| Date | Film | Location | Guest Speaker |
| Fri, Sep 23 – 7 p.m. | Where to Invade Next |
OISE – Room 5-280 252 Bloor Street West (map) |
John Orrett, retired firefighter, Socialist Caucus steering committee member, and President of Thornhill NDP |
| Fri, Sep 30 – 7 p.m. | This Changes Everything | Barry Weisleder, co-editor of Socialist Action newspaper | |
| Fri, Oct 7 – 7 p.m. | Poverty, Inc. | Mike Balkwill, Provincial Organizer, Put Food in the Budget campaign | |
| Fri, Oct 14 – 7 p.m. | The Occupation of the American Mind | Guy Fogel, born in Israel, a long time socialist and a member of NDP Momentum | |
| Fri, Oct 21 – 7 p.m. | Rally for the Socialist Candidate for United States President, Jeff Mackler | Barry Weisleder will chair the event. | |
| Fri, Oct 28 – 7 p.m. | Guantanamo’s Child | Barbara Jackman, renowned immigration and refugee rights lawyer | |
| Fri, Nov 4 – 7 p.m. | The Great Canadian Tax Dodge | TBA | |
| Fri, Nov 11 – 7 p.m. | The Free State of Jones | Jason Baines, a leader of NDP Momentum. |
More Information
Friday, September 23 7 p.m. OISE 5-280 Where to Invade Next 2015 film 2 hours.
To show what the USA can lern from the rest of the world, director Michael Moore playfully visits countries in Europe and Africa as a one-man “invader” to take their ideas and practices for America. Moore points out that many of those ideas originated in the U.S., such as the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment, abolition of the death penalty, the struggle for the 8 hour day and the May Day holiday, equal rights for women, prosecution of financial fraud, etc. John Orrett, retired firefighter, Socialist Caucus steering committee member, and President of Thornhill NDP, will lead off the discussion period.
Friday, September 30 7 p.m. OISE 5-280 This Changes Everything, 2015 1hr 29 min.
Filmed over 211 shoot days in nine countries and five continents over four years, this doc is an epic attempt to re-imagine the vast challenges of climate change. Directed by Avi Lewis, and inspired by Naomi Klein’s international best-seller book, the film presents seven powerful portraits of communities on the front lines, from Montana’s Powder River Basin to the Alberta Tar Sands, from the coast of South India to Beijing and beyond. Interwoven with these stories of struggle is Klein’s narration, connecting the carbon in the air with the economic system that put it there. She asks: Can we seize the existential crisis of climate change to transform our failed economic system into something radically better? Barry Weisleder, co-editor of Socialist Action newspaper, will make a presentation to open the discussion.
Friday, October 7 7 p.m. OISE 5-280 Poverty, Inc., 2015 2h 4 min. This documentary film by Michael Matheson Miller challenges current perceptions of global charity. The West has positioned itself as the protagonist of the development narrative. But the results have been in some cases catastrophic. Drawing on perspectives gathered from over 150 interviews shot over 4 years in 20 countries, Poverty, Inc. explores the hidden side of “doing good.” From disaster relief to TOMs Shoes, from adoptions to agricultural subsidies, Poverty, Inc. pulls back the curtain on the poverty industrial complex – the multi-billion dollar market of NGOs, multilateral agencies, and for-profit aid contractors. Are they propagating a system in which the poor stay poor while the rich get hipper? Mike Balkwill, Provincial Organizer, Put Food in the Budget campaign, will lead off the discussion on the film.
Friday, October 14 7 p.m. OISE 5-280 The Occupation of the American Mind, 2014 85 min. Israel’s ongoing military occupation of Palestinian territory and its repeated invasions of the Gaza strip have triggered a fierce backlash against Israeli policies virtually everywhere in the world — except the United States (and Canada). The Occupation of the American Mind takes an eye-opening look at this critical exception, zeroing in on pro-Israel public relations efforts within the U.S. Narrated by Roger Waters and featuring leading observers of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, the film explores how the Israeli government, the U.S. government, and the pro-Israel lobby have joined forces, often with very different motives, to shape American media coverage of the conflict in Israel’s favor. Guy Fogel, born in Israel, a long time socialist and a member of NDP Momentum, will open the discussion.
Friday, October 21 7 p.m. OISE 5-280 Rally for the Socialist Candidate for United States President, Jeff Mackler. California-based Jeff Mackler is a veteran teacher unionist, national coordinator of the Campaign to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal, steering committee member of the United National Anti-war Coalition, and national secretary of Socialist Action U.S.A. There will be welcoming remarks by a number of prominent political activists. Barry Weisleder, co-editor of Socialist Action newspaper and chairperson of the NDP Socialist Caucus, will chair the event.
Friday, October 28 7 p.m. OISE 5-280 Guantanamo’s Child 2015, min. This Canadian documentary film was directed by Patrick Reed and Michelle Shephard, based on Shephard’s 2009 book Guantanamo’s Child: The Untold Story of Omar Khadr. It profiles Omar Khadr, a Canadian citizen whose conviction on disputed war crimes charges, and whose incarceration for 13 years at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, has been a prominent political issue in Canada. Our guest speaker is renowned immigration and refugee rights lawyer Barbara Jackman.
Friday, November 4 7 p.m. OISE 5-280 The Great Canadian Tax Dodge, 2016 52 minutes. It is estimated that between 100 and 170 billion dollars leaves Canada every year, untaxed. Much of it is siphoned off to Canadian-made offshore tax havens. “The Great Canadian Tax Dodge” documents the birth of the Canadian Tax Fairness movement and examines the issue of tax avoidance, exposing the sophisticated corporate strategies and tax loopholes commonly used to legally avoid tax. Guest speaker t.b.a. will open the discussion.
Friday, November 11 7 p.m. OISE 5-280 The Free State of Jones, 2016, 51 min.
In 1863, Mississippi farmer Newt Knight serves as a medic for the Confederate Army. Opposed to slavery, Knight would rather help the wounded than fight the Union. After his nephew dies in battle, Newt returns home to Jones County to safeguard his family but is soon branded an outlaw deserter. Forced to flee, he finds refuge with a group of runaway slaves hiding out in the swamps. Forging an alliance with the slaves and other farmers, Knight leads a rebellion that would forever change history. To lead off the discussion is veteran socialist Jason Baines, a leader of NDP Momentum.
Each of the films in this series will be preceded by a brief introduction, and will be followed by a commentary, and an open floor discussion.
OISE University of Toronto, 252 Bloor Street West at the St. George Subway Station.
Everyone welcome. $4 donation requested.
Please visit: http://www.socialistaction.ca or call (647) 986-1917.