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Alternative Frosh
OPIRG Kingston annually hosts events after Orientation Week which expose other aspects of Queen's Culture. Alternative Frosh has taken place over the month of September or over a week after Orientation. Check it out to meet new people and learn about what is going on in Kingston!
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Alternative Resource Library
The Alternative Resource Library is housed at the Grey House. It's free and anyone in Kingston is welcome to browse our stacks, take out books and videos, or drop by to search the web and have a cup of coffee.
Note: This is an OPIRG-Kingston Coalition or Joint Project.
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Black History Month
Starting each fall, we organize an amazing slate of events for February to celebrate Black History Month in Kingston. Everyone welcome to join the organizing committee or attend events.
Note: This is an OPIRG-Kingston Coalition or Joint Project.
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Free Queen's
Free Queen's! is an initiative dedicated to providing wider access to quality education. Twice each year, the Free Queen's group organizes a non-credit, university level course that is available for anyone - for free! The group consists of representatives from the OPIRG, Women's Studies, the Equity Office, students, and community members. Find out more on the Free Queen's website.
Note: This is an OPIRG-Kingston Coalition or Joint Project.
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Positive Space
The Positive Space Program is a project dedicated to marking Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans-identified positive spaces on campus. Individuals attend information sessions and then post Positive Space stickers in their workplaces to identify their participation in the program. To register, please complete the application on-line.
Note: This is an OPIRG-Kingston Coalition or Joint Project.
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reelout
reelout queer film + video festival started as an OPIRG working group and has now expanded to be its own non-profit organization, which still retains close ties with OPIRG. We are now entering our eight year of programming innovative, sexy, intelligent, glam, fascinating, independent queer film and video in Kingston. The festival is held at the end of January. Watch out for other screenings throughout the year. If you like watching movies and organizing fun community-building events, then send us an email or check out our website.
Note: This is an OPIRG-Kingston Coalition or Joint Project.
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Yellow Bike Action
Fighting pollution and poverty! Yellow Bike Action is a volunteer-run, anti-hierarchical, and pro-community space. Volunteers learn about bike repair and recycle used bikes, providing affordable and environmentally-sensible modes of transportation to Kingston residents. YBA is also always looking for donations of used bikes, bike parts, time, and money to help cover our overhead costs. Anyone interested in helping out, whether you know anything about bikes or not, is welcome to drop in. For more information drop by the YBA bike shop at 23 Carlisle Street in Kingston, call 545 0404 or e-mail.
Note: This is an OPIRG-Kingston Coalition or Joint Project.
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Food Not Bombs
Food Not Bombs is a group of volunteers who provide a free lunch every Sunday (and occasionally at other events in town) by collecting and preparing donated food from supermarkets and grocers. It was born out of the belief that hunger is not an agricultural problem, but rather a problem of distribution. It is estimated that up to 25% of the food in North American ends up in landfills each year, translating to 130 lbs. of wasted food per person (enough to feed 49 million people). Volunteers are needed to prepare and serve food - it's a small time commitment, as little a few hours per month! No experience needed! Email us to get involved: fnbkingston[at]lists.riseup.net
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Fourth Wave
Fourth Wave' was started by a group of women interested in feminism and in how to talk about it with people who don't know why it is relevant today. The group began meeting weekly in September 2006, and as interest in the group spread, it expanded to include a monthly speaker series. The monthly speaker series invites people from the Kingston and surrounding communities to share their interests in feminism, incorporating diverse views of and approaches to feminist theory and practice. The name 'Fourth Wave' is a reference to the history of feminism which is often described in first, second, and third (or post) waves. Adopting the term 'Fourth Wave' was a bold step to envision feminism's revival in a society where it is often misunderstood and assumed to be a thing of the past. Click here for the old website.
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Germinations
Friends of Germinations strives to advocate for, raise awareness about, and fundraise towards more community-oriented, anti-oppressive and non-hierarchical institutions in the Kingston area. Our current goal is to sow the seeds for a social centre in downtown Kingston that can open in September 2008. The social centre is hoped to be a major space in Kingston that can be a launching pad to community-oriented, anti-oppressive and non-hierarchical organizing that aims at total social transformation.
