CBLT - Monday, May 27, 2024 - 12:00 p.m. (ET) - Segment #1

a great place to really start is with the map that we have on our website. Because so many of our sites are geo-clustered in a way that allows people to pop around to a few different sites. Obviously there's a lot of participating sites in the downtown core, but pretty much anywhere you are in the city, you can see a Doors Open site. So whether you're in Scarborough or North York or Etobicoke, there are sites available. So really the best way to check is to go to the website, the Doors Open website, take a look at what's around you, prioritize, find your list, what you want to see and go from there and have fun >> Shannon: Because you're the expert, what are your top picks? What are your favourites? >> Kristine: It's so hard to choose. We have 163 sites this year, which is the most we've had since 2019. It's very, very tough to choose, but I'm very excited about some of the new sites we have this year, including the Redpath Sugar Museum. Evergreen Brickworks is going to be open and they're doing tours every hour. They have some incredible history to their space, not just of the brickworks itself, but also geological history. The Nia Centre for the Arts is joining us this year, a brand-new space up on Oakwood Avenue. We have the Lower Bay subway station is joining us again. That's a very popular one obviously. Lots of films and television shows have been shot there, and it's got a lot of its own hidden history there. >> Shannon: People just love this festival and things sell out. And one of them is the neighbourhood tours. Toronto is such a city of neighbourhoods. So these tours are very popular. What can you tell us about those? >> Kristine: Yeah, the tours, the neighbourhood tours kind of pick up where the buildings leave off, which is a nice way for us to sort of fill in the gaps and reach out into the histories of those spaces that may not have buildings that are operating as part of Doors Open. So we have 17--we've had 17 tours this year. They have been very popular, so some of them have been selling out quite quickly. There might still be some registrations. But we do it every year. So every year I tell people early May, usually May 1 is when we release the registrations for those tours, and they're very popular. So definitely want to get on those quickly. >> Shannon: Also popular, there are a series of conversations and I find that super interesting as well. Tell us about those. >> Kristine: Yeah, we have a number of insightful talks that sort of pick up on this Hidden Histories theme. So we have a wonderful keynote session that we're doing on the evening of May 23rd in partnership with Waterfront Toronto and a number of other panellists talking about the history of the Port Lands and sort of Toronto's complicated cultural and social history with the water. We also have on the weekend of Doors Open, we have a couple of talks with Heritage Toronto to give people the tools and tips to learn about how to discover their own hidden histories of their neighbourhoods, of their homes, of their street names. Adam Bunch, a historian and author, is doing a presentation at the Ontario Heritage Centre on the Saturday. And we'll cap it off with our annual partner talk with the Toronto Society of Architects on Sunday, which takes place at Evergreen Brickworks. >> Shannon: Amazing, there's so much to do. We're almost out of time. I think the headline here is get on the website, make a plan. Any other expert advice for us? >> Kristine: Use public transit. I mean, it is the best way to get around. Definitely check for closures or anything. But it is the best way. A lot of these sites don't have parking. Ride shares and bicycling. Lots of these places are accessible without a car, which is one of the things that we love most about it. So it's a great way to go out and see all the great things in your own backyard. >> Shannon: Kristine, thank you so much. >> Kristine: Thank you. >> Shannon: Doors Open runs May 25th and 26th. Again, head to the city's website for more information. >> Shannon: And this is how you can connect with us. If you know someone in the city making a difference in their community, we'd love to hear from you. Send us an email. >> Shannon: That's our show for this week. Thank you so much for watching and thanks to everyone who took the time to share their stories with us. We leave you now with some exciting news from the Toronto Zoo. A snow leopard has just given birth to two baby cubs. You're looking now at Jita, the three-year-old snow leopard, spending some quality time and getting in some cuddles with her cubs. She's a first-time mom. Pemba, the cubs' father, and Jita are part of the Snow Leopard Species Survival Plan. That's a cooperative breeding program among zoos in North America. Talk about an adorable family. We'll see you soon.

