The Sunday Edition for November 17, 2019
Listen to this week's episode with host Michael Enright:
Michael's essay on hostile architecture: "Take the lowly park bench. Most now come equipped with a useless third armrest in the middle. Its only purpose is to make sure a homeless person doesn't lie down to sleep. Defenders of this kind of architecture say it is designed to cut down on crime. In fact, these designs are directly targeted at the poor and the homeless."
Artifacts of Partition and the stories they tell: The Partition of India and the creation of Pakistan in 1947 was a bloody and chaotic, sending 14 million people fleeing for their lives and leaving more than a million dead. New Delhi-based artist and oral historian Aanchal Malhotra interviewed survivors of Partition, including her own relatives, about the physical objects they took with them and the stories those objects tell. Michael Enright speaks with her about her fascinating new book, Remnants of Partition: 21 Objects from a Continent Divided.
One woman's mission to save horses from the killing floor: Belinda Lyall is a 59-year-old lifelong lover of horses. The thought of beautiful old, injured or unwanted horses being dispatched to an abattoir was horrifying to her. So she's devoted her life -- and 30 acres near Salmon Arm, B.C. -- to saving and rehabilitating horses that would otherwise be bound for the slaughterhouse. Jennifer Chrumka tells the story in her documentary called "The Value of Horses."
Politics and partisanship in the Senate: In 2016, André Pratte was one of Canada's most respected journalists before Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed him to what most would consider a cushy job for life -- a seat in the Upper House as an independent senator. But Pratte resigned his post on Election Day -- 13 years before his mandatory retirement age of 75. Pratte speaks with Michael about what is and isn't working in a Senate that is busily reconfiguring itself -- and how Trudeau's attempt to make the Senate less partisan has panned out.
Brexit's impact on the Irish: Senator David Norris is one of Ireland's most quotable political personalities, so it's not surprising he has strong views on Brexit and the upcoming British election; after all, Ireland, along with Northern Ireland, stand to be profoundly affected and perhaps altered by whatever form Brexit takes. He argues it could mean a disastrous hard border between the Republic and Northern Ireland -- or perhaps, on the other hand, reunification.
A birthday tribute to Margaret Atwood: Canada's most celebrated writer turns 80 years old on Monday. We'll look back at Margaret Atwood's brilliant career -- through the wit, wisdom and stories about assorted hijinks and misadventures she's brought to her many appearances on The Sunday Edition.
Mail: Music in Millhaven; Noura Erakat.
Music this week by: Astor Piazzolla, Beethoven, Ernest J. Moeran, Andrew Rathburn, The Highwomen, Blick Bassy, the Silk Road Ensemble, The Creaking Tree String Quartet.