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Canada

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It's always amazing to see Irish women succeeding in their field – and Marissa Carter certainly is no stranger to success. 

The beauty maverick build her own business based on tan – Cocoa Brown – before launching her own cosmetics brand Carter Beauty last year. 

Never one to shy away from a challenge, Marissa launched all 103 products at once last summer, and they were welcomed by the Irish beauty community with gusto. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Now, our Canadian cousins can get in on the Carter action, as Carter Beauty is expanding overseas. 

Irish gals abroad and Canadian beauty zealots alike will be able to pick up Marissa staples, from the Gel Liner lived by Ariana Grande's makeup artist, to her coveted foundations. 

Beauty has always been my passion,' Marissa said. 'Before Cocoa Brown, I owned my own salon, Carter Beauty, and  the satisfaction I go from seeing a woman watch herself transform was second to none.'

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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'Carter Beauty is an ode to that.We want to help women feel confident in themselves. '

 Carter Beauty by Marissa Carter launches this week in Hudson's Bay Shopping Centre, Toronto, with a whopper event on March 22nd and 23rd.

Whether you're overseas yourself or have always wanted your Canadian pals to experience Irish makeup products, this is fab news from an Irish female entrepreneur. 

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Shockingly, two people have been pronounced dead as a result of the deadly Toronto shooting. A child was reported critically injured early this morning, but it has not been confirmed whether she is the second victim.

Our hearts go out the families, as Toronto police say the girl is just eight or nine years old and was injured along with 12 others. 

The shooting took place in the city’s Greektown district when a large crowd was walking down the street.

The motive behind the attack is unknown, but it has been reported that the shooter targeted at least two cafes or restaurants, according to BBC News.

Canadian media has footage of the alleged shooter. He has been described as a white male with a dark baseball hat and dark clothing, carrying a shoulder bag. He is shown pulling out a handgun before firing.

The Globe and Mail reported that the gunman terrified civilians in a cafe called the Demetres when he opened fire and injured customers. He also fired into a crowd waiting to cross the street.

The paper interviewed one of the witnesses, Andrew Matzios, who was in this crowd when he saw the shooter coming towards them.

‘He had this horrible expression on his face,' Andrew recalled the experience with horror.

While pedestrians desperately ducked for cover, the gunman continued his frightening rampage, firing into businesses as he passed.

Police verified that the shooter was killed but have not confirmed if he shot himself or was gunned down by officers.

While Canada has a lot fewer shootings than its U.S. neighbour, there has been a major increase in gun violence in recent years.

The number of shootings in Toronto more than doubled between 2014-2017, according to police findings.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered his support to victims and called the people of Toronto ‘strong, resilient and brave.’

The Prime Minister has been fighting for stricter background checks. However, debates regarding gun laws continue to cause controversy in Canada.

Our thoughts go out to all affected by the shooting.

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Hi, my name is Katie and I’m caught in a love triangle.

My loves are so different. One is unfailingly polite, usually wears plaid shirts, drinks maple syrup by the gallon and is a major hockey enthusiast. The other is a mischievous drunk, mad for a bit of craic, a lovable, musical rogue.

One is Canada and the other is Ireland.

Lemme explain – I was born in the mid-nineties to two Irish parents in Toronto, Canada.

My first memories are all Canada based- our first house, meeting my little sister for the first time, etc. When we made the move back to Meath I apparently had a little Canadian accent. Yeah, I was hella cute.

When I began to grow bored of the countryside, I would ask why in the name of god they left one of the most exciting, multicultural cities in the world and leave me in Meath of all places. Meath!

If ‘Being Irish’ and I were in a relationship on Facebook it would be ‘It’s complicated’.

I couldn’t wait to go back to mother-mapel land. So when my chance came to study abroad in third year I jumped at it, signing on for anywhere in Canada without a second thought.

I got University of Waterloo, a large engineering university in a medium sized city two hours outside of Toronto.

I learned a lot in that year, and barely any of it academic. I learned a lot about being Irish, or not as Irish as I thought I was.

There’s a certain amount of preconceptions that follow you as an Irish(ish) abroad. Let me give you a bit of a list:

Everyone expects you to be super Catholic. Yes of course I’m devotee, Susan, that’s why I’m chatting to you in a grimy nightclub, wearing a crop top and smuggling a hip flask.

They expect you to come from a thatched roof cottage surrounded by sheep. I once got asked if we have internet in Ireland. Yes, Brad, yes we do.

One that never fails to rail any Irish person up is when they assume we’re part of England.

WE ARE A SEPARATE COUNTRY, KAREN, SIT DOWN!

Everyone expects you to be a walking encyclopaedia of Irish ancestry. I briefly considered carrying around Shamrock stickers with me to give to anyone calling themselves “Irish”

Awh your great-grandad’s second cousin’s wife’s dog was from Cork? That’s cute, Jeffery, here have a sticker.

And of course, the Irish reputation for drinking

No, Janet, it’s 10am on a Tuesday, I’m not drunk you uneducated buffoon.

Let’s just park it up here for a second and talk about our drinking reputation.

It proceeds us, it follows us, and frankly it makes a fool of us. I am all for a few pints and a bit of craic but being constantly reminded that we are a nation of ‘drunks’ really got to me.

In my experience, other nations (I’m looking at you Brits and Australians) are just as bad for the auld binge-drinking, we just happened to build our culture around it.

Literally, there’s at least one Irish pub in every city and big town in the world. I found it weird to be in a pub that called itself Irish and there being literally nothing Irish about it apart from a few Guinness signs and ‘Paddy’s’ put in front of every second menu item.  

I accepted my fate and got a job in an Irish bar. Not gonna lie, I played the accent up for tips. It felt weird, like I was putting on a show.

The non-Irishness of Irish bars pale in comparison to this specific drink. It’s called the Irish Car Bomb. It’s a Guinness with a shot of whiskey and Baileys.

I once clarified how offensive it was to me by likening it walking into a kebab shop and ordering an Isis Doner.

I found myself constantly explaining that Ireland isn’t all potatoes and starving peasants.

But that got me thinking. What exactly is Irishness? What do you get when you strip away the shamrocks, the pints and the “Pog Mo Thoin” t-shirts?

What does it actually mean to be Irish in 2018? It’s something that been defined and redefined constantly.

Emigration is something that has long been part of being Irish. There’s not one Irish family that doesn’t have cousins in Australia or an aunt in the U.S. Leaving and defining ourselves abroad is something that we’re used to- it’s been bet into our existence through centuries of poverty and oppression.

Since the early 2000's with the arrival of immigrants from Eastern Europe and elsewhere, along with a greater awareness of the world outside our tiny island, we suddenly had to look at ourselves and question the foundations that Ireland is built on.

And we should question it; question why our direct provision and immigration laws are so outdated in an increasingly globalized world, question why so many children are homeless, question why the Catholic church runs 90% of our primary schools.  

Question why I’m treated like a second class citizen in my own country. 

In Canada I can turn up at any clinic with my healthcare card and ask for a medical procedure that would get me jailed for 14 years in Ireland.

But it’s home, and I refuse to give up on it just yet. I’m proud to be Irish. I’m proud to see how far we’ve come for equality and acceptance in such a short space of time.

I’m proud of our rich culture and world-class literature. I just wish there could be more of an urge to grow as country, to accept our flaws and change them for the better.

Ireland’s not perfect, Canada’s not perfect. But I love them both.

Like I said, it’s complicated.

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Get out the credit card, because there's an unmissable flight sale happening right now. 

WOW air is offering Irish passengers €99.99 flights, via Reykjavik, to New York, Boston, San Francisco, Chicago, Pittsburgh and Washington DC.

If the USA doesn't take your fancy, the budget airline is also offering flights to Canada for the same price. 

 

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Canadian destinations include Toronto and Montréal for a limited time only.

The sale is happening RIGHT NOW and will continue until all of the low-cost seats have been sold. 

Flights must be booked between January 17 and April 24 2018.

 

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'WOW air’s January sale will give Irish passengers the chance to visit some of North America’s most popular destinations in comfort and a low price,' CEO and Founder of WOW air Skúli Mogensen said. 

Excuse us a moment, we have flights to book. 

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Legislatures in the Canadian province of Ontario have put a ban on pro-life protests outside abortion clinics and pharmacies that sell the termination pill.

The new law, passed on Wednesday, will see the creation of 50-metre “safe zones” outside the state's eight abortion clinics, in an attempt to prevent pro-life campaigners from intimidating patients and staff.

Measures have also been put in place to protect staff from “harassment” at their homes outside of working hours.

Anyone who violates the 50-metre boundary will face up to $5,000 (€3,309) in fines and six months in jail for a first offence and fines of $1,000 (€662) to $10,000 (€6,618) and up to a year in jail for a second or subsequent offence.

Speaking on the importance of the bill, Attorney General, Yasir Naqvi, commended the political parties for working together to pass the legislation sooner than expected.

“We as legislators have passed a very important piece of legislation ensuring that women have safe access to health-care services like reproductive health and abortion services,” he said.

“We worked on this bill on a very short time frame to ensure that we protect women.”

Ontario is not the first Canadian province to introduce such legislation, with British Columbia, Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador all having already enacted the safe zone laws.

Oh, and one more thing while we have you! Don't forget that you can catch up on all your favourite shows for free for a month right here, so sign up now!

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Leo Varadkar will kick off his three-day visit to Canada with a bilateral meeting before marching alongside Justin Trudeau in today's Montreal Pride parade.

The Taoiseach is then expected to travel to Toronto where he will discuss CETA and trade agreements between Ireland and Canada.

Ahead of the visit, supporters of the Repeal the Eight campaign started a viral hashtag #justinformleo, calling on the Canadian Prime Minister to approach the issue of Ireland's abortion ban, and educate Leo on the progressive Canadian system.

Ailbhe Smyth from