Regent Park Focus

Date:  June 11, 2018 Hosts :  Jeneace Guests :  Frédérique the Director of Health Promotion with Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights and Jackie Coakes from Toronto Public Health Topic :  Sexual and Reproductive Health This week, Jeneace led a conversation on Sexual and Reproductive Health with special guests from Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights and Toronto Public Health . With Fred from Action Canada, we talked about why comprehensive sexual education and sexual health resources empower people to lead happy and healthy lives and have safer sex. We talked about the stigma surrounding abortion, the most common gynecological procedure in Canada, and the history and struggle that led to the legalization of abortion in Canada although access to abortion remains unevenly distributed across the country to this day.  In the second half of the show, Jeneace talked to Jackie about Toronto Public Health’s work, STI information th...

For this episode of Health Talks Youth Radio, Diamond hosts our panel discussion about how connected we’ve become in this digital world, and how it takes a toll on our mental health. Experts call sitting the new smoking, as people have become addicted to nothing- and especially through hours and hour of nothing. Talking about how we’ve become a culture of social media consumers, we see how youth are now wasting a lot of time consuming meme after meme the same way we used to consume TV show after TV show. Ranging from twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, the three big social media platforms, they chat a lot about how it has become such a norm and fixture in our ordinary lives. Diamond asked a few questions of our youth panel including if they thought social media can affect our mental health and how, how much is too much social media usage, how has the acceleration of the internet affected social media consumption, what are some warnings about social media addiction, and th...

Date: May 7 th , 2018 Hosts : Jeance & Seymouria Guests : Professor Gordon Cleveland (UTSC); Laural Rothman (Ontario Coalition for Better Childcare) Topic : Affordable Childcare With the Ontario provincial election drawing closer, the Powerful by Nature team covered a topic close to our hearts : Affordable Childcare. Our hosts Seymouria and Jeneace led a powerful conversation with special guests Professor Gordon Cleveland, whose research focuses on the economics of early childhood and childcare policy, and Laurel Rothman from the Ontario Coalition for Better Childcare. Breaking down everything from the high costs of childcare in Ontario and Toronto to the three provincial party childcare platforms, our two guests gave us a roadmap for making childcare affordable and accessible for all, and (spoiler alert) if there was governmental will, there would be a way! Listen to this very special episode below and, if affordable childcare matters to you, remembe...

For our April 26th edition of Health Talks Radio, we had a panel discussion to talk about another youth, health and wellness related movie. This week we talked about the 2006 American romantic dance film Step Up, starring Channing Tatum as Tyler Gage and Jenna Dewan as Nora Clark. The film follows badboy Tyler and dancer Nora paired up in a dance recital that can determine both their futures. They must find a way to work together and set their differences aside. Their first practice was a rough one and ended earlier then expected. Nora watches curiously from a window as Tyler dances with his friends, mockingly incorporating a mixture of break-dance and the ballet moves he just recently observed. Our panel talked about the amazing way that two different worlds collided can create something even more phenomenal than alone. Tyler's friends the brothers Mac and Skinny have always had Tyler's back and he's always had theirs. But when he starts to develop a love for ...

For the April 17th edition of Catch da Flava Youth Radio, our host Erika welcomed Karina Ramos in studio to talk about their placement experience at S.O.Y. which stands for “Supporting Our Youth” and is a safe space and LGBT+ positive environment for youth that identify themselves as part of the community. Located at 333 Sherbourne Street, it provides all kinds of events, programs, groups, and activities to help youth understand their sexual identity much better and be at home with themselves. S.O.Y. accepts youth 29 years and under and provides free services that range from housing, employment, and mentorship. As a placement student from their school, Karina identifies as queer and trans and says they loved the experience being part of the S.O.Y. family. Discussing their experience in S.O.Y. Karina talked about what it’s like to do content for the organization, what it’s like to be part of the community, and why this was a fulfilling experience for them. Not only did Karina answer ...

For this edition of Health Talks Radio, host Diamond talks to us about sexual health and what we learned through school and institutions. When asking about our earliest experience learning about sex, each panelist talked about their diverse and oftentimes hilariously confusing experiences. Erika talked about how her parents lied about how she was mailed to them in a box, and Divine talked about his understanding of it through the stork and then learning the truth through ruthless classmates. The panel talked more about their earliest memories learning about sexual health in school, and how early it started. When discussing their first lessons on their menstrual cycle, Erika took it up another level sharing a news article on a young girl who used a tampon for nine whole days without removing it from her body, causing toxic shock syndrome and the tampon being “disintegrated.”​ Talking about other issues in the body, the panel talked about the effective and ineffective things...