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GroundSwell Radio
This collective of intrepid reporters, activists, and radiophiles goes where others fear to tread! Groundswell is Kingston's only source of information on the airwaves that focuses on local social justice issues. We tell stories about politics and activism, poverty, the environment, women's and queer issues, local events, and much more. Groundswell attempts to strike a balance in covering campus and community issues and events, as well as exploring the way international issues affect Kingstonians. Tune in to Groundswell every Monday from 5:30 to 6:00pm on CFRC 101.9 FM. More information: groundswell[at]opirgkingston.org
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Loving Spoonful
Loving Spoonful is an innovative collaboration among OPIRG Kingston, The Partners In Mission Foodbank, The Sisters of Providence of St Vincent DePaul's Justice and Peace Office and the National Farmer's Union Local 316. We hope to address issues of hunger and food waste in the Kingston community by reclaiming and recovering food from grocery stores and restaurants and redistributing them to local meal providers and agencies. We also hope to combine this effort with supporting locally and sustainably produced food. For more information please email lovinspoonful@opirgkingston.org
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People's History Project
The People's History Project gathers first-hand interviews and documents related to social movements in Kingston, and creates a well-organized, public archive. The PHP aims to preserve an aspect of Kingston's rich history that is often overlooked in traditional histories - Kingstonians' important roles in the broader social movements of our time. This archive has an emphasis on documenting the first-hand experience of participants in grassroots social movements. As well, it preserves a collection of relevant newspaper articles, placards, posters, handbills, buttons, t-shirts and other surviving materials. You can currently access the ever-expanding archive in the Alternative Resource Library. We hope to have an abridged version of the archive on the web in the future. For more information email peoples_history@opirgkingston.org.
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QCRED
Queen’s Coalition Against Racial and Ethnic Discrimination is a coalition of students, staff, and faculty that work to create an anti-racist climate on the Queens University campus in order to foster a healthy and rich learning and working environment for all. QCRED works towards community wellness for People of Colour, Aboriginal People, and International Students. Through education, community organizing, and commitment to struggle across differences, we seek to responsibly reflect, represent, and serve our various communities. www.qcred.org
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QUAKC
Queen's University Against Killer Coke (QUAKC) formed in 2004 as an autonomous group of students, Queen's Faculty and community members and has now joined OPIRG as a working group. Queen's hold's a 10-year "Cold Beverage Exclusivity" contract with Coca-Cola that was signed in 2000 in secret, without consultation from the student body. This contract is in effect until 2010 and gives Coca-Cola exclusive selling rights for its products on Queen's Campus in exchange for upfront cash, a cut of the revenue, and the right to associate itself with Queen's by attaching its logo to Queen's trademarks and logos and it requires Queen's to sell a certain quota of Coke products. QUAKC aims to raise awareness about the Coca-cola corporation's dubious record on human rights and the environment, with the ultimate aim of breaking the coke contract. Find out more on the QUAKC website www.quakc.org.
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Solidarity Across Borders
Solidarity Across Borders is engaged in the struggle for justice and dignity of immigrants and refugees. We are comprised of migrants, immigrants, refugees and allies, and come together in support of our main demands: the regularization of all non-status people (Status for All!), an end to deportations and detentions, and the abolition of security certificates. We work closely with No One Is Illegal Kingston. Contact us for more information.
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Sunnyside Community Garden
The community garden, under the name "Quattrocchi Community Garden," was started in 2001 in an undeveloped lot "Block D." For 4 years, it was a space that community members enjoyed and used to grow their own veggies and flowers! For two years after the condominium construction at Block D, we searched for a new home. We now have a new home on MacDonnell St near Brock St and have started planting in spring 2007! The new community garden is called the Sunnyside Garden. If you are interested in getting involved or just want to keep up-to-date on our events, please contact us at sunnysidegarden@riseup.net.
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Un-herd
Help create a semi-regular zine or just submit your work! We're taking poetry, artwork, articles, stories, recipes, and more. Each issue will have a theme. For more information, please contact zine@opirgkingston.org
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UNDUN
Unified Networkers of Drug Users Nationally is a coalition committed to organizing of local user groups as the basis of an active national movement for harm reduction. UNDUN is networking, organizing, and standing up for users' rights. You can view a video version of our statement of purpose or email us for more information
Working groups are the heart of OPIRG. Volunteers with an interest in a particular issue or project work together to increase public awareness, educate themselves and others, raise funds, or otherwise do work ‘in the public interest’. To start a new OPIRG Kingston working group, please see the application for more information.
To follow updates in all our working groups, use the Working Groups RSS Feed.