in Elbit Systems, in one of Canada's biggest BDS victories to date.

"[P]ower of decentralized organizing."

"Scotiabank's latest financial statements show the bank has sold its remaining 165,000 shares in Elbit."

"[O]ne of the biggest victories in Canada for the [BDS] movement."
#Canada #Gaza #Palestine #Israel #Protest #Genocide #Weapons

A powerful decentralized campaign forced Scotiabank to divest from Israeli arms ⋆ The Breach A major bank sells its shares in Elbit Systems, in one of Canada’s biggest BDS victories to date

Got to write about the best news of the week: the largest foreign shareholder in Israel’s biggest weapons company has just dumped all its shares.

It's a truly historic Canadian BDS victory. breachmedia.ca/major-bds-vi...

Work is broken. Queer and trans workers could help fix it | Xtra Magazine The five stories in Xtra’s On the Clock series show queer and trans workers searching for, fighting for and inventing work that’s fair and meaningful

As the search for work gets more desperate, queer and trans workers often see the worst sides of work. But they also come with brilliant solutions.

@desaima.bsky.social introduces the five stories in On the Clock, written by this year’s Ken Popert Media Fellows

On the Clock | Xtra Magazine On the Clock features stories written by the 2025-26 Ken Popert Media Fellows about the state of work for queer and trans people in Canada.

Okay! @desaima.bsky.social and I (but mostly Saima) have been working on a huge project that launched today. Five Canadian early-career BIPOC journalists came together to produce this editorial package on LGBTQ2S+ people and work @xtramagazine.com. xtramagazine.com/series/on-th...

Beyond that, I'm excited that we have five formidable new LGBTQ2S+ BIPOC journalists trained in reporting on labour issues. They're ones to watch.

@jacobaronleung.bsky.social
@dear-gazelle.bsky.social
@aliceboyle.bsky.social
@benderfromfuturama.bsky.social
& Victoria Hincapie Gomez

❤️‍🔥

LGBTQ2S+ employment programs struggle to find funding, are unable to meet the needs of newcomers to Canada | Xtra Magazine Queer and trans immigrants rely on employment programs. Why don’t these programs get enough government money?

You need Canadian work experience to get a job. You need a job to get Canadian work experience.

There are programs that solve this catch-22, helping LGBTQ2S+ immigrants get their first Canadian job.

Victoria Hincapie Gomez asks: where's the funding for them?
xtramagazine.com/power/politi...

Trans public service workers say Ontario’s return-to-office mandate puts them at risk | Xtra Magazine Doug Ford has forced Ontario public servants back into the office. Trans workers fear the fallout

Working from home was a sweet respite for some trans workers in Ontario's public service. One that Doug Ford's back-to-office mandate ended.

@jacobaronleung.bsky.social covers trans workers' worries about the risks they take on when forced back into the office. xtramagazine.com/power/politi...

Queer farmers are growing better futures | Xtra Magazine For generations, LGBTQ2S+ people fled rural areas. Now, they’re putting down roots, farming with a focus on community and the environment

In rural Canada, queer-run farms are growing heirloom beans and rare tomatoes—popularizing community-supported, sustainable agriculture.

@dear-gazelle.bsky.social profiles the queer and trans farmers getting their hands dirty. xtramagazine.com/power/politi...

Saskatchewan's pronoun policy is driving teachers out of the profession | Xtra Magazine Teachers in the province are struggling to choose between protecting children and following the law

In Saskatchewan, schools are now mandated to out trans students by a provincial law.

@aliceboyle.bsky.social talks to the teachers caught between breaking the law and harming kids—and who are choosing to organize. xtramagazine.com/power/politi...

For non-binary service workers, the price of authenticity is minimum wage | Xtra Magazine “They/them off, job on” started as a meme. For non-binary service workers, it’s a daily reality

@benderfromfuturama.bsky.social talks to nonbinary workers in coffee shops and restaurants who choose to use binary pronouns—for ease, safety, & job security.

But they ask: what could change in the service & retail industries to let nonbinary workers be themselves? xtramagazine.com/power/politi...

Work is broken. Queer and trans workers could help fix it | Xtra Magazine The five stories in Xtra’s On the Clock series show queer and trans workers searching for, fighting for and inventing work that’s fair and meaningful

For the past 5 months I've been mentoring 5 brilliant early-career labour journalists at @xtramagazine.com.

Today, their articles are published. They tell the stories of queer & trans workers: how we make rent, make meaning, leave the world better than we found it. xtramagazine.com/power/politi...

A Prairie alliance of trans advocates and unions should be a national model Right-wing premiers are using the notwithstanding clause to target trans kids, workers, Muslims, and drug users. Saskatchewan shows how a united front could stop them.

