MAKING PEACE VIGIL Newsletter - December 7, 2025

[Oscar]

MAKING PEACE VIGIL Newsletter - December 7, 2025


2 SPECIAL ACTIONS

PETITION: STOP THE CUTS TO REGINA TRANSIT
[ https://actionnetwork.org/letters/stop- ... a-transit/ ]


BUDGET DAYS: LET CITY COUNCIL KNOW WHAT YOU WANT IN THE CITY AND REGINA POLICE SERVICE BUDGETS
Regina’s 2026 budget includes a potential mill rate increase of 15.69%. Some of our fellow citizens are outraged. There are even calls for a 5% reduction in the city’s mill rate from the 2025 rate.
Such a reduction would have devastating consequences:
The closure of a number of well-used city facilities, including: the Cathedral Community Neighbourhood Centre, the Neil Balkwill Art centre, Massey Pool, the Kinsman Arena, the Floral Conservatory+++
A decrease in park maintenance
Cutbacks to snow removal
Cuts to Regina Transit
The cancellation of free summer children’s programming
The cancellation of programs that address Regina’s houselessness crisis and the cancellation of the grant to Carmichael Outreach to operate an overnight warming centre over the winter months
In the meantime, the Regina Police Service budget calls for an increase to its 2026 operating budget of $6.5 million over its 2025 budget.
These two budgets will be discussed at City Council December 15 -19. To speak on either or both of these budgets, you must register by noon on Thursday December 11.
To register, go to Regina.ca/Register and submit a completed registration form, together with a written submission before the registration deadline of 12:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 11, 2025.
The budget document is available here: [ https://www.regina.ca/city-government/c ... documents/ ]
Click on “Agenda Packet” under “City Council Budget - December 15, 2025 9:00 am.”
The budget is nearly 600 pages long. I’ve found the following articles helpful:
Paul Dechene’s Post
[ https://www.facebook.com/story.php?stor ... 40TZZ85bD# ]
Regina’s 2026 Budget Estimate Forecasts 15.69% Tax Rate Increase For Status Quo Operations, by Larissa Kurz
[ https://www.msn.com/en-ca/money/topstor ... r-AA1QPvCE ]
What You Need To Know About The 2026-27 Regina City Budget
[ https://www.ckom.com/2025/11/20/what-yo ... ty-budget/ ]
City Reveals List Of Options For 2026 Regina Budget Cuts
[ https://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/ ... x-increase ]
What Taxpayers Need To Know As Regina Police Service Requests Hike In City Funding
[ https://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/ ... ty-funding ]
What Stands Out?
Regina Police Service is asking for a $6.5 million increase over its 2025 budget. This brings the RPS operating budget up to $116,189,800. That’s a whopping 17% of the City of Regina’s operating budget, by far the biggest item in the budget. How about putting that $6.5 million toward ending houselessness!!!
What Can We Do?
Today, delegation training will be offered at Sunday Funday, Sunday December 7, 1 -2 pm, Heritage Community Centre, 1770 Halifax St
We need as many people as possible presenting at the budget meetings, making the case for taxes—except those used to over-fund the police—and calling for funding to end houselessness.


GOOD READING & VIEWING & LISTENING

DEWDNEY COMMUNITY FRIDGE DESTROYED BY 'DELIBERATELY SET' FIRE, SAYS RPS
[ https://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/ ... ed-by-fire ]


WHAT TO KNOW AS CITY OF REGINA SEEKS PROPOSALS FOR LONG-AWAITED DEVELOPMENT OF THE YARDS—How about some affordable rental housing?
[ https://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/ ... -the-yards ]


PIPELINE DEAL COULD TRIGGER 'RACE TO THE BOTTOM' ON CANADA’S CLIMATE POLICY
[ https://thestarphoenix.com/news/local-n ... -advocates ]


'NO ONE LISTENED': SASK. FIREFIGHTER SUPPORTS PROPOSED NDP BILL FOR MANDATORY WILDFIRE STRATEGY
[ https://ca.news.yahoo.com/no-one-listen ... 23840.html ]


HE SPENT HIS CAREER DOCUMENTING COLLECTIVE TRAUMA. GRASSY NARROWS WAS ONE OF HIS TOUGHEST CASES
[ https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/ka ... -9.7003587 ]


