‘Caravan’ to deliver local voices to premier

Residents who have a message for Premier Dalton McGuinty about the economy will have a chance to pass it along when the Ontario Federation of Labour’s “Drive to Work” (DRV2WRK) caravan passes through Fort Frances on Monday.
“One of the things that we’re doing with the ‘Drive to Work’ caravan is we’re going around the province asking people to basically come forward and tell us how the economic crisis and all the job loss is affecting their communities and their families,” explained Sandra Clifford, political and legislative director for the OFL, who is helping to organize the caravan that will be winding its way through Northwestern Ontario.

The caravan will launch Monday at 9:30 a.m. at Kenora Forest Products. From there, it will travel to Dryden, where a rally will be held from 12:30-2 p.m. at the arena parking lot.
“Then we’re driving down to Fort Frances and we’re actually making a presentation at town council [Monday night],” Clifford noted.
“We have submitted to them a motion which calls on municipal governments to introduce, or establish, a “Buy Ontario” procurement policy where, if possible, city councils try to buy Ontario [products] to help the local economy,” she remarked.
Those already participating, and those wanting to join in, are welcome to meet up with the caravan around 6:20 p.m. at Pither’s Point Park, from which everyone will drive out together to the Civic Centre, Clifford noted.
People can meet them at the Civic Centre, as well.
“We’re talking to people about—within their own communities—working with the council and community groups to think about ways that they can actually lobby the provincial government around things like establishing an office of a jobs commissioner, getting everybody to pass these “Buy Ontario” policies, and things like that,” Clifford said.
“We are [also] collecting letters from people,” she added. “Everywhere we go, people are encouraged to write a short letter to the premier, again saying how this job loss is affecting the community.”
Clifford said “all kinds of people” have been writing letters, which the caravan is collecting and then will deliver to Queen’s Park.
Letters also can be sent online at www.drivetowork.ca, where they will be printed off and delivered with the others.
“The loss of jobs leads to all other types of consequences,” Clifford warned—from young people leaving town to a parent leaving a family to go work out west to an increase in mental health and domestic problems.
“So we’re trying to give people a forum basically to talk about what the job loss really means to them, and to really impress upon, in particular, the provincial government the fact that they need to do something,” Clifford explained.
It’s a way for people to “make their voices” heard, she added.
“Rather than just saying if one person writes a letter, being able to collect a whole lot of them from people across the province will have a bigger impact.”
Other “caravans” also will be making their way across province, through northeastern Ontario, southeastern Ontario, and southwestern Ontario, to collect letters and stories as well as to meet with communities, with the campaign wrapping up June 25 in Toronto.
For more information, visit www.drivetowork.ca
The campaign also can be followed online through Facebook and Twitter.