Regent Park TV

During the #COVID19 pandemic social distancing has been an incredible success in combating the spread. However, the lack of social interaction has proven to negatively impact people's mental health. During these times it is important for communities to find safe ways to socialize and one effective method is the Regent Park Pods Initiative. In this segment of Regent Park TV we talk to Regent Park residents, Nayeon Kim and Maseeda Majeed, who initiated one of three pods currently operating in Regent Park. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsQ37zkB8SM

On Tuesday October 20, 2020, a Virtual Toronto Centre Riding All-Candidates Meeting was held featuring candidates, Brian Chang of the NDP, Annamie Paul of the Green Party and Marci Len of the Liberal Party. The event was sponsored by the Community Civic Engagement Collaborative (CCEC), a non-partisan grassroots collection of residents and agencies in the Regent Park, Moss Park and St. James town neighbourhoods working to increase civic engagement in elections and beyond throu...gh community organizing. The event was also co-presented by the Corktown BIA and live streamed on Regent Park TV. The moderators of the event was Regent Park resident, Ibrahim Afrah, and James Town resident,Tanvir Kaukab. The All-Candidates meeting was organized to inform voters of the platforms and candidates running to replace the former Member of Parliament Bill Morneau, in the Toronto Centre Federal By-Elections on October 26th. The video begins with a short discussion with candidates about the format. After the introduction of the moderators and a land acknowledgement, viewers heard the candidates answer solicited questions from residents on a range of topics including: community benefits in Regent Park; homelessness; youth employment; gun violence; the environment; poverty; and affordable housing. Following the 5 pm to 7 pm meeting, attendees in the Zoom meeting was invited to breakout rooms for more intimate conversations with the candidates. The All-Candidates meeting is part of a series of activities by the CCEC to increase voting education and turn out among newcomers and low income communities. https://youtu.be/3w7G95hjt_Y

Join us Tonight at 5PM to 7PM - Virtual All Candidates Meeting for Toronto-Centre Federal Elections Join on Zoom https://zoom.us/j/3544985532 or Watch on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/regentparktv/live

As the Coronavirus (COVID 19) pandemic continues to plague almost every single country in the world, the issue of domestic violence is becoming a cause for concern among nations’ leaders including Canada’s. According to reports, domestic abuse cases are on the rise as women’s shelters and hotlines grapple with the influx of calls being received by individuals in precarious situations. Many believe that this increase is the result of pandemic associated factors such as financi...al insecurity, stress and uncertainty leading to increased aggression in the home. Among immigrant and refugee communities in Canada, such as Regent Park, the problem of domestic violence is compounded by additional vulnerabilities, including a women’s lack of proficiency in English or French, challenges understanding and navigating available resources and supports, problems of poverty, unemployment and underemployment, and issues of sponsorship preventing women from leaving an abuser. On today’s episode of RPTV News we interview Samra Zafar, a survivor of domestic abuse turned advocate, who sheds new light on the dilemmas faced by immigrant women who may now find themselves victims of abuse and isolated both physically and socially in domestic situations. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEr5jHYM14M

Girls Talk TV is a Regent Park TV show that is produced by young women involved in the FOCUS Media Arts Program. In this segment of Girls Talk TV, called Girl's Night Out, we focus on women in non-traditional careers. The guest in the show is Jacqueline Sharpe, a Registered Nurse, and a Certified Diabetes Educator. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zq4DTC_JGr0

Vietnamese, Chinese, and Mandarin-speaking immigrants and newcomers comprise of 8% of the downtown Toronto East area population including Regent Park, Gerrard & Broadview, Riverdale, St. Jamestown and Moss Park. Many of these immigrants face employment and language barriers that prevent them from accessing many Covid-19 services and supports that many Canadians take for granted. Adding to these challenges, the Chinese and South East Asian community, here in Toronto and else...where in Canada, has been experiencing a rise in Anti-Asian racism, much of it linked to rhetoric, prejudice and misconceptions about the Coronavirus. In this issue of RPTV News, we talk to Avvy Yao-Yao Go, a #Toronto lawyer and activist about anti-Asian racism and the website http://www.Covidracism.ca, an internet tool designed to track incidents of Anti-Asian Racism across Canada. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9MEauWrtqE

A community that works and plays together...also cleans together! Join the Friends of Regent Park volunteers in the Regent Park Community Clean-up Day held on June 20, 2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OkoYMXnwJE

Regent Park TV reports on the June 2, 2020, meeting of the Regent Park Social Development Stakeholders Table. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bA26oMZMuAc

In this episode of RPTV we speak with Brianne Zelinsky, the community engagement coordinator at the Salvation Army’s Regent Park food bank. The Salvation Army’s Regent Park food bank has been delivering essential services to the area’s most vulnerable residents for over twenty years. Brianne Zelinsky outlines the many physical and practical changes that have occurred at the food bank during the #Covid-19 pandemic and its challenges to maintain its level of services while keeping the safety of both staff and clients intact. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tv3m9okcwI4

In this special audio-video episode of News and Views reporters David Wall, Cassandra Earle, Naama Weingarten, Talha Hashmani and Masih K, examine the incredible events of recent days, a watershed historical moment in which mass protests have erupted, north and south of the border, in reaction to systematic police violence against people of color. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kzhOxwvtZI

