January 8, 2020The day that PS752 was shot down will forever be frozen in his memoryJavad Soleimani Meimandi places his backpack on a picnic table and delicately removes the contents. A leather-bound certificate folder bears the same University crest as his… Sep 27 20September 27, 2020Article at Edify.
The New Canadian CanonThe 50 most iconic films, books, albums and TV shows of the century so far Oct 20 26October 20, 2026Article at Maclean's
How to be a good man todayAs society embraces new and improved models of masculinity, some young men are adrift Jun 18 26June 18, 2026Article at Broadview
The War Over Safe Drug Supply in VancouverTwo activists gave away untainted heroin, cocaine and meth . They say they saved lives. The federal government says they’re drug traffickers. July 15, 2024 Eris Nyx has always been rebellious. Growing up in the suburbs outside of Toronto in the… Jul 15 24July 15, 2024Article at Maclean's
Back Road Productions Celebrates James Beard Award Nomination for "The Lebanese Burger Mafia"EDMONTON, AB - The Lebanese Burger Mafia, a crowd-funded documentary exposing an improbable connection between fast-food and Middle Eastern refugees, has been nominated for a prestigious James Beard Media Award. Often referred to as the Oscars of the… Apr 30 24April 30, 2024Article at Omar on Authory
TRAILER: Making Kayfabe – Streaming on CBC Gem 2/23/24 (Back Road Productions/CBC Gem Originals)Stream it free on CBC Gem: http://tinyurl.com/makingkayfabeIn the new documentary comedy, journalist Omar Mouallem, director of The Lebanese Burger Mafia, discovers the surprisingly ordinary people moonlighting as indie wrestlers while undergoing his… Feb 09 24February 09, 2024Video at YouTube
The Impossible Fight to Stop Canada’s WildfiresThis is your last free article. See the future here first with 1 year of unlimited access. BONUS: Free WIRED stickers. Canadian firefighter Scott Rennick knew this summer would be bad. It was May 2023 and Rennick was commanding one of British… Aug 23 23August 23, 2023Article at WIRED
Canada’s Big Flex in SpacePublished 6:30, Jun. 7, 2023 Chris Hadfield trained four years for a seven-hour spacewalk. On April 22, 2001, he and American astronaut Scott Parazynski were tasked with assembling and installing a payload, which had arrived with them via space… Jun 07 23June 07, 2023Article at The Walrus
I grew up behind the grills at Canada's weirdest fast-food franchise. Here's what it taught me about becoming Canadian.How a failed McDonald’s knock-off became an anarchic, freewheeling fast-food success for generations of Lebanese-Canadian immigrants If you didn’t grow up in Alberta, you’ve probably never heard of Burger Baron. It’s a fast-food chain in only the… Apr 26 23April 26, 2023Article at Maclean's
Trailer: The Lebanese Burger Mafia (Back Road Productions)** OFFICIAL SELECTION HOT DOCS 2023 **** AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARD FOR BEST DOC - NORTHWEST FEST **The Lebanese Burger Mafia captures the trials and tribulations of Arab immigrants by telling the story of Burger Baron, a rogue fast-food chain likened to… Mar 28 23March 28, 2023Video at YouTube
A Monster in the ClassroomMichael Gregory was the most popular teacher at Calgary’s John Ware school—and a serial abuser who preyed on students for nearly 20 years. How did he fall through the cracks? Pretty, popular and precocious, Kelly Schneider was an “it” girl at… Nov 15 22November 15, 2022Article at Maclean's
A Portentous ChangeI spent much of summer 2021 outside Alberta. Expecting the worst here—an imminent fourth wave of COVID—I took some time in Ontario for my mental well-being. The first question from one of my pollster colleagues out east when we got together for… May 01 22May 01, 2022Article at Alberta Views - The Magazine for Engaged Citizens
How Herbie Kuhn became Canada’s most famous chaplainIf there ever was a moment that Herbie Kuhn heard the audible voice of God, it was on a basketball court. Not the Scotiabank Arena, sitting courtside to announce the Toronto Raptors, for whom Kuhn has been official game announcer since 1995, but… Feb 01 22February 01, 2022Article at Broadview
How a McDonald’s Knockoff Became the Immigrant DreamWith its sloppy burgers and friendly fat knight mascot, Alberta’s Burger Baron has amassed a cult following—and sheltered a generation of Arab immigrants. Chances are you’ve never heard of Burger Baron unless you grew up in Alberta, Canada, in which… Oct 15 21October 15, 2021Article at Vice
On the Push and Pull of Muslim Cultural IdentityThe first time I learned I was Muslim was in preschool. During an excursion to a pizzeria, which is what passed for a field trip in my hometown of High Prairie, Alberta, I consumed a few morsels of ham. My mom arrived with the other parents to pick… Sep 30 21September 30, 2021Article at Literary Hub
Where were you on 9/11? For Muslims who were just coming of age at the time, the question is existentialOmar Mouallem is an Edmonton-based writer and the author of the forthcoming book Praying to the West: How Muslims Shaped the Americas. The question is almost a cliché now: “Where were you on 9/11?” Just about everyone older than 20 can put a pin down… Sep 10 21September 10, 2021Article at The Globe and Mail
Once a dead religion, Moorish Science is seeing a curious resurgenceWhen I started researching my book Praying to the West, a travelogue of Islamic communities rooted in the western world, I knew that a trip to Chicago was inevitable. It is, in the truest sense, a Black Mecca. It has spawned or galvanized the most… Jun 29 21June 29, 2021Article at Broadview
The gratitude gap: What does Canada owe refugees, and what do they owe us?Omar Mouallem is an Edmonton-based writer and the author of the forthcoming book Praying to the West: How Muslims Shaped the Americas. Since 2015, Canada has become a new home for more than 76,000 Syrians displaced by civil war, and they’re already… Jun 26 21June 26, 2021Article at The Globe and Mail
Was Eddy Haymour a Terrorist or Civil Rights Martyr?How the Canadian Dream became a nightmare for one Edmonton immigrant, the subject of Eddy’s Kingdom, a new documentary about the country’s first international hostage crisis.A previous version of this story ran in Eighteen Bridges in 2013. It has… Nov 08 20November 08, 2020Article at Edify.
How a Pocket Knife Saved This Man During a Grizzly Bear AttackAlone on a mountain and pinned under a grizzly, Colin Dowler reached for a pocket knife and struggled for his life. A Scream in the Wild Ever since he was a kid growing up on Quadra Island, B.C., Colin Dowler pushed himself to do more, go faster and… Oct 30 20October 30, 2020Article at Readers' Digest
Life and Death in the ICULarry Pancer was hired at Markham Stouffville Hospital more than three decades ago, right after his pediatric training at SickKids. The hospital was brand new, and Pancer remembers holding the first child born there. He and his wife Patricia lived… Sep 17 20September 17, 2020Article at Toronto Life
