October 16, 2018 - 8:15pm
On February 2, close to 1,600 people packed into the VIU gym for an opportunity to participate in democracy in action. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau came to the Nanaimo Campus for the last in a series of Town Halls across Canada. It was the only Town Hall held in British Columbia.
Half an hour before doors opened at 9 am, the lineup was down the block. People arrived waving Canadian flags, playing traditional First Nations drums, carrying signs of protest, bearing pictures of loved ones lost to the opioid crisis, and exhibiting the regalia of their Indigenous cultures.
The format was simple: Trudeau randomly called on people in the audience to ask questions or share their thoughts. It lasted for two hours and covered a range of topics, including the Kinder Morgan pipeline, the cost of prescription drugs, supports for children in care, gender equality matters, and the inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women.
*This article originally appeared in the Fall 2018 edition of VIU Magazine. Check out more stories on the VIU Magazine webpage.
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