Blueprints of Disruption

Deana Sherif has been called a lot of things. A perpetual protestor, an Antifa ringleader, a criminal…but she’s also been described as a fierce advocate for her community, a tireless activist, and a protective presence to those around her. All of these things made her a target of the Police, the Crown and the right-wing propagandists who serve them. The legal saga that is Deana’s story starts off...

Part 4 of Setting Precedent: The Right to Protest on Campus - a podcast miniseries that tells the whole story behind the lawsuit activists have launched against the University of Calgary and the Calgary Police in response to an encampment eviction on the campus back in May 2024. Dr. Roberta Lexier , an expert of student movements in Canada, explains why institutions like the University of Calgary...

The United Jewish Peoples' Order is in the midst of celebrating their 100th year as a secular, leftist Jewish organization in Canada. Three of UJPO's staff join Blueprints to share some of what they've learned working for the century-old organization, and reflect on how they might build for the next 100 years. What UJPO does is largely a reflection of their origin story as outsiders: "We began in...

This is Part 3 of our series that tells the whole story behind the lawsuit activists have launched against the University of Calgary and the Calgary Police in response to an encampment eviction on the campus back in May 2024. Legal Counsel for the nine Plaintiffs, Chris Weibe joins us to talk about the merits of the case, and just how people's Charter Rights were violated. We ask him what a victor...

This is Part 2 of our series that tells the whole story behind the lawsuit activists have launched against the University of Calgary and the Calgary Police in response to an encampment eviction on the campus back in May 2024. Activist and Plaintiff, Wesam Cooley, joins us to talk about the night in question, specifically his role as the encampment's police liaison, and the interactions that led up...

This is Part 1 of a multi-part series that tells the whole story behind the lawsuit activists have launched against the University of Calgary and the Calgary Police in response to a violent encampment eviction back in May 2024. We start with Dr. Raheleh Tarani's compelling story; a mother from Iran who was on campus to support her son, and to speak up against what is happening in Gaza. Holding han...

On April 18th, hundreds of tenants gathered inside a school cafeteria to help shape Toronto’s first city-wide tenant’s union – the TTU . There were elections, robust policy discussions and plenty of stories from tenants. Blueprints of Disruption was there to capture it all, and provide analysis afterwards. On-scene interviews from inside the Toronto Tenant Union’s founding Convention start off wit...

How is Carney's War Bank and the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan (OTPP) connected? Through investments in weapons and genocide, as well as the activists and organizations fighting for a Free Palestine. Teacher and organizer with OTPP Divest , James Campbell gives an overview of the movement to get the OTPP to divest from weapons manufacturers. With a collection of success stories, it is clear the ca...

The Atlantic Regional Communists return to Blueprints to talk about their growth as political organization, and share some of the methodology that unpins their work. They obviously take some of their cues from Marx, but also from the Black Panthers. "We're here to learn from people. We're here to serve people. And we're here to help people organize towards a revolution." - Comrade M One of the thi...

Israeli Occupation Forces are attempting to annex Southern Lebanon. They are erasing towns from the map, blowing up bridges and roads, and telling the world they're about to redraw their borders...again. Previous guest, Mohamad, returns to the studio to talks about the current situation in Lebanon, what it was like being back home during the latest escalation of violence, and how it felt to leave...

CUPE Ontario, is at a crossroads. Their next convention is just months away, and for the first time in 12 years, Fred Hahn won’t be on the ballot for President. In February, after two and a half years of intensified attacks, he announced this would be his last term leading the union. What does this mean for the Province’s largest public sector union? Is this a blow for leftists in CUPE Ontario, or...

Ontario's Premier, Doug Ford has had post-secondary students, and their unions, in his sights since he took office, but a new round of cuts to OSAP has taken them over the edge. On March 14th, 2026, students mobilized at Queen's Park to demonstrate, only to be met by violence at the hands of the Toronto Police Services. This did not deter them. Organizers with the Canadian Federation of Students t...

Although using a new URL, activists behind the boycott of Canada's largest bookstore still say that ' Indigo Kills Kids '. A representative for the campaign talks about their choice of language, tactics and targets - most notably the CEO of Indigo Books, Heather Reisman. You'll hear how this Canadian oligarch has proudly poured millions into the HESEG foundation, which actively recruits soldiers f...