"[J]ust as right-wing governments team up to demonize trans kids, public sector unions, religious minorities, and people who use drugs, the left must come together."

"Saskatchewan shows a model for how this might be done."
#Saskatchewan #Ontario #Alberta #Canada #Protest #Drugs #Education #Labour

A Prairie alliance of trans advocates and unions should be a national model ⋆ The Breach Right-wing premiers are using the notwithstanding clause to target trans kids, workers, Muslims, and drug users. Saskatchewan shows how a united front could stop them

Trans rights activists have joined forces with labour unions in Saskatchewan to fight anti-trans legislation

It's a model that should be employed nationwide to combat laws against vulnerable groups, writes @desaima.bsky.social
in our latest for @breachmedia.ca

breachmedia.ca/trans-albert...

My latest for @breachmedia.ca: When Saskatchewan's government brought in anti-trans laws, unions pushed back.

Right-wing premiers are using the notwithstanding clause to attack their culture-war punching bags. Solidarity between unions and trans advocates in SK shows how to put up a fight.

Canadian Artists Brace for Austerity: ‘Cuts Will Hurt Everyone’ With ministers instructed to reduce spending, Canada’s arts sector fears a major rollback of promised cultural investments. Advocates say austerity could shutter venues, erase jobs — and silence…

Canadian artists are bracing for cuts as PM Mark Carney signals austerity ahead of Tuesday's federal budget.

Arts groups warn that slashing 15% could devastate a sector still recovering from the pandemic, @tombeedham.bsky.social reports.

www.thegrindmag.ca/canadian-art...

New from me in @breachmedia.ca: It's easy to see Ford's war on bike lanes as a personal vendetta and an attempt to stir up a culture war. But more than that, it's part of a bigger pattern of Ford serving corporate interests – from real estate firms to Uber.

Queers at work: Xtra seeks mentees to contribute to a new editorial package | Xtra Magazine Applications for Xtra’s mentorship program for early-career BIPOC journalists are open through Oct. 27

I'm running a paid mentorship program at @xtramagazine.com! I'll be mentoring five early-career BIPOC LGBTQ2S+ journalists to publish a package of writing about work. Mentees will be paid $1,000. Apply by Oct 27 & help me spread the word! #CdnMediaJobs
xtramagazine.com/inside-xtra/...

On Saturday, Sept. 20, an unusual coalition of climate, migrant, and Indigenous groups are getting together to draw a line.

They're pushing back against @mark-carney.bsky.social's hard right turn against Indigenous Peoples and migrants.

I spoke to organizers about what the road ahead looks like:

I want to live in a Toronto that can support a paper like The Grind.

Because a city that can sustain local indie media is a city that can be shaped by local indie media.

Help The Grind reach our summer fundraising goal!

Over two thirds of Canadians live in suburbs. And when the left neglects organizing in those suburbs, we give up on reversing the right-wing tide across Canada.

Aniket Kali and I talked to the organizers in the GTA who are working to turn the tide:

PARTISANS: A Graphic History of Anti-Fascist Resistance Eleven new graphic histories by legendary & emerging creators flipping the script on anti-Nazi and anti-fascist resistance.

@btlbooks.com is halfway to their goal of funding a new graphic novel on the history of anti-fascism.

I don't need to tell you how important it is to bring the lessons of anti-fascist resistance into the present right now.

Pitch in to help BTL publish! www.kickstarter.com/projects/139...

The Grind is doing a food issue! Pitch us stories about the GTA's best roti, the food truck turf wars, the working conditions at your favourite restaurant, etc.

Pitches due April 25 – but sooner is better.

I had the great honour (and great fun) of judging features for @canadamediaawards.bsky.social this year. Keep an eye out for nominations soon. 👀

Thanks for reading and sharing, Bianca!

"The device, which reads the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the air, showed CO2 levels as high as 3,500 parts per million (ppm) in his classroom."

That's insane.

The air quality monitor Heather Pun’s son takes to his school.

Crowded classrooms mean kids are breathing in viruses and pollution. Parents are trying to make the air safer, but hitting roadblocks. www.thegrindmag.ca/airborne-dan... @desaima.bsky.social @theingredientslist.bsky.social @mjnabuurs.bsky.social

𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸𝗹𝘆 𝘂𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀: CanadaHealthwatch.ca/newsletter 🍁

When kids are living with pandemics, wildfires, and pollution, filtering the air in their schools is a simple fix.

So why is it such an uphill battle in Toronto?

In the newest issue of @thegrindto.bsky.social I wrote about the parents fighting for clean air in Toronto classrooms: