As a 12 year old I had already formed an idea of what being a ‘man’ was all about. These assumptions were based on a very ‘outward’ appearance of a man. A real man had to;

In some ways it was just an ordinary high school day, but the moment is still clear in my mind. I don’t think it was the event itself or it’s details that make it linger with me to this day, but rather the conflict that was going on inside. Simultaneously I was feeling both regret and satisfaction. I felt sorry for him, but at the same time, I was glad to be one of his tormentors.

The national anthem came on and the kids obediently stood and turned to the flag. These grade 7 & 8 students had just filed into the room for the assembly and had, by all accounts, done so without much fanfare or disruption. They stood now, some singing quietly along to the words, others still in the groggy stupor of first period. Apparently more was expected though as one adult, teacher or administrator (I’m not sure which), began to bark commands. “I can’t hear you,” she called.

Last year I posted a blog, Kids Say the Most Revolutionary Things, about my 9 year old nieces speech about slavery in the chocolate industry (you can find it here). Well, my niece is at it again, educating kids from Kindergarten through Grade 5 about things that we usually ignore.

Just wanted to show off the great work that our youth, staff and volunteers did at The Dam last month. In collaboration with the Drew Hildebrand Teen Benefit Fund we were able to run a graffiti art program and our youth came up with some amazing pieces of art that will soon be hanging on the walls of our Meadowvale space.

It can be very refreshing to stumble upon a story of someone who is really living out a crazy type of rebellion. This was certainly the case for me when I had the chance to read about Fatemah Golmakani, who immigrated to London, England from Iran 18 years ago. I want to stress that this is a CRAZY STORY! It’s not cute, or sweet and does not belong as some side column buried on the back pages. This is the type of radical love that SHAKES THE FOUNDATIONS and PULLS UP THE ROOTS of the selfishness which typically consumes our every day choices and decisions.

Last Friday, May 4, Adam Yauch lost his three year battle with cancer. Many people have been hit hard by his passing since Adam is affectionately known as MCA and has been part of the group known as the Beastie Boys since starting the group along with Michael Diamond (Mike D) as a hardcore punk band back in 1979 when he was 15 years old. In 1982 Adam Horowitz (Ad-Rock) joined the band and from 1984-86 the group transitioned from punk to a rap group with three MCs.

Yesterday I had the great privilege to speak at a TEDx event in Mississauga. If you have never heard of TED they are committed to Ideas Worth Spreading and provide videos of people speaking on an insane amount of different topics.

Here in Mississauga our theme for the day was REBEL which provided a perfect opportunity to deliver the True Rebel Challenge to the 400 (or so) youth in attendance; Love, Dignity and Respect for every person.