Joel Harden MPP / Député, Ottawa Centre

Government of Ontario

Weekly Email Update

Update #110: Earth Day

Today is Earth Day, where we remember that our actions are bound together in a dense web of connections to other living things.  Today we reject the falsehood of human mastery — that the earth exis... More

Update #109: Masking in OCDSP schools

As a politician, I try to speak directly to community concerns. My job is to assist  those seeking change when orders decreed from above don’t make sense.  That’s why I supported OCDSB Trustee Mark... More

Update #108: We have the power to improve our lives

Breaking news from Staten Island, New York this week shocked the world. Amazon workers at the JFK8 warehouse voted to unionize. They were led by immigrant workers who were tired of  being treated w... More

Update #104: Honouring Yumna, with murals to combat Islamophobia

The Ottawa Convoy that gridlocked our city last month left much in its wake.  The trucks may be gone, but the impacts are still here. Workers and small businesses suffered, with estimates ranging f... More

We can't allow 750 trees to be cut down

I’d love to write a spoof column to mark the occasion of April Fool’s Day. Laughter is medicine, and we need it now more than ever.  But this week I’m focused on a joke that isn’t funny: the new Ci... More

Advocating for a loved one is not a crime

Earlier this week, I helped a Peterborough family defy a trespass order. The action was significant, and the stakes were high.  Diane Tamblyn had been issued a notice of trespass from St. Joseph’s ... More

Update #105 Kindness always comes first

I’ve taken a couple of days off this week with our family for March Break. I hope you’ve had time off too. Taking a break allows time for reflection.  Lately I’ve been thinking about Wonder, one of... More

Update #103: It’s time to rally for peace

A text message from a Russian soldier to his mother was intercepted earlier this week. Its words were stark. “We were told we would be greeted with open arms, but they call us fascists,” the  soldi... More

Email Update #102

We’ve been through a lot in three weeks. Much has happened that will be discussed for years. Top of my list, as I wrote last Friday, is the power of people in action.  Mutual aid among neighbours, ... More

Email Update 101: We survived, we are strong, and we must heal this country

As I write, the removal of the Ottawa Convoy is happening, and I have mixed emotions.   On the one hand, I will not celebrate any violence that may happen. I take no joy in pain being inflicted on ... More