On today’s episode of RPTV News we examine the appearance of so-called encampments that are becoming more commonplace in and around downtown areas including Regent Park. The circumstances of those who are homeless, who can not find shelter or out of safety concerns or other factors, have chosen to live outside in tents or other self-made shelters, is indeed a matter of concern for everyone, especially now given the coronavirus pandemic. In our interview with Kathleen Smith, who works at Sanctuary Toronto, a drop-in centre for street and homeless people, we learn how this most vulnerable of communities is fairing during the #COVID-19 pandemic. https://youtu.be/WHWz4Kso3Po

In this episode of RPTV News we interview the Honourable Member of Parliament for Toronto Centre, Bill Morneau. The riding of Toronto Centre, includes Regent Park, Moss Park, St. Jamestown and Cabbagetown, and Bill Morneau spoke about the challenges these communities are facing as a result of #Covid-19 pandemic. Minister Morneau is also Canada's Minister of Finance and had much to say about the government's financial response to the crisis. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEPy65ZddeM

In this segment of RPTV news the Honourable MP Bill Blair, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, reminiscences on his time as a Toronto police beat cop and divisional commander in Regent Park. Minister Blair also discusses gun violence in #Toronto and the recent Liberal government’s decision to ban some 1500 military-grade assault-style weapons. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKtHnGXX3KA

With estimates of over two million people out of work in Canada due to the #coronavirus, RPTV discusses the current unemployment situation with Wayne Greenway, a career consultant and the CEO of Career Aviators. Wayne offers helpful tips on finding a new job in the current environment. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_eCDBy9m7E

In this segment of Regent Park TV covers a Regent Park laneway naming proposal that has been made to City Council, in the memory of Ismathara Ratna, a community member, and mother of three, who was tragically killed on June 20, 2019, in a hit-and-run by a driver who was impaired. The driver was arrested and charged with impaired driving causing death. The laneway, located just North of Dundas and running west of River Street, is part of the new redevelopment of Regent Park and will feature entrances to amenities and addresses. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBJmwJmUgcE

In today's segment of RPTV News, we speak to Louisa Jewell who is the founder of The Canadian Positive Psychology Association. Louisa offers her opinion on how people can better cope with the challenges of the #coronavirus pandemic. Utilizing a four-step method that seeks to boost one’s psychological well-being, Louisa presents a range of simple strategies especially well-suited to combating the side effects of prolonged social isolation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QavjJ5jqkI

Join Regent Park TV for a social distancing walk along Parliament Street and see the visual impact that the #coronavirus has had on the local business community. Lets stop at Parliament Optical, a local small business and talk to the manager, Munaverali Gulamhusein, about how the optical store is coping. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtqwwD3vZxM

In this segment of Regent Park TV, Reporter, Kajaani T, reminds us about the daily importance of safety practices in the midst of the #Coronavirus Pandemic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKPPKKVurD4

Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) is currently in the process of selecting a developer to construct phrases 4 & 5 of the Regent Park Redevelopment. As part of this process TCHC, in partnership with the City of Toronto, must negotiate with the chosen developer to determine the Section 37 charges, namely the contribution the developer will make to the City or to the community, in exchange for carrying out the development. Often called "Community Benefits", these char...ges assist the City in the building of amenities, parks, libraries either in the immediate area or in other areas of the City. There is a lot of issues in how Section 37 charges are determined and applied. In addition to these existing issues there are new challenges due to the fact that Section 37 is now, as of June 2019, governed by Bill 108 of the Ontario Government and as a consequence, may result in limiting the amount of Section 37 charges that the City can obtain from a developer. In this episode of RPTV news, we seek to reveal some of the issues behind Section 37 in an effort to understand what community benefits is all about. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Akcb6IFMM1g&feature=youtu.be

The Ontario Basic Income Pilot was a study initiated in 2017 by the Liberal government under former Premier Kathleen Wynn and cancelled in 2018 by the Conservat...ive government under Premier Doug Ford. In this episode of Regent Park TV News, we interview Wayne Lewchuck, a McMaster University labour and economics professor, who was the lead researcher and author of a report on the study of the former participants of the Basic Income Pilot in Hamilton. #ontario #hamilton https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQrwvXRzoCw

RPTV News reports on #COVID19 and the Toronto Homeless Population. Its late March 2020, the covid-19 pandemic has engulfed the world, and we are all now too fam...iliar with terms like quarantined, social distancing, self-isolation, lock-down, panic. With everyone is being forced to stay inside, what is the fate of those members of our society who are living in shelters, street people who are attending drop-ins, and those who are completely homeless? how are they managing? To get a sense of what is happening on the streets, in shelters, and other city facilities that are involved in providing essential services to the most vulnerable, we interviewed David Reycraft, who is Director of Housing with Dixon Hall, a social service agency in #Toronto. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HK6u_sZ6MI

While Regent Park Focus offices will be closed during #convid19, new content will still be produced during this time remotely. Subscribe to us on YouTube and get notified of new videos uploaded! http://www.youtube.com/regentparktv