Tech

N.S. artist group launches research project to highlight historic Black communities

Published

8 months ago

March 17, 2024

A new research project that will shed light on historic Black communities around the province has been launched by the Black Artists Network of Nova Scotia.

The project is 40 Places Called Home, named for the 40 Black communities that have existed in Nova Scotia at different times of history.

The goal is to encourage Black Nova Scotians to share their own history through personal stories, archives, art and photographs that will then be used to create detailed projects about their communities.

“All of these places were what we called home, you know, in terms of the Black community,” David Woods, the network’s founder and project organizer, told CBC Radio’s Information Morning Halifax.

“But they weren’t just home in the sense of [it’s] where we returned to, but in the more segregated and racially oppressive times, they were really sanctuaries where we had to create our own worlds, our own ways of doing things.”

David Woods is the founder of the Black Artists Network of Nova Scotia. (David Woods)

So far, there are 15 teams participating, representing communities from Shelburne to Middleton to Africville to Sydney and Whitney Pier.

Each team is required to create a Facebook page that includes a community profile, a timeline of historical events, profiles of important community members and a folklore story, among other items like photographs and artwork.

The deadline to complete each page is June 30 and prizes of up to $2,500 will be awarded.

“We can’t always depend on our museums and our cultural institutions to do that work because sometimes they drop the ball or they’re not even aware,” Woods said.

“So, part of it was my frustration of knowing things and watching people die and knowing that this stuff was not recorded. So, hey, let’s ask the people who lived these experiences. Let’s find a way to get them to actually share it in a way that everybody can be a part of it.”

Information Morning – NS8:1940 Places Called Home

Woods said he’d like the project to inspire local museums to create their own exhibits about Black history in Nova Scotia.

Team Middleton is made up of five members, including Theresa Character, Josephine Morrison, Catherine Tolbart, Gwen Tolbart and Cathy Parent.

Parent said there were two separate Black communities in Middleton, one on Brooklyn Road and one on North Street. She said the research project may provide some insight into the discrimination and racism Black families faced during the 1950s and ’60s.

She said Black residents weren’t welcome in what was called downtown Middleton, and couldn’t go to the local dentist or hairdresser because it would upset white clients.

“They didn’t want us to come out of that neighbourhood. So yeah, we built us a little chapel for ourselves and there were weddings there and funerals, and we just did what we did,” she told Information Morning.

In this collage, the photo on the left shows people gathering outside a small white chapel. The photo on the right shows a photo of the chapel today. — The North Street Chapel in Middleton, N.S., pictured on the left in 1960, served as a link between the Black communities in the area. (Cathy Parent)

That chapel, called North Street Chapel, will be featured in the project, she said, as it was the link for the two Black communities.

Louise Delisle and Jessika Hepburn make up Team Shelburne.

Delisle said a lot of stories that will be included in the project are anecdotal, including some from her grandmother and parents.

“The way they took care of each other, the community itself, and how they shared,” Delisle told Information Morning.

“How they helped each other build their homes, how they worked in each other’s gardens and helped share the food from that.”

Two women smile for a photo next to each other. — Louise Delisle, left, and Jessika Hepburn make up Team Shelburne. (Jessika Hepburn)

Hepburn said she’d like to include information about North America’s first recorded race riot, which happened in Shelburne nearly 240 years ago, as it’s not a well-known history.

She said an important part of the project will be a timeline and map, which will trace the community’s history and important locations from 1783 to the present.

Hepburn said one painting that will be featured in the project is by George H. McCarthy in 1885, titled View of Town of Shelburne. She called it the first known painting by an African Canadian.

Information Morning – NS10:51Meet two of the teams taking part in 40 Places Called Home

She said doing this research has been enlightening.

“It highlights the deep connections within the Black community to these stories and that connect us across the globe, that connect us to Sierra Leone, to New York in America and that we build a home here where we are,” she said.

Delisle said although it’s tough to relive history of discrimination and racism, it’s important to share these stories with younger people, including Hepburn.

