Local News
Harriet Zaidman to launch new novel at McNally Robinson on November 20
By MYRON LOVE Local author Harriet Zaidman’s new novel, “What Friends Are For” – which is scheduled to be launched Thursday, November 20 at 7:00 p.m. at McNally Robinson Booksellers – delves into the fraught issue of abortion from the point of view of a fifteen-year-old – Leesa – who is facing the question whether or not to have an abortion after finding out that she is pregnant.
Adding an additional element to her quandary, the teenager – even while preoccupied with typical rites of passage, such as school and crushes, and thinking ahead to getting her first job and a driver’s license – has been encouraged by her mother to join the campaign against abortion.
The novel is set in 1983 in Winnipeg at the height of the controversy over Dr. Henry Morgentaler’s newly-opened abortion clinic here . Leesa and her zealous friend Jenny are part of the movement to shut it down.
According to the book jacket write-up, “Leesa is certain in her convictions until life suddenly merges with the headlines of the day. Now she is the one dealing with an unplanned pregnancy, and everything she thought she believed is turned upside down. As she marches along the sidewalk, carrying her picket sign and her secret, she struggles to make a decision that could determine her future. Leesa comes to realize that the only person who has the right to make the choice is her. But will opening up to her family and friends mean losing them forever?”
As per an earlier interview with Zaidman in this paper three years ago, the retired teacher/librarian has been turning out children’s books and novels for about a dozen years. “I had been writing book reviews since the 1990s,” Zaidman noted in that earlier interview. “I have always had a lot of ideas for stories. I finally decided that I should take a chance and turn them into stories.”
In 2020, she was short-listed for the Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young Readers for her novel, “City on Strike” relating to the Winnipeg General Strike of 1919.
Three years ago, she was again nominated for the award – and won – with her second novel, “Second Chances”, which takes place against the background of the polio epidemic.
She says that she was inspired to take on the issue of abortion by the decision of the American Supreme Court to turn the legal question of abortion back to the individual states after several decades of abortion been having made legal in the landmark Roe v. Wade decision.
“The situation in the States – with each state having different laws – has become chaotic,” Zaidman observes. “In some states, it can be dangerous to become pregnant.
“Most people have forgotten what happened here around the opening of the Morgentaler clinic,” she continues.
Among the negative reactions, a sniper shot and killed a doctor in New York who was performing abortions while he was relaxing in his home in 1998 while a second doctor, Jack Fainman of Winnipeg, was seriously wounded in 1997.
As part of her research, she interviewed a couple of people who were intimately involved with the clinic. Ellen Kruger was the clinic’s director, and Suzanne Newman was a volunteer at the clinic and has since become a family physician herself.
“I deeply appreciate that our own Supreme Court has ruled that the question of abortion is strictly a decision between a woman and her doctor,” Zaidman comments, “as it should be.”
She points out that with more education and the general availability of birth control, abortion rates have noticeably declined in recent years.
Another entry in her resumé this year is a her new role writing a column about children’s books the third Saturday of every month in the Free Press, a task she took over in the spring from the late Helen Norrie. She also contributes articles to “The Cottager: Lake Country Living and Lifestyle.”
“I am always considering new projects,” Zaidman says. “I try to spend two to three hours a day doing research, writing and staying abreast of different topics. I like to have something challenging to work with.”
Readers who may be unable to attend Zaidman’s book launch in person can follow the event online on the McNally Robinson website. The launch will be hosted by Shelagh Rogers, former host of CBC Radio’s The Next Chapter.
Local News
Nakba exhbit at CMHR – you can see it right here and make your own assessment
By BERNIE BELLAN (Posted June 26, updated July 19) The Nakba exhibit at the Canadian Exhibit for Human Rights opened to the public June 27. The morning before the exhibit was set to open to the public, (it had a private opening for invited guests the evening of June 26) we received a press release from the CMHR. That press release gave a very detailed description of what was in the exhibit, along with photos (supplied by Annie Kierans of the CMHR).
There is also a link right at the beginning of the press release that will allow you to watch the same videos that anyone attending the exhibit can watch. We reprinted what was sent to us without making one edit. We leave it to you to form your own opinion as to whether the exhibit is fair in its presentation, and whether it is lacking “context” – which is an accusation that has been levelled at the exhibit’s organizers by some representatives of Jewish organizations.
We have received many emails in reaction to the exhibit. If you have an opinion and would like to see it published on this website, you can send it to jewishp@mymts.net, but please indicate whether you would be willing to have it published on this website.
Here is what we received the morning of June 26:
Winnipeg, MB — June 26, 2026 — The Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR) will open a new exhibit tomorrow that explores human rights violations related to the ongoing forced displacement of Palestinian Canadians.
Palestine Uprooted: Nakba Past and Present will be on display in the Rights Today gallery on Level 5 until 2028. Featuring personal stories told through artifacts and video testimonies, the exhibit presents Palestinian Canadians reflecting on their ongoing struggle for human rights. The small exhibit reveals enduring patterns of loss and resilience, helping visitors understand more about this contemporary human rights story.