For this edition of Health Talks Radio, host Travis talks to our youth panel about dating apps and the new age of dating in a changing social climate. Travis talks about how dating has changed with the use of social media apps like Instagram and Snapchat and explores the different stereotypes people may have when it comes to relationships. Diamond shares about her own experience, citing how uninterested she is in creating relationships as she observes how much drama people create for themselves, which she admits to openly enjoy witnessing but not participating in. Beverly shares these feelings but also talks about how people will reach out to ​ her unwelcomed and how it bothers her. She also emphasizes the significance of people waiting for the right relationship instead of jumping from one person to the next, as she observes in youth. Travis also explores how different age ranges may experience relationships and thus react and respond to relationships in different ways. He ask...

For our February 13th, 2018 edition of Catch da Flava Youth Radio, we talked with relationship expert Ro Maryam about her experience in relationships and some advice she for youth delving into the issues of relationships. Host Beverly talked to Ro about what makes a good relationship and what makes an unhealthy relationship and some of the signs for what both types of relationships look like. Ro shares that healthy relationships often make people feel joyful, inspired and full of themselves while an unhealthy relationship will make us feel tired, not ourselves and not happy. Ro talks about her own experience in relationships sharing that we all go through good and bad relationships, letting us know that relationships are somewhere we can learn from and not to feel too bad if we have to experience a negative relationship. For our other portion of our interview with Ro, we talked more about LGBT+ relationships and how to navigate them in strict cultural settings. For Ro,...

For the February 6th, 2018 edition of Catch da Flava Youth Radio, we had host Diamond Bailey sit down and chat with sexual health promoter Richard Texeira to discuss issues of sexual health and how it relates to youth. Their upcoming workshop on Thursday targets educating service providers who deal with youth with little social attachments, such as low school attendance and vulnerable to homelessness. They support LGBT+ Youth to be trainers, speakers and advocates in these workshops to empower them in their sexuality. They are a collaborative event, such as having Eva’s Satellite organization which is a substance use reduction organization for youth. Some topics that will be covered include consent, relationships, and pleasure with an emphasis on consent and how to understand what is consent. Richard goes on to define consent as free of coercion, “enthusiastic, completely freely given” from someone who is sober. When discussing advice on what youth should consider if they ar...

This week cohost Debra Scott talks to Jackie Porter about financial literacy, especially among women. They explore best practices, why it is important especially for women to be in control of their finances, and resources to seek in learning more about financial literacy. For the second half, Judy Pham shares an interview with local midwife Ayeshah Haque about why midwifery is a great option for pregnant women, and how alternatives beyond going to the hospital to give birth help empower women who are pregnant. Songs featured: 1) "She Works Hard For The Money" by Donna Summers 2) "Someday" by Britney Spears 3) "Blue" by Beyonce featuring Blue Ivy Carter

This week Kate counts us down through the years to celebrate music by women from different genres and decades, after much controversy last summer in the media over having such few women being recognized for their chart-topping hits. For the second half, Judy Pham chats with Geneviève Ramage about her experience watching the documentary A Better Man, which they both watched, to understand how their experiences were varied or alike, when it comes to the issue of gender-based violence.  Songs featured: 1) Piano Trio in G Minor by Clara Schumann 2) Up Above My Head by Sister Rosetta Tharpe 3) Gloria by Patti Smith 4) U.N.I.T.Y by Queen Latifah 5) California by Joni Mitchell 6) Still I Rise by Tupac Shakur 7) Baby Don't Cry (Keep Ya Head Up II) by Tupac Shakur

For this episode of Catch da Flava Youth Radio, we had our Health Talk Radio youth panel discussion and explored the issue of gender-based violence, as December 6th is the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women for Canadians, which remembers the 14 women killed on December 6, 1989, at L’Ecole Polytechnique. Host Erika shared with us she was born shortly after the tragic experience, because as a new mother and immigrant to Canada, her mother had witnessed the live footage of the incident, which induced labour causing Erika to be born premature. With how it can personally affect us in different mental and ​ physical ways, we talked about the effect of gender-based violence for individuals and communities. Our panelists talked about how different social components can make a certain community more vulnerability like Indigenous women, the LGBT community, and younger women, and why that is. They consider that these communities tend to have less resources for pro...

