January 30, 2009

Today's guest host was Sheila Coles.

It's Friday January 30th.

A statue of a giant shoe has been unveiled in Saddam Hussein's hometown in honour of the Iraqi Journalist who threw his shoes at former US President George W Bush.

Currently, this marks Haliburton's first successful building project, in post war Iraq.
This is the Current.


Part 1: Gwenda Yuzicappi

The anguished voice of Shellyn Kay has filled the airwaves and the newspaper columns of Saskatchewan for last 18 hours. This First Nations woman wants her 17-year-old daughter, Tara-Lyn Poorman, back. Poorman, by all reports a happy and healthy high school student, disappeared after a house party in Regina seven weeks ago.Distraught family members and their supporters marched last night through an inner city neighborhood in Regina to publicize the case.

Marching alongside them was a woman who is no stranger to the kind of grief being felt by Shellyn Kay. Gwenda Yuzicappi's 19-year-old daughter disappeared, too, nearly four years ago.Tragically, Amber Redman was found murdered, three years after her disapperance. Last week, her killer, Albert Patrick Bellegarde, pleaded guilty to her murder.

Missing Aboriginal Women

It's a case that has thrust the plight of missing aboriginal women and their grieving families into the spotlight. In Saskatchewan alone, 17 aboriginal women are still missing. In 2004, Amnesty International estimated that there are 500 murdered and missing aboriginal women across Canada.

Amber's mother, Gwenda Yuzicappi, kept the flame of her daughter's memory alive for all these years and has become in the process a voice for people concerned about missing aboriginal women.

Gwenda Yuzicappi joined Sheila in Regina for the show.

Gwenda Yuzicappi is the mother of Amber Redman, an aboriginal woman who was found murdered three years after she disappeared. Gwenda is also an advocate for the families of other missing women. Last week, Amber's killer, Albert Patrick Bellegarde, was sentenced to life in prison for second-degree murder with no chance of parole for 15 years.

Sex and Seniors - Documentary

Across Canada, seniors are staying healthier and living longer. Add such drugs as Viagra to that mix and it's no surprise that they're more sexually active too. But that can create problems. The rate of HIV infections among Canadians over fifty has doubled in the last ten years. And with the number of seniors expected to double over the next 40 years, that's a significant public health challenge.

Susan Bell is a freelance documentary producer. She's spent some time with one senior citizen who's on a quest to find a boyfriend and she joined us from Montreal.

Movies and The Recession - Director

For movie-makers, this is the dream scenario - put down a few bucks, find a seat in a darkened theatre and let Hollywood transport you to a better place. Let it take you somewhere that you can forget about financial crises, job losses and declining GDP. But Hollywood isn't just a dream factory. It's also a business with a bottom line, just like any other.

We begin our look at how Hollywood copes with and reflects an economic crisis with an insider's perspective. Sheila was joined by the acclaimed Canadian director Norman Jewison. His resume includes In the Heat of The Night, Fiddler on the Roof, Jesus Christ Superstar and a Soldier's Story. Norman Jewison was in Malibu for the show.

Movies and The Recession - Author

The Academy Award nominated "Slumdog Millionaire" a tale of rags-to-riches that has become a feel-good story itself thanks to its unanticipated success. And for some historical perspective on what kinds of movies do well when times are tough, we're joined by Molly Haskell. She's been writing about the movie industry for many years. She's the author of the upcoming book, Frankly My Dear: Gone With the Wind Revisited. She was in New York City.

Last Word

We left you with one more thought about movies as a refuge during times of economic crisis. The Great Depression was about as big a crisis as you could imagine. And for millions of people around the world, The Marx Brothers were just what the doctor ordered.

(Did someone say "hors d'oeuvre?")

In today's last word we listened to Groucho Marx from the 1930 comedy classic Animal Crackers, singing "Hello, I Must Be Going."