For Canadaland on September 26, 2018 On January 25, 2018, Roosh V — real name Daryush Valizadeh, a rank misogynist and denizen of the so-called “manosphere” — hosted a live-streamed discussion of “tradthots” in the far right. A “tradthot” is a female internet personality who preaches “traditional” values and gender
Continue readingAuthor: Alheli Picazo
A. Picazo: Trudeau, #MeToo, and a poisoned discussion
For Maclean’s on July 23, 2018 #MeToo, in most respects, has been an undeniable force for good. This movement of education and empowerment, of courage and justice, has shattered the silence around sexual misconduct across industries, exposed the pervasiveness and severity of predation at the hands of powerful, often respected
Continue readingA. Picazo: Anthony Bourdain, suicide, and lifelines
For the CBC on June 12, 2018 Many of us experience a heaviness in the early morning hours; a feeling that the Swedish word vargtimmen perfectly encapsulates. Robert Macfarlane, author of The Lost Words, writes that this term translates to “wolf-time; the menacing transitional hours of night into dawn.” How fitting that during
Continue readingA. Picazo: How USAG destroyed young women
For Maclean’s on January 29, 2018 Beyond inherent ability and genetic advantage, success in high-performance artistic sport—gymnastics, ballet, figure skating—requires militant self-discipline and unwavering dedication to training. All talent begins raw, and each sport has its own developmental program where young athletes hone specific skills and build key areas of strength
Continue readingA. Picazo: On loneliness and the winter low
For Maclean’s on December 24, 2017 “Lonely people have a natural affinity for the internet,” wrote the late film critic Roger Ebert in a 2010 entry on his online journal. “It’s always there waiting, patient, flexible, suitable for every mood. But there are times when the net reminds me of the definition
Continue readingA. Picazo: Of flawed men and dangerous ones
For the CBC on November 30, 2017 In early November, Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston weighed in on the stunning allegations of sexual misconduct levelled against Hollywood icon Kevin Spacey — one of the early casualties of the so-called Weinstein effect — in an interview with BBC Newsbeat. Cranston suggested Spacey was
Continue readingA. Picazo: Confronting prejudice and changing minds
For Maclean’s on August 31, 2017 One year ago on C-SPAN, Heather McGhee—an African-American woman and the president of Demos, an equality-focused public policy organization—was the featured guest of a call-in program in Washington. Half an hour into the broadcast, a caller introduced himself as Garry from North Carolina, and made a
Continue readingA. Picazo: She’s someone.
For the Ottawa Citizen on October 12, 2017 In the wake of allegations swirling around Harvey Weinstein, a powerful, dominant figure in Hollywood, where the emerging picture suggests decades of sexual predation, many women are finding their voice in this rare window for candid dialogue and raw confession. The response
Continue readingA. Picazo: On Charlie Gard, medical harm, and fate
For Maclean’s on July 18, 2017 It’s the most commonly cited phrase from the Hippocratic Oath, the binding document—one of the oldest in history—upon which physicians swear: “First, do no harm.” However, that four-word axiom doesn’t itself appear in the classical text of the pledge. Instead, there’s a promise to “apply dietetic
Continue readingA. Picazo: (Un)civil discourse
This column appeared on the CBC on July 31, 2017 “It is simply impossible to overestimate the love, bordering on worship, that reporters in Washington long had for McCain, and to a great degree still do,” Washington Post contributor Paul Waldman wrote Tuesday as Senator John McCain, diagnosed with an aggressive form
Continue readingA. Picazo: How the far-right co-opted “free speech”
This column was published at Maclean’s on May 1, 2017 It was the third time in as many months that supporters of President Donald Trump gathered in Berkeley, Calif., the historic birthplace of America’s Free Speech Movement and the cradle of anti-war protests in the Vietnam War era—but when met with
Continue readingA. Picazo: On assisted death and psychological suffering
This column was published at Maclean’s on March 28, 2017 In 2015, a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court of Canada struck down the federal ban on physician-assisted suicide, solidifying the charter right of competent, consenting adults who are “suffering intolerably as a result of a grievous and irremediable medical
Continue readingA. Picazo: Carleton’s unbalanced approach to wellness
This op-ed appeared in the Ottawa Citizen on March 14, 2017. It’s hard to overstate the naïveté at the heart of Carleton University’s initial decision to remove the scale from its fitness room at the athletic centre. The move, ostensibly “keeping with current fitness and social trends,” sought to promote a “more holistic” approach
Continue readingA. Picazo: On Homeopathy, Health Canada Must End The Double Standard
This column appeared on the CBC on December 11, 2016. Until recently, homeopathic remedies sold in the United States enjoyed many of the same privileges — including the freedom to claim they could treat or cure specific ailments or diseases — as real, science-based medicine. The difference? Peddlers of homeopathy
Continue readingA. Picazo: Colin Powell’s Lesson For Republicans
This column ran in The National Post on August 11, 2016. Sixteen days before the 2008 presidential election, George W. Bush’s former secretary of state, Gen. Colin Powell (Ret.), appeared on NBC’s Meet The Press to reveal his much-coveted endorseme…
Continue readingA. Picazo: Re: Death By Pseudoscience – The Misinformation Campaign
First, a quick review of the facts: David and Collet Stephan are on trial for failing to provide the necessaries of life — for failing to seek medical care for their son in a reasonably prudent time/manner. They are NOT on trial for murder or manslau…
Continue readingA. Picazo: Legitimizing Pseudoscience: What’s The Harm?
This column ran in The National Post on March 24, 2016. After weeks of trying “natural” extracts and homemade remedies like smoothies cut with ginger root and horseradish to cure a suspected case of meningitis, 19-month-old Ezekiel Stephan’s …
Continue readingA. Picazo: Undignified Death
This column ran in The National Post on January 20, 2016. The Supreme Court hearing that granted the Liberals a four-month extension to review assisted-dying legislation last week brought out the usual coterie of critics, many of them religious. We are…
Continue readingA. Picazo: #RefugeesWelcome
This op-ed appeared in The Ottawa Citizen on November 27, 2015. “This is not a federal project, this is not even a government project, it’s a national project for all Canadians,” declared John McCallum, minister of immigration, refugees a…
Continue readingA. Picazo: No Scrutiny Please, They’re Saudi.
This op-ed appeared in The Ottawa Citizen on October 1, 2015. In 2014, on the shores of Lake Geneva and next to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, a lavish ceremony was held to honour the recipient of the Moral Courage Award — an annual honour bestowed by UN Watch,
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