International Women’s Day is an opportunity to reflect on the progress made, acknowledge the challenges still faced, and reaffirm our commitment to fostering an inclusive and equitable environment for all members of the legal community. The theme this year is “Accelerate Action” – focusing on the need to take swift and decisive steps to achieve gender equality. It calls for increased momentum and urgency in …
Family Day celebrates familial values and was first introduced in Ontario on February 18, 2008, as a provincial public holiday by Premier Dalton McGuinty of the Liberal Party. To this day, it is continuously observed on the third Monday of every February. Although not a national holiday, many provinces have adopted the holiday including Alberta (where Family Day originated from), British Colombia, New Brunswick and …
Eight years ago, on January 29, 2017, Ibrahima Barry, Mamadou Tanou Barry, Khaled Belkacemi, Abdelkrim Hassane, Azzedine Soufiane, and Aboubaker Thabti, tragically lost their lives when a gunman opened fire at the Centre Culturel Islamique de Québec in Sainte-Foy. Thirteen others were seriously injured. These profound losses are remembered nationally and globally. The Government of Canada designated January 29 to be the National Day of …
The Lunar New Year, often referred to as the Spring Festival or Chinese New Year, is one of the most important cultural celebrations in many parts of the world. With its roots in ancient China the celebration marks the start of a new lunar calendar cycle. In today’s interconnected world, the Lunar New Year transcends regional boundaries and brings together millions of people. Cities around …
Today, on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we mark 80 years since the liberation of Auschwitz. On the morning of January 27,1945, the Auschwitz-Birkenau camps still held some 7,000 prisoners. Over a million people deported to Auschwitz perished there. It is estimated that six million Jews were exterminated in the death camps. This solemn anniversary reminds us of the horrors faced by six million Jews and …
Human Rights Day commemorates the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) by the United Nations General Assembly on December 10, 1948, and it is observed each year on December 10. The UDHR confirms the inalienable rights that everyone is entitled to as a human being – regardless of race, colour, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. …
