It's true. I've known more than one abusive man in my day. Some I knew intimately and some were only acquaintances. You know, just friends of friends. Some men still think it's ok to maintain friendships with abusive men dontchaknow. At a certain point someone might accidentally let it slip that so-and-so, you know, that guy we party with, you know, maybe tormented or threatened or tried to strangle his girlfriend, and funny thing! I wouldn't want to hang out with those dudes anymore. How awkward for everyone. "Meghan, Meghan - we don't acknowledge those things." "Hey! Buddy never abused me so who knows, right? His girlfriend is probably lying about that abuse." If you don't see it with your own eyes you should just assume it isn't happening and go on with your life, yes?

About 15 years ago, Ric Atchison couldn’t work because of his arthritis, left a relationship, started drinking and ended up on the streets of downtown Toronto before finally landing at the School House shelter. 

It was there that he started to rebuild his life. Found work. Secured permanent housing. Stopped drinking and using drugs.

Click here to see more photos from Saturday's rally.

“Everything just changed,” he says. “It was just a great place. Gives you a chance to get back on your feet."

You want to talk victim-blaming? Ok. Let’s talk victim blaming.

The Toronto Sun published an article on March 11th entitled: “Helping Hookers Stay Safe” which looked at a project called the safer stroll project. According to the article, this project is an “innovative mentorship program…designed to educate sex workers to deal with high-risk and violent situations.”

As another month wraps up and the excitement of a new year wears off, there's still a lot to look forward to for activists. Some important campaigns for students are starting soon, workshops are getting back on their regular pre-holiday schedules and resolutions are getting off the ground. This week's roundup on the toolkit will keep you motivated with feminist, anti-oppression, action-based tools.

Like what you see? Want to add something to a tool? The activist toolkit is a wiki! Find out how to add and edit it here.

Weekly roundup

From the Raw Opium blog: "A major story-thread in the film focuses on Derek, an IV drug user on Vancouver's Downtown Eastside and the InSite clinic which has been so central to his life. So we expect a major topic of the chat will relate to last week's Supreme Court decision ordering the Conservative government to allow Insite to stay open."

Please join us!

Where: http://TVO.org/Rawopium
When: Oct. 5, 9 -10 p.m. EST

(Part 2: Oct. 12, 9 -10 p.m. EST)