“I hope that she can learn from me in some way and some things, and the young people will pick it up and keep going and fighting for what’s right.”

A painted image of a Black woodcutter. — Hepburn says this depiction by Captain William Booth is considered the first image of a Black Nova Scotian, in British Canada in 1788. He was a wood cutter in Shelburne. (Wikimedia Commons)

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.

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Tech

Ottawa orders TikTok’s Canadian arm to be dissolved

Published

3 days ago

November 6, 2024

Anne Joseph

The federal government is ordering the dissolution of TikTok’s Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind the social media platform, but stopped short of ordering people to stay off the app.

Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced the government’s “wind up” demand Wednesday, saying it is meant to address “risks” related to ByteDance Ltd.’s establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc.

“The decision was based on the information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada’s security and intelligence community and other government partners,” he said in a statement.

The announcement added that the government is not blocking Canadians’ access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content.

However, it urged people to “adopt good cybersecurity practices and assess the possible risks of using social media platforms and applications, including how their information is likely to be protected, managed, used and shared by foreign actors, as well as to be aware of which country’s laws apply.”

Champagne’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment seeking details about what evidence led to the government’s dissolution demand, how long ByteDance has to comply and why the app is not being banned.

A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement that the shutdown of its Canadian offices will mean the loss of hundreds of well-paying local jobs.

“We will challenge this order in court,” the spokesperson said.

“The TikTok platform will remain available for creators to find an audience, explore new interests and for businesses to thrive.”

The federal Liberals ordered a national security review of TikTok in September 2023, but it was not public knowledge until The Canadian Press reported in March that it was investigating the company.

At the time, it said the review was based on the expansion of a business, which it said constituted the establishment of a new Canadian entity. It declined to provide any further details about what expansion it was reviewing.

A government database showed a notification of new business from TikTok in June 2023. It said Network Sense Ventures Ltd. in Toronto and Vancouver would engage in “marketing, advertising, and content/creator development activities in relation to the use of the TikTok app in Canada.”

Even before the review, ByteDance and TikTok were lightning rod for privacy and safety concerns because Chinese national security laws compel organizations in the country to assist with intelligence gathering.

Such concerns led the U.S. House of Representatives to pass a bill in March designed to ban TikTok unless its China-based owner sells its stake in the business.

Champagne’s office has maintained Canada’s review was not related to the U.S. bill, which has yet to pass.

Canada’s review was carried out through the Investment Canada Act, which allows the government to investigate any foreign investment with potential to might harm national security.

While cabinet can make investors sell parts of the business or shares, Champagne has said the act doesn’t allow him to disclose details of the review.

Wednesday’s dissolution order was made in accordance with the act.

The federal government banned TikTok from its mobile devices in February 2023 following the launch of an investigation into the company by federal and provincial privacy commissioners.

— With files from Anja Karadeglija in Ottawa

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.

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Health

Here is how to prepare your online accounts for when you die

Published

2 weeks ago

October 24, 2024

Anne Joseph

LONDON (AP) — Most people have accumulated a pile of data — selfies, emails, videos and more — on their social media and digital accounts over their lifetimes. What happens to it when we die?

It’s wise to draft a will spelling out who inherits your physical assets after you’re gone, but don’t forget to take care of your digital estate too. Friends and family might treasure files and posts you’ve left behind, but they could get lost in digital purgatory after you pass away unless you take some simple steps.

Here’s how you can prepare your digital life for your survivors:

Apple

The iPhone maker lets you nominate a “ legacy contact ” who can access your Apple account’s data after you die. The company says it’s a secure way to give trusted people access to photos, files and messages. To set it up you’ll need an Apple device with a fairly recent operating system — iPhones and iPads need iOS or iPadOS 15.2 and MacBooks needs macOS Monterey 12.1.

For iPhones, go to settings, tap Sign-in & Security and then Legacy Contact. You can name one or more people, and they don’t need an Apple ID or device.

You’ll have to share an access key with your contact. It can be a digital version sent electronically, or you can print a copy or save it as a screenshot or PDF.