Palestinian Canadian stories are now included alongside many other stories of forced displacement and human rights violations featured in the Museum’s galleries. Each of these stories contribute to our visitors understanding of human rights and help the Museum fulfill its mandate to foster reflection and dialogue.
Exhibition highlights
Personal stories and artifacts: Experience firsthand accounts from Palestinian Canadians sharing their journeys of displacement and memory through a series of five artifacts. Cases display artifacts like property deeds, house keys, and a traditional Palestinian embroidered dress, accompanied by short videos that deepen understanding of the impacts of displacement.
Powerful artworks: In her painting Bound Together in Gaza, Malak Mattar, a Gazan artist, captures the struggles and resilience of her generation shaped by conflict. Her work pays homage to Guernica, Picasso’s powerful masterpiece depicting civilian suffering during war.
Curfews and Closures, by Rajie Cook, bears witness to life under military occupation during the 2000–2005 Palestinian uprising, when curfews and closures were expanded and further limited basic rights and freedoms.
Cultural heritage: Discover traditional Palestinian embroidery called tatreez. Tatreez motifs and colours are tied to place, family history and regional identity. Patterns are associated with particular towns, villages or areas of Palestine. In this way, tatreez is a form of storytelling: a way of preserving memory, sustaining identity and expressing resilience across displacement and exile.
Poetry and reflection: Engage with Mahmoud Darwish’s evocative verses, inspiring personal reflection on exile, voice, and responsibility. Visitors can take a card containing Darwish’s poem and add a personal note, fostering ongoing dialogue beyond the exhibit.
Contemporary context: Witness striking images of current events in Gaza and the West Bank, connecting past displacement to ongoing struggles.
Quotes:
“No force can silence the truth we carry. Growing up in Canada, my children lived the Nakba through our stories. And now we watch it happen again, live, on our phones. When I see the images coming out of Gaza, I am not watching the news. I am watching my history repeat itself.” -Fouad Sahyoun, a Palestinian Canadian featured in the exhibit
“We developed this exhibit with a clear awareness that Palestinian Canadian voices have too often been marginalized, silenced or spoken over — and that anti-Palestinian racism affects whose stories are heard and whose suffering is recognized. That is why we intentionally centred Palestinian Canadian voices throughout the exhibit.” -Isabelle Masson, Curator of Palestine Uprooted
“Human rights matter precisely when they are inconvenient, when the question of who deserves the dignity of having their rights recognized is genuinely contested. These are the moments where having a national museum for human rights is most important.
There are people who believe this exhibit should not exist in its current form. There are people who believe it should have existed sooner. There are people who will visit this exhibit and feel that it does not say enough, and others who will feel it says too much.
We have listened to every one of these voices. We have reflected. And we have renewed our resolve to continue the difficult, sometimes contested, and often controversial work of building understanding about human rights. We are a museum grounded in Canada’s human rights framework, whose mandate requires us to bear witness to the full complexity of the human story. We are proud to open this exhibit because the story it tells will help achieve that mandate, and because this story belongs in the collective memory of Canadians.”
- – Isha Khan, CEO
Local News
A photo that’s being circulated on the internet about me
For those of you not familiar with nutjob Michael Kalo – the psycho who created the notorious “$hitler’s List” years ago and the same psycho who went after Ben Carr, well – now he’s obviously taken a strong disliking to the stance I’ve taken on the Nakba exhibit at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. (You can read elsewhere on this website how I simply posted the entire exhibit as it is – and asked readers to form their own opinions.)
Kalo likes to send out emails to various individual using phony names – such as Frank Ostrowski. When people ask me (or asked Ben Carr) why we don’t take action against him, my answer is: What’s the use? He only basks in the attention.
So Michael – enjoy the attention you’re receiving. I know how much of an embarrassment you are to your wonderfully talented daughters.
Local News
Ami Hassan returning as owner of Falafel Place
By BERNIE BELLAN In a surprise move – and after more than a six-year absence as owner of Falafel Place (Corydon at Wilton) the legendary Ami Hassan has decided to return as owner of one of Winnipeg’s most famous eateries.
Long known for his sometimes irreverent attitude to his customers, e.g., “If you’re finished, get out!”, Ami decided to return to running Falafel Place after having retired years ago (or so he thought) from running the Corydon Avenue restaurant.
We asked Ami whether he’ll be sending a special invitation to Julia Roberts to come visit him at Falafel Place. He asked again: “Who’s Julia Roberts?” (Just kidding – he really does know how Julia Roberts is.) Read the story how Ami told her to leave the restaurant and come back later at Julia Roberts turned away from Falafel Place
Ami did note that when customers saw him inside the restaurant one recent day as he was getting it ready for the reopening Monday, August 10, over 20 of them came in asking him if he was open already.
We asked Ami whether the menu will be the same as it was when he last ran the place and he said everything will be the same.
Falafel Place will be open 7 days a week from 7 am – 2 pm. Remember, if you’re finished – get out!