THE VATICAN HELD THIS INUVIALUIT KAYAK FOR 100 YEARS. NOW IT’S COMING HOME
[ https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/inuvialu ... -9.7003672 ]


DID SOMEONE SAY MOU? READING BETWEEN THE LINES OF MARK CARNEY’S PLAN TO BUILD AN OIL PIPELINE FROM ALBERTA TO THE BC COAST
[ https://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/st ... -bc-coast/ ]


'THIS IS THE NEW SLAVERY': MIGRANT FARM WORKERS UNDERPAID, ABUSED AND INJURED
[ https://nationalpost.com/feature/tempor ... -in-canada ]


WEST AFRICAN ASYLUM SEEKERS FIND SAFE HAVEN IN NYC VOLUNTEER-RUN KITCHEN
[ https://www.democracynow.org/2025/12/4/ ... immigrants ]


‘MAKING AMERICA WHITE AGAIN’: TRUMP FUTHER RESTRICTS IMMIGRATION, RAMPS UP ICE RAIDS
[ https://www.democracynow.org/2025/12/4/murad_awawdeh ]


‘PRETTY EXPLICIT WHITE NATIONALISM’: TRUMP NATIONAL SECURITY STRATEGY DOCUMENT LEAVES CRITICS AGHAST
[ https://www.commondreams.org/news/trump ... y-strategy ]


ENTIRE CHAIN OF COMMAND COULD BE HELD LIABLE FOR KILLING BOAT STRIKE SURVIVORS
[ https://theintercept.com/2025/12/02/heg ... venezuela/ ]


UN EXPERTS SAY THOSE ORDERING AND CARRYING OUT US BOAT STRIKES SHOULD BE ‘PROSECUTED FOR HOMICIDE’
[ https://www.commondreams.org/news/caribbean-boat-strike ]


‘ALL OF THEM CONSTITUTE MURDER,’ AMNESTY SAYS OF TRUMP BOAT BOMBINGS
[ https://www.commondreams.org/news/amnes ... at-strikes ]


“KILL EVERYBODY.” WILL CANADA BE DRAGGED INTO TRUMP’S POTENTIAL WAR CRIMES? By Steve Staples
[ https://www.peacequest.ca/p/kill-everyb ... be-dragged ]


HOW THE ARMS INDUSTRY FEARS PEACE IN UKRAINE
[ https://www.stopwar.org.uk/article/how- ... n-ukraine/ ]


AT LEAST 4 COUNTRIES PULL OUT OF 2026 EUROVISION CONTEST AS ISRAEL'S PARTICIPATION SOWS DISCORD
[ https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/s ... -9.7003235 ]


VIJAY PRASHAD'S GLOBAL SHOCKWAVE SHAMES AND HUMILIATES THE WEST AND ISRÄEL!
[ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTT2cnyd7Xo ]


HUMAN RIGHTS GROUP WARNS US GAZA PLAN WILL IMPOSE ‘UNLAWFUL COLLECTIVE IMPRISONMENT’ OF PALESTINIANS AS NEW DETAILS EMERGE
[ https://www.commondreams.org/news/us-ga ... nds-ghetto ]


THE CHRIS HEDGES REPORT: JOIN ME IN SUPPORTING THE PALESTINE ACTION HUNGER STRIKE!
[ https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/join ... -palestine ]


MICROSOFT WORKERS REFUSE TO BE COMPLICIT IN THE GENOCIDE
[ https://therealnews.com/microsoft-worke ... e-genocide ]


400 UNACCOMPANIED CHILDREN FLEEING ARMED GROUPS IN SUDAN NOW FACE TRAFFICKING DANGER
[ https://www.freedomunited.org/news/suda ... afficking/ []


DECADES-OLD STUDY ON COMMON WEED KILLER RETRACTED AFTER JOURNAL EDITOR SAYS MONSANTO MAY HAVE HELPED WRITE IT
[ https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/glyphosa ... -9.7004363 ]


FOSSIL FUEL INTERESTS AND PETROSTATES DASH HOPES AT COP30
[ https://davidsuzuki.org/story/fossil-fu ... -at-cop30/ ]


A REMINDER: WHY THIS TOWN IN THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES WAS CALLED THE VILLAGE OF WIDOWS
[ https://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/why-th ... -1.7362052 ]