Take note that there are some types of files you won’t be able to pass on — including digital rights-protected music, movies and passwords stored in Apple’s password manager. Legacy contacts can only access a deceased user’s account for three years before Apple deletes the account.

Google

Google takes a different approach with its Inactive Account Manager, which allows you to share your data with someone if it notices that you’ve stopped using your account.

When setting it up, you need to decide how long Google should wait — from three to 18 months — before considering your account inactive. Once that time is up, Google can notify up to 10 people.

You can write a message informing them you’ve stopped using the account, and, optionally, include a link to download your data. You can choose what types of data they can access — including emails, photos, calendar entries and YouTube videos.

There’s also an option to automatically delete your account after three months of inactivity, so your contacts will have to download any data before that deadline.

Facebook and Instagram

Some social media platforms can preserve accounts for people who have died so that friends and family can honor their memories.

When users of Facebook or Instagram die, parent company Meta says it can memorialize the account if it gets a “valid request” from a friend or family member. Requests can be submitted through an online form.

The social media company strongly recommends Facebook users add a legacy contact to look after their memorial accounts. Legacy contacts can do things like respond to new friend requests and update pinned posts, but they can’t read private messages or remove or alter previous posts. You can only choose one person, who also has to have a Facebook account.

You can also ask Facebook or Instagram to delete a deceased user’s account if you’re a close family member or an executor. You’ll need to send in documents like a death certificate.

TikTok

The video-sharing platform says that if a user has died, people can submit a request to memorialize the account through the settings menu. Go to the Report a Problem section, then Account and profile, then Manage account, where you can report a deceased user.

Once an account has been memorialized, it will be labeled “Remembering.” No one will be able to log into the account, which prevents anyone from editing the profile or using the account to post new content or send messages.

It’s not possible to nominate a legacy contact on Elon Musk’s social media site. But family members or an authorized person can submit a request to deactivate a deceased user’s account.

Passwords

Besides the major online services, you’ll probably have dozens if not hundreds of other digital accounts that your survivors might need to access. You could just write all your login credentials down in a notebook and put it somewhere safe. But making a physical copy presents its own vulnerabilities. What if you lose track of it? What if someone finds it?

Instead, consider a password manager that has an emergency access feature. Password managers are digital vaults that you can use to store all your credentials. Some, like Keeper,Bitwarden and NordPass, allow users to nominate one or more trusted contacts who can access their keys in case of an emergency such as a death.

But there are a few catches: Those contacts also need to use the same password manager and you might have to pay for the service.

___

Is there a tech challenge you need help figuring out? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your questions.

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Tech

Google’s partnership with AI startup Anthropic faces a UK competition investigation

Published

2 weeks ago

October 24, 2024

Anne Joseph

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s competition watchdog said Thursday it’s opening a formal investigation into Google’s partnership with artificial intelligence startup Anthropic.

The Competition and Markets Authority said it has “sufficient information” to launch an initial probe after it sought input earlier this year on whether the deal would stifle competition.

The CMA has until Dec. 19 to decide whether to approve the deal or escalate its investigation.

“Google is committed to building the most open and innovative AI ecosystem in the world,” the company said. “Anthropic is free to use multiple cloud providers and does, and we don’t demand exclusive tech rights.”

San Francisco-based Anthropic was founded in 2021 by siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei, who previously worked at ChatGPT maker OpenAI. The company has focused on increasing the safety and reliability of AI models. Google reportedly agreed last year to make a multibillion-dollar investment in Anthropic, which has a popular chatbot named Claude.

Anthropic said it’s cooperating with the regulator and will provide “the complete picture about Google’s investment and our commercial collaboration.”

“We are an independent company and none of our strategic partnerships or investor relationships diminish the independence of our corporate governance or our freedom to partner with others,” it said in a statement.

The U.K. regulator has been scrutinizing a raft of AI deals as investment money floods into the industry to capitalize on the artificial intelligence boom. Last month it cleared Anthropic’s $4 billion deal with Amazon and it has also signed off on Microsoft’s deals with two other AI startups, Inflection and Mistral.

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