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Meet the Candidate: Communist Party Juanita Burnett

'We fight racism, sexism, homophobia, etc. because we see how they are used as tools to divide the working class'
GuelphToday Staff
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Juanita Burnett

(GuelphToday asked each of the federal candidates to provide a brief bio and platform statement)

Bio:

Juanita Burnett has been living in Guelph for 25 years, as a mom and a student, as a worker, and an activist (fighting for women's, LGBTQIIA+ and reproductive rights, for free post-secondary education, for labour and migrant workers' rights, against racism, against Islamophobia, etc.) She has been involved in many election campaigns as a canvasser, as an organizer, and as a candidate, for most of those years. She has been with the Communist Party for going on 10 years, when it became clear that the exploitation of workers and of resources was not good for most people (or for the environment!) Capitalism and the corporate drive for profits and more profits (and only profits!) are destructive and unsustainable. All of the things she has been and continues to fight for are in the Communist Party of Canada's platform.

Juanita is a book addict (collector, reader, and literacy supporter), and a lover of karaoke. She loves all of the Guelph communities she is connected to and is often surprised that all the people she knows don't all know each other.

Platform Statement:

The Communist Party of Canada is focusing on three main priorities in this election:

  1. Jobs, Wages and Living Standards
    Communists have long been working towards better living standards for working class people, a stronger safety net, better labour standards and so on. We fight racism, sexism, homophobia, etc. because we see how they are used as tools to divide the working class. We would like to see a better work/life balance, and a less precarious society. We would build one million units of social housing, which provides homes and jobs, and expand social programs. We would nationalize GM and build an affordable electric car and mass public transit.

  2. Peace and Disarmament

    This has also long been part of our work. Towards these ends, we would cut the military budget by 75%, get out of NATO and NORAD, and sign the treaty to abolish nuclear weapons. We fully support BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) on Israel.

  3. Climate Change and Climate Injustice

    We have been working hard to develop better policies around the crises we are facing related to climate change. Our policy to nationalize energy and natural resources will also benefit the environment. We would develop solar, wind, geothermal, hydro and other renewables, without the drive for profit that corporations have, but with the aim of supplying the energy we need in the best possible, most sustainable way.

Please check out our website (votecommunist.com) for more details about all of the ways we support the working class. We hope you see how all of our policies work to support our three priorities.

One of those in particular has aspects of all three priorities, and it doesn't seem to be on the radar of other parties. We think it's long past time to develop a new agreement with all the peoples of this country. Towards that end, we would recognize the right of nations to self-determination, up to and including secession, and draft a new Constitution based on an equal, voluntary partnership of Indigenous peoples, Quebec, Acadians, and English-speaking Canada. It would include just settlement of Indigenous land claims, enacting the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (including the right to veto development), enacting the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Inquiry.