Sisters in film, Rawan Ramini and Jada-Gabrielle Pape were brought together for the film, From Salish Sea to Palestine. They joined Blueprints to talk about their use of the medium to make connections between movements, and tell the 'true stories' of their people. Ultimately though, it is a discussion on what really builds solidarity. The most obvious connections between Palestinians and Indigenou...

Despite court rulings saying they could stay, the Region of Waterloo has spent considerable effort trying to remove people living at the 100 Victoria Street encampment in Kitchener. Aaron, from Fightback KW! talks about the conflicts the Region, the Police and even social workers instigate to try to push residents out. From the denial of services, a carceral approach and continued court battles, a...

Two Toronto based Legal Observers from the Orange Hats return to give us details on the tactics Toronto Police are using to try to bring down the Palestinian Solidarity Movement. Tasked with keeping an eye on cops during protests and other actions, Gisela and Leon have lots of stories to tell. Together the group recently issued a 2025 Year-In-Review on Toronto Police Services conduct at protests....

Guest Jamie Kneen, of Mining Watch Canada gives an overview of the Canadian mining industry, while making the case its a continued colonial enterprise our politicians are more than happy to enable. How is it that an industry so big, with so many established cases of human rights abuses, continue to operate with such impunity, and under the radar? Jamie answers this, and talks about the work Mining...

Aliya Pabani, Organizer and Producer, joins us to help unpack the clear paradigm shift taking place in Canadian politics. The episode examines the deterioration of Canadian media, with their obvious vitriol towards leftist politics. It also takes a look at Carney's now-famous Davos speech, and what that means for the neoliberal project, and for us. What is our role now, as the façades of liberalis...

CROSSPOSTED FROM RABBLE RANTS - be sure to subscribe to this second podcast from the folks who brought you Blueprints of Disruption. One focused on the news, as it relates to our movements. ---------- ICE raids, mass deportations and communities resisting it all. Will the images filling our screens serve as a cautionary tale, or will Canadians convince themselves that those kinds of abuses wouldn'...

With Venezuela in the spotlight, we called in Raul Burbano of the Venezuelan Solidarity Coalition to give us a run down of what people in Canada are doing to resist yet another chapter of U.S. imperialist aggression. For almost a decade, organizers have been educating, advocating and mobilizing around the devastating sanctions and other forms of foreign intervention at the hands of the Canadian go...

Professor, activist, abolitionist and author of We Created Chavez , Geo Maher helps unpack what's going on in Venezuela from the often neglected perspective of the grassroots. While the moves of state actors are to be watched and analyzed, Maher argues they alone do not hold the fate of Venezuela in their hands. Semi-autonomous communities, mostly within the poorer barrios of the country, with roo...

Activists from Jews Say NO to Genocide are working to challenge the coordinated narratives around the antisemitic violence at Bondi Beach in Australia - narratives that help pave the way for dangerous legislation like Canada's own Bill C9. Louise, also of Independent Jewish Voices , goes over Carney's pending Act to Amend the Criminal Code , and its possible ramifications. From the new intimidatio...

Desmond Cole, acclaimed author and journalist at The Breach, sits down with host Jessa McLean to clear the air and contrast their positions around Yves Engler's campaign and the NDP's decision to block him. While disagreeing on a substantive amount of items, they still manage to find common ground - moving through conversations on vetting, insurgent campaigns, the legitimacy of tactics and more, i...

Halifax based community activist Rana Zaman has found herself in the midst of another smear campaign launched by Zionist lobbyists, and betrayed by the very institutions that once celebrated her. Back in 2019, the NDP withdrew her hard fought nomination - citing a three year-old tweet and pressure from organizations like B'Nai Brith and the Atlantic Jewish Council. We hear that story firsthand fro...

World Beyond War Canada organizer Rachel Small 's home was recently raided by Police - at 6 a.m., while the entire family was asleep. They seized all of her electronic devices, including those of her children. At the very same time, Police were also raiding the homes of some of her fellow activists, and preparing those press releases. Their alleged crime? Peacefully protesting outside of what orga...