Off the Hill: Analyzing the NDP leadership race
rabble radio
The NDP will pick their new leader at the end of March. rabble’s Off the Hill political panel took a look at the race and broke down the major issues, endorsements, and events of the campaign so far. This week on rabble radio, we feature a segment from our most recent Off the Hill political panel. This month, our theme was ‘Analyzing the NDP leadership race.’ Our panel featured Libby Davies, Judy Rebick, James Adair and Karl Nerenberg. About our guests Libby Davies is a former NDP deputy leader and former co-host of Off the Hill. Davies has expressed her support for Avi Lewis in...
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Best of rabble radio 2025
rabble radio
It has been a very eventful year in Canada, to put it simply. As rabble editor Nick Seebruch and publisher Sarah Sahagian noted on last week’s show, Canadian politics went through one of its most dramatic periods in recent memory—including a federal election that reshaped the national conversation. And politics were only part of the picture. Environmental challenges, major labour actions, and Canada’s shifting role on the international stage all kept the news cycle moving. Throughout it all, rabble’s reporters and freelance writers worked to make sense of these developments on our site...
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Reviewing 2025: A mercurial year in Canadian politics
rabble radio
This week on rabble radio, rabble publisher Sarah Sahagian and rabble editor Nick Seebruch discuss the major news in Canadian politics of 2025; including the resignation of Justin Trudeau, to now-Prime Minister Mark Carney—and his first months as leader, his budget and pipeline plans; the NDP leadership race; and more. This marks our final interview of the year! Next week on the show, we’ll feature a collection of our favourite interviews of 2025 in the yearly fashion of the “best of rabble radio” episode. Tune in next week to see if your favourite interview made the...
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Examining the federal government’s 2.7 billion in cuts to foreign aid
rabble radio
In its newly tabled budget, the federal government announced that over the course of four years there would be a $2.7 billion reduction in international assistance. in her November 13th piece on rabble.ca, this announcement has drawn the ire of NGOs who warn it could cause long-term, irreversible harm leaving vulnerable communities without essential medical care, food, and protection at a time when global needs have dramatically risen. This week on rabble radio, we tune in to her conversation with the director of policy and advocacy with Cooperation Canada, Paul Farran. Cooperation...
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Support for the NDP is declining. What can be done?
rabble radio
The New Democratic Party of Canada is currently looking for its new leader after the resignation of Jagmeet Singh and a colossal decline in support in the most recent federal election. It seems the NDP’s reduced support stems from competition with the Liberals, strategic voting, demographic shifts, and difficulties uniting diverse voter groups across Canada. The new leader of the NDP must unite the party’s diverse voter groups, rebuild national support and clearly differentiate the NDP’s vision from its rivals. But how can this be done? rabble publisher Sarah Sahagian and...
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Family law in Canada: What it gets right and where it fails
rabble radio
Content warning: This interview centers around domestic violence. Please listen with care and sensitivity. Family and child protection lawyer Bobbi Olsen joins rabble publisher Sarah Sahagian to talk about the legal systems in Canada which handle issues of domestic and family violence. The two explore what is working and what needs to be improved. About our guest Bobbi Olsen is a dual-call (Ontario and Alberta) high conflict family and child protection lawyer who has practiced in Toronto for many years, and now practices with MD Law Group in Calgary, Alberta. In addition to her LL.B.,...
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Considering sectoral bargaining in Canada
rabble radio
This week on rabble radio, we’re looking at how unions and employers bargain in Canada and whether it’s time for a new approach. Right now, most unions negotiate with one employer at a time, which can make it tough to raise standards across an industry. Some experts are calling for sectoral bargaining which may help create fairer pay and conditions for everyone. Today on the show, we’re joined by Dr. Adam King, assistant professor in Labour Studies at the University of Manitoba, to talk about what a move toward sectoral bargaining could mean for workers and the future...
