Stop the Cuts-  Training Workshops
Date: November 13, 2011
Time: 10am-4pm
Location: 252 Bloor Street West- OISE building (U of T) – rooms 2214 and 2213

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Please register by emailing us at: stopthecuts.workshops@gmail.com (or get in touch if you have any questions/concerns)

Schedule:

10am- 12pm – How to talk about cuts and austerity? (Workshop)
12-1pm- Lunch
1pm-4pm – People’s media (Workshop)

There’s one question on everyone’s minds: What is happening with the City cuts? And how do we stop it? Join us for these interactive workshops where we discuss Rob Ford’s newest timeline to squash public services; how these cuts are connected to an austerity agenda that is provincial, federal and global; and what are some strategies to defend our neighborhoods.

**Coffee and snacks provided!
*Childcare provided- please email us if you have needs for childcare
*Wheelchair accessible
*Please email us if you have any other specific needs (stopthecuts.workshops@gmail.com)

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10am- 12pm – What is the city doing? How do we talk about cuts and austerity? (Workshop)

We will start off by talking about what is going on in city hall, and why there isn’t enough information out there on what they are doing. This will be contextualized in the broader, global context. And then we will discuss what sot talk about this with a convincing argument:
Having trouble convincing your right-wing uncle about cuts to city services? Keep hearing that we have no choice but to tighten our belts, this workshop’s for you. Come learn some simple arguments that you can use on the bus or at the dinner table to counter the austerity propaganda.

12-1pm – Lunch!
Brown-bag lunch-please bring lunch as we can’t at this time provide it (snacks and coffee will be provided)

1pm-4pm – People’s media (Workshop)

Part of a neighborhood committee, or issue organization, and having trouble getting your message out? Come to this workshop. Learn to get great mainstream news coverage and how to create your own media.

-Discussion of good callouts and press releases.
-Discussion of the need to be accessible, concise and on-point when doing this type of work.
- Practice! -Work in groups and write one of their own callouts/press releases, as well as develop some talking points and practice doing interviews
*This session is meant to be very participatory!

Title: Parkdale Stop the Cuts Meeting
Location: Masaryk Cowan, 220 Cowan Avenue (Activity Room 2)
Description: Parkdale Stop the Cuts Meeting

Date: Wednesday, November 2nd
Time: 6pm- 8pm
Location: Masaryk Cowan, 220 Cowan Avenue (Activity Room 2)

Contact: parkdalestc@gmail.com, for more information or to get involved.
Start Time: 18:00
Date: 2011-11-02
End Time: 20:00

Title: Next Davenport Perth Stop the Cuts Meeting
Location: Sistering (962 Bloor St W.)
Link out: Click here
Description: Our Next Davenport Perth Meeting will be Tuesday, November 1 6:30-8pm Sistering (962 Bloor St W).

As you may know many of the city budget cuts have been delayed until January. However, as we speak many cuts are being worked into budgets. There have been proposed cuts to library hours and the Toronto Community Housing Corporation has agreed to sell social housing units. Just yesterday, council voted to privatize garbage to the lowest bidder- a company promising to use fewer trucks, pay far lower wages and provide less service. These privatization measures and proposed cuts will be felt in Davenport Perth. As an example, the Bloor Gladstone Library may have its hours reduced by 9.5 hours a week. As well, social housing units in Davenport may be sold.

The Davenport Perth Stop the Cuts group is planning to do outreach and creative actions in November around libraries and to work with other community groups on housing. The more people involved in planning the better as we need to put pressure on to show that Davenport wants to stop the cuts! Please attend the next meeting to help plan and get the word out for our events for November!

If you have a request for childcare please contact us.

Thank you,

Davenport Perth Stop the Cuts Committee
davenport.stopthecuts@gmail.com
Start Time: 18:30
Date: 2011-11-01
End Time: 20:00

Location: Parliament St. Library (Gerrard and Parliament)
Description: Downtown East Stop the Cuts Meeting:
Thursday, October 27th
6pm
Location: Parliament St. Library (Gerrard and Parliament)

*TTC Tokens available

On the agenda:
-Downtown East outreach days and events for November
-TCHC sell-off’s!
-Planning for January budget days and city-wide events

Looking forward to seeing many of you all there!

Contact: TorontoDTE@gmail.com
Start Time: 18:00
Date: 2011-10-27
End Time: 20:00

Title: Downtown East Stop the Cuts Meeting
Location: Wellesley Community Centre, Room B
Link out: Click here
Description: Downtown East Stop the Cuts Meeting:
Thursday, October 13th
6:30 – 8:30pm
Location: Wellesley Community Centre,  at the corner of Sherbourne and Wellesley
Room B

*TTC Tokens available

We urge everyone to not only attend this meeting but to bring others
as well…the fight is far from over despite a temporary victory of
sorts in getting the cuts put off for now. The cuts WILL be back on
the table all too soon, and rather than cutting existing services, we
need IMPROVEMENTS to those services!

On Thursday we will talk about the new city time-line for these cuts,
as well as proposed actions and events in the Downtown East between
now & the larger city-wide STOP the CUTS actions.

Looking forward to seeing many of you all there!

Contact: TorontoDTE@gmail.com
Start Time: 18:30
Date: 2011-10-13
End Time: 20:30

Back by popular demand…Training Day 2: Stop Ford’s Agenda!

When:
Sunday October 2
10 am – 5 pm

Where:
Bahen Centre, Rooms 2185 and 2195
40 St. George Street, University of Toronto
Map: https://www.g.co/maps/6k47f

What:
Organized by Toronto Stop the Cuts, this is a day of skill-building and networking in the lead up to City’s budgeting process, which begins in November. We are building a movement to stop the cuts at the municipal, provincial, and federal levels. We demand: Stop the cuts! Expand services! No handouts to cops and corporations!

Agenda:
10 am – 1 pm:
Direct Action
presented by Tools for Change

1 pm – 2 pm:
Lunch (please bring your own)

2 pm – 4 pm:
How to Organize a Neighbourhood Committee
with members of Barrio Nuevo, Ontario Coalition Against
Poverty, and Stop the Cuts

4 pm – 5 pm:
Legal Workshop
with the Movement Defense Committee

Why:

On September 19, Ford and his Executive Committee decided to defer voting on most major cuts recommended by KPMG. The KPMG cuts are still on the table. In addition to those cuts, all city departments and agencies are planning for a massive, 10% cut to their budgets. Ford is moving forward with plans to privatize so he can lay off city workers and eliminate good, public jobs. Instead of passing the cuts all at once on Sep 26-27, Ford will try to sneak them through in the regular budgeting process, which starts in November 2011. He is hoping Torontonians won’t notice and won’t be as organized as we have been all summer.

This summer has been historic for resistance in Toronto. We must continue to build on this momentum so that we are ready for the fight during the budget process in November and beyond.

Stop the Cuts’ Training Day 2 an opportunity to prepare ourselves for the ongoing struggle, specifically by exploring direct action and how to start up neighbourhood anti-cuts committees.

More info:

Wheelchair accessible.
Onsite childcare provided.
There will be light refreshments but unfortunately lunch is not provided.

SPACE IS LIMITED.

PLEASE REGISTER by emailing your full name to
Sept10volunteers@gmail.com by Friday September 30 – please indicate if you would like to attend the entire day, or only one or two of the workshops listed so far (e.g. Direct Action, How to Organize a Neighbourhood Committee, Legal Workshop).

Co-sponsored by OPIRG-Toronto.