The Mayworks Festival kicks off this week in Fredericton. The Fredericton District Labour Council started the tradition of marking May Day, International Workers’ Day, with a Mayworks Festival three years ago. Mayworks Festivals, long-running annual events in cities such as Toronto and Halifax, bring workers and artists together to celebrate the use of art in pursuits to further social, economic and environmental justice.
The Conservation Council of New Brunswick is a proud community partner of Mayworks. Conserver House (180 St. John Street) will be the venue for two important Mayworks-sponsored talks by academics in our community. Thom Workman, a UNB Political Science Professor, gives a talk on April 30 at 7 p.m. at Conserver House (full details here). Andrea Bear Nicholas, Professor Emeritus and the former chair of Native Studies at St. Thomas University, gives a talk on Thursday, May 4 at 7 p.m. at Conserver House (full details here).
This year’s festivities also include a Troublemakers Conference on the secrets of successful organization, a roundtable discussion on activist self-care, a Nepali food workshop at Greener Village and a Mayworks-inspired sing-along with Moon Joyce.
The Conservation Council has worked alongside the labour movement in New Brunswick for decades, including standing together to protect our water from shale gas, and championing a just transition for workers in the fossil fuel industry. Last year, we partnered with Mayworks to host the “Along the Pipeline Exhibition” that showcased Robert Van Waarden’s photographs and testimonials of people who live along the proposed Energy East pipeline route.
Mayworks Fredericton is organized by a volunteer committee and is sponsored by many unions in the province. Community partners include: Conservation Council of New Brunswick, Fredericton Public Library, Fredericton Playhouse, Provincial Archives of New Brunswick, Council of Canadians Fredericton Chapter, Fredericton Youth Feminists, No One Is Illegal Fredericton, Reproductive Justice NB, Cinema Politica Fredericton, St. Thomas University’s Department of Sociology and UNB’s Department of Sociology.
Check out the full Mayworks Fredericton schedule here.