[ ] >> Natasha: hello, everyone. I'm natasha fatah. Welcome inside the cbc news room. A deadline set by the university of toronto to dismantle a pro- palestinian encampment has now come and gone and the protesters are still they there. The barricades and tents in king college circle remain up. Meagan fitzpatrick is their on-site. What is the latest? >> Reporter: the school had warned they would take legal steps if the encampment wasn't dismantled by 8:00 am this morning and they have followed through on that threat. Filing an injunction in ontario court. The warning of legal action had come in a trespass notice those issue to the chest passers on friday evening telling them to vacate by 8:00 am and that trespass notice came after the student protesters had rejected a proposal from the university in terms of meeting their demands that was given to the protesters on thursday and the students were decking -- rejecting that offer and staying puts throughout the weekend and this morning to find that 8:00 am deadline. The uft -- uft president issuing a statement this morning announcing the legal action and this statement says the injunction was filed in court and they are requesting an expedited hearing. It also says the university and the student protesters had a long productive meeting yesterday. They did meet around 5:00 pm yesterday and said that they meet again today. The university saying they are hopeful the two sides can reach an agreement to put an end to this unauthorized encampment. The university has been saying all along since encampment started that the protesters are trespassing. The school has been saying they have been trying to balance the rights to free expression and the right to protest with other rights and the school is now coming to a point where they want encampment to end. They have taken -- they are preventing students from using the space. The school has said there have been health and safety concerns associated with the encampment and they have received reports of harassment and hate speech connected to the encampment and those reports have been forwarded to the toronto police. This school is saying that they have taken a balanced approach and have been very patient that that it is time for the encampment to come to an end. And with the protesters not meeting that order to evacuate by 8:00 am, they are now taking legal action. >> Natasha: what are you hearing from students? >> Reporter: the students are saying that they are not interested and what the school has been offering so far. The school offered to set up an advisory committee to study the issue of divestments. Students are demanding that the university, the endowment funds, and financial interests and everything that is invested in companies that support the israeli military essentially, that is what they are demanding they put an end to. They also want the school to cut academic ties with certain israeli institutions and they want the school to disclose all their investment. And what the school proposed to say is it isn't good enough and that there is no time to waste. They want a commitment. They spoke to us this morning following a big rally. Here is what she is saying about the latest step in the school to go to court. >> The university went to court and sought an injunction to essentially compel the court to call the police because they don't want to do that. They understand it is optically horrible and terrific for them to call police on there own student so they are trying to use the courts to compel the police to come here, we find it quite appalling that they are doing all these things instead of meeting with their students, instead of them meeting with us and committing to divesting. >> Reporter: the school has said they want to in of avoid police involvement and they do want to keep talking to the protesters. That statement this morning saying they want a resolution to end the encampment. The trespass notice did also warned the students and faculty are participating and supporting this protest that there could be repercussions, disciplinary action including suspensions and expulsions. There were some faculty here this morning at the rally, a large rally that went on a quite some time that was also supported by me -- multiple labor unions were here in solidarity. Those labor leaders pledging to support students as this goes forward. From what we are hearing, these students, these protesters, many of whom have been here right

from the beginning do not intend on going anywhere unless their demands are met. >> Natasha: thank you. >>> Meanwhile, at the university of québec, a québec superiors court judge has approved a pardon injunction. Here is the latest. >> Reporter: in the decision by the judge, the partial injunction requests as a protesters need to stop look -- blocking doors, windows and to let the fire department have access into the building. It needs to be two metres away from the access so people can access the buildings in and out freely. I want to show you what the encampment looks like right now. This is what it looks like at all the entrances around this client -- around this campus. It is locked up by this and this is why the injunction request was filed of these accesses that are blocked are not blocked any more. People trouble getting in and out of the buildings. This encampment started as a protest to the injunction request filed by mcgill against the mcgill encampment. At this time, people at the encampment were saying they wouldn't fight -- invite people from the mcgill encampment to be here if the other encampment got dismantled. People here at this encampment are calling for more measures than the other encampment. They want all universities in québec to cut ties with israel. They want the province to abolish the bureau they have in tel aviv as well. They say they don't have any ties with israel, no firearms, no frameworks with israel and they say they won't be reacting to the judgment just yet. They want to study it and see how it goes and protesters here say they are in it for the long haul and even though the mcgill encampment is still there and still going, they are still not going down here. It is in solidarity with all the encampments across the country and all the other encampments that have still stayed standing up until this time across the world and they say they won't leave until their demands are met. Police presence is here at all the entrances at the campus. Police presence is here and they say they are not going to step in because they don't have authority to. The campus security could give tickets but they are not allowed to do anything because that is not the injunction request. They are here to monitor the situation and make sure everything remains safe and peaceful. >> Natasha: the campus protests are over the war in gaza where today israel is promising to investigate its military over an airstrike in rafah overnight that reportedly killed 45 palestinians who were sheltering in the area. The israeli prime minister now it knowledges there was a "tragic mistake." here's what an israeli government spokesperson had to say earlier today. >> Last night, the I.D.F. targeted two hamas commanders in rafah whose hands were drenched in israeli blood. According to initial reports, these are initial reports, a fire broke out after the attack which appears to have taken civilian lives. Civilian casualties are desperately sad, but this is the war that hamas wanted and started. >> Natasha: this is what the encampment has been reduced to today. Piles of smouldering ruins. The gaza health ministry says more than 20 of those killed were women and seniors and those same officials say almost 250 people were wounded. The airstrike has sparked global outrage and it happened less than three days after the U.N. world court ordered israel to abandon its offensive in rafah. Reporter sarah coates is in tel aviv. >> Reporter: truly horrific pictures coming out of rafah in an area that was designated as a safe zone for palestinian civilians on the grounds. We are hearing from a number of doctors speaking saying that the people who were sheltering there were simply ripped to shreds. Do have some fresh -- fresh where it's from the I.D.F. who has come out to say that they did not expect the strike to harm civilians. Adding that the topped tear -- top-tier fact-finding mission will probe this incident. As you mentioned, furious reactions coming from the international community. We have also heard from the U.N. palestinian refugee agency which has posted on x. We haven't established medications with our colleagues on the ground. We are extreme the concerned for their welfare. Adding no place is safe, no one is safe saying gaza is hell on earth. The e.u.'s foreign policy chief is calling on both sides, both

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