EVENTS, WEBINARS, TV PROGRAMS, & FILMS

TODAY, SUNDAY DECEMBER 7, 1-2 pm: DELEGATION TRAINING FOR THOSE WHO WISH TO SPEAK TO CITY COUNCIL ON REGINA’S POLICE AND CITY BUDGETS, HERITAGE COMMUNITY CENTRE, 1770 HALIFAX ST


SUNDAY DECEMBER 7, 2 – 4 pm: BOOKCLUB DISCUSSION OF PERFECT VICTIMS AND THE POLITICS OF APPEAL, BY MOHAMMED EL- KURD, ABSTRACTIONS CAFÉ, 2161 ROSE ST
Hosted by Palestine Solidarity Regina


MONDAY DECEMBER 8, 11 am: FIGHTING FOR PUBLIC HEALTHCARE TO WIN
Join public health care advocates to find out how to protect and expand public health care while also opposing health care privatization.
[ https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/registe ... gistration ]


TUESDAY DECEMBER 9, 6 pm: EMERGENCY CLIMATE RESISTANCE CALL
[ https://act.350.org/signup/dec9-call/ ]


TUESDAY DECEMBER 9, 6 pm: PART II OF SURJ TORONTO'S ANTI-RACIST WEBINAR SERIES: A CONVERSATION ON MIGRANT JUSTICE FROM COAST TO COAST, with Harsha Walia and others
[ https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/registe ... bOYZXLtanQ ]


TUESDAY DECEMBER 9, 7 pm: CLEAN ENERGY FOR ALL, NOT NUCLEAR FOR A FEW
[ https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/registe ... gistration ]


THURSDAY DECEMBER 11, 6 pm: NUCLEAR WASTE WATCH LETTER TO THE FED'S: CONVERSATION AND Q AND A
[ https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/registe ... gistration ]


MONDAY DECEMBER 15, 6 pm: UBI WORKS + COMMONWEALTH CANADA
[ https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/registe ... gistration ]


TUESDAY DECEMBER 16, 6:30 pm: WHY WE MUST SANCTION ISRAEL
Speakers from Independent Jewish Voices, Just Peace Advocates, and CJPME will help piece together how Sanctions fit into the larger Palestinian solidarity movement, working to end Isreali occupation and for Palestinian liberation.
[ https://ijvcanada.zoom.us/webinar/regis ... 38qsjzKAkA ]


WEDNESDAY JANUARY 7, 7 pm: QUEEN CITY URBANIST BOOK CLUB, CATHEDRAL COMMUNITY CENTRE, 2900 13TH AVE
The book that will be discussed is Places of the Heart, by Colin Ellard


NEW PETITIONS & OTHER ACTIONS

CANADA IS ABANDONING GAZA STUDENTS
[ https://speakupforchange.ca/campaign/IRCCLetThemStudy ]


DEMAND BAYER-MONSANTO STOP SELLING ROUNDUP IMMEDIATELY
[ https://action.foe.org/page/91361/actio ... id=4304237 ]


STOP MOHAMED HARKAT’S DEPORTATION TO TORTURE
[ https://iclmg.ca/stop-harkat-deportation/ ]


FREE ABU SAFIYA
[ https://secure.avaaz.org/campaign/en/fr ... afiya_loc/ ]


FREE MARWAN BARGHOUTI
[ https://www.codepink.org/marwanbarghouti ]


URGENT APPEAL: RELEASE MAMOUN IDRIS HABBANI
[ https://www.change.org/p/urgent-appeal- ... is-habbani ]


MICROSOFT: STOP PROVIDING SUPPORT TO THE ISRAELI MILITARY
[ https://action.eko.org/a/microsoft-stop ... military-1 ]


TELL MICROSOFT: NO TECH FOR ICE. NO TECH FOR IDF
[ https://actionnetwork.org/letters/tell- ... s-genocide ]


STAND IN SOLIDARITY WITH STARBUCKS WORKERS
[ https://actionnetwork.org/letters/join- ... cket-line/ ]


"BREATHING IS KILLING US!" STAND WITH THE PEOPLE OF DELHI DEMANDING LOCAL OFFICIALS SAVE THEIR POLLUTED CITY!
[ https://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/155/889/469/ ]


- Making Peace Vigil