Date: Nov 27, 2017 Hosts: Anny & Victoria Guests: Wendy De Sousa from METRAC Topic: Healthy Relationships This week our hosts Anny and Victoria led a conversation with our guest Wendy De Sousa from METRAC who helped shed some light on what a healthy relationship and unhealthy relationship looks like, what consent is and how we can unwillingly contribute to the concept of consent such as kissing on the cheek as a form of affection. The second half of the show our hosts led a conversation about the cycle of abuse, the honeymoon phase and what someone can do if they know someone is in an abusive situation. Wendy shed some light on where someone who is being abusive can receive help. We also spoke about what stalking is and how technology is making it easier for people to be stalked online, especially when one leaves their abuser. We went into detail about online safety when dealing with a potential stalker which includes how to get a restraining order if need...

Date: Nov 13, 2017 Hosts : Brianne, Seymouria & Victoria Guests : Mandy Bonisteel (George Brown College); Kevin Vowles (White Ribbon Campaign) Topic : Women Abuse Prevention November is Women Abuse Prevention month, and this week Brianne, Seymouria and Victoria lead a conversation to raise awareness about how to identify and help prevent women abuse with our special guests Mandy Bonisteel a professor for the past 20 years in the George Brown’s Assaulted Women and Children’s Advocate Program with a primary focus on survivors of sexual abuse as well as Kevin Vowles who works as Community Engagement Manager for White Ribbon. He delivers workshops, speeches and training to empower men and boys to take a stand against violence against women and girls, through a lively analysis of gender-based violence fuelled by unhealthy and toxic masculinity. Before they went into an in-depth conversation, Seymouria shared some stats about women abuse in Ontario. Our hosts int...

This week Judy chats with Geneviève R. and Claren Grosz about their menstrual cycle, which seems to bring them great excitement and joy. The conversation revolved around texture & consistency of flow, Diva Cups, and the fury of cramps. For the second half, Judy continued her conversation with Claren and was joined with screenwriter Shannon Bramer about their upcoming theatre production "The Hungriest Woman in the World" and their experience in theatre as women. To find out more about their upcoming play, check out:  http://www.pencilkitproductions.com/hungriest/

Date: Oct 16, 2017 Hosts : Moya & Victoria Guests : Anny, Shadae, & Sherry Topic : Teen Pregnancy & Stigma This week Moya and Victoria shed some light on teen pregnancy and the stigma that young parents deal with on the day to day. Moya and Victoria welcome the rest of the PowerfulXNature team to the show which includes: Anny and Shadae; and Sherry the Youth Leadership Program lead at Jessie’s Centre ; who all share experiences throughout the show about pregnancy and parenting as a youth and the stigma that they have experienced. For the second half, our hosts lead a conversation on how the media can portray teen parents in a negative way and the impact that this can have. Being shamed for decisions that you’ve made and being stigmatized makes navigating the world very difficult. We also discuss how the team is changing the dialogue through the Community Education Program at Jessie’s Centre; and how Shadae through her blog, She's Too Young To...

Date: Sep 29, 2017 Hosts: Brianne & Shadae Guests : Moya, Victoria (PowerfulXNature), Faith Hatchet, Hodan Osman, Monika Obermeier, & Sherry Rutter Topic : Who is Powerful by Nature & Jessie’s? This week, Powerful X Nature youth radio show debuts on the air. Our hosts, Brianne and Shadae introduce the Powerful X Nature team and lead a conversation to learn more about services and support offered at Jessie’s Centre. In the first part of the show you meet the PowerfulXNature team, consisting of 5 participants who have been actively involved in our Community Education Program and who share a commonality; they’re all YOUNG PARENTS. In the second part of the show, our hosts welcome staff from Jessie’s; Sherry, the Youth Leadership Program Lead; Hodan a Counsellor/Case Manager; Monika, the Parent Child Centre Lead; and Faith a Registered Nurse, who oversees the Health Program. This segment starts with a brief her story of Jessie’s Centre. Each guest then ...

For this edition of Catch da Flava Youth Radio, co-hosts Judy and Diamond held a panel discussion about the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls of Canada and the anger towards the disorganization caused by resignations of senior staff within the inquiry. Resulting in families of the victims frustrated with the lack of clear strategy and strong partnerships with Indigenous communities across the country. With the recent resignation of 5 commissioners including  Marilyn Poitras, we discussed how many have questioned the leadership of the inquiry and whether this leadership problem should result in the inquiry being represented and driven by indigenous people. Furthermore, we brought to light how families feel less willing to participate in the process as their ability to claim justice for loved ones and victims are greatly affected by these resignations. We express our thoughts on the history of social and cultural oppression of indigen...