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Carney’s 'generational' budget falls short of expectations
rabble radio
This week, Prime Minister Mark Carney shared Budget 2025: a budget that Carney says is “to build Canada strong.” The budget emphasized the importance of investing over spending—but what does that really mean? Here to break it down is economist Jim Stanford. About our guest Jim Stanford is economist and director of the Centre for Future Work, a progressive labour economics institute based in Vancouver. He has a PhD in economics from the New School for Social Research in New York, and also holds economics degrees from Cambridge University and the University of Calgary. He is...
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Reviewing Muslim representation in Canadian media
rabble radio
It’s Islamic History Month in Canada; and this week on the show, we’re joined by Sadaf Ahsan and Sarah Sahagian to discuss Muslim representation in Canadian pop culture. In this conversation, the two explore common trends and stereotypes surrounding Muslim characters in the media, discuss the figures who are offering more nuanced and multifaceted representations, and share some of their favourite books, musicians, television shows and films that showcase Muslim talent. About our guest Sadaf Ahsan is the senior editor at 3 Magazine, co-host of Frequency Podcasts’ The Reheat, columnist at...
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What are the priorities in these early days of the NDP leadership race?
rabble radio
The New Democratic Party of Canada will select its next leader at the Winnipeg Convention in March next year. As of now, there are five officially approved candidates seeking the leadership of Canada’s NDP. They are: Rob Ashton, Tanille Johnston, Avi Lewis, Heather McPherson and Tony McQuail. This week on rabble radio, rabble editor Nick Seebruch and publisher Sarah Sahagian sit down to discuss the federal NDP leadership race. The two weigh in on the “insiders” and “outsiders” of the race, the concept of political “purity tests” and the importance of English-French...
info_outlineThis week on rabble radio, we share a clip from a recent episode of the Courage My Friends series featuring co-executive director of the Migrant Workers Alliance for Change, Karen Cocq, advocacy and media relations coordinator at The Refugee Centre in Montreal, Alina Murad and President of the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers, Aisling Bondy.
The three join Courage My Friends series host Resh Budhu to discuss Prime Minister Mark Carney’s new border security acts, Bill C-2 and its questionable make-over with the recently tabled Bill C-12 and how they effectively rewrite Canada’s approach to refugee rights and protections. If passed, what will these acts mean for those seeking asylum—and for Canada as a whole?
About our guests and the Courage My Friends series
Aisling Bondy is the current president of the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers (CARL), a national organization comprised of several hundred lawyers who practice in refugee law. She is the founder of Bondy Immigration Law and is a member of the Refugee Lawyers’ Association, the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers, the Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association, the Ontario Bar Association and the Canadian Bar Association.
Karen Cocq is co-executive director of the Migrant Workers Alliance for Change (MWAC), a membership-based organization of migrants. MWAC is the secretariat of the cross-country Migrant Rights Network, the largest coalition of migrant led organizations in Canada. She has been active in migrant justice and workers' rights organizing for 20 years.
Alina Murad is the advocacy and media relations coordinator at The Refugee Centre in Montreal. She leads policy research and advocacy initiatives addressing systemic barriers faced by refugees and asylum seekers in Canada. Follow them on Instagram @therefugeecentre and @pointofentrypodcast.
Listen to the full episode here. And, if you’d like to hear more from the Courage My Friends podcast series, please subscribe to Needs No Introduction. Available on rabble.ca, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.
The Courage My Friends podcast is a co-production between rabble.ca and the Tommy Douglas Institute at George Brown College. Produced by Resh Budhu of the Tommy Douglas Institute, Breanne Doyle of rabble.ca and the TDI planning committee: Chandra Budhu and Ashley Booth. For more information about the Tommy Douglas Institute and this series, visit georgebrown.ca/TommyDouglasInstitute.
If you like the show please consider subscribing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you find your podcasts. And please, rate, review, share rabble radio with your friends — it takes two seconds to support independent media like rabble. Follow us on social media across channels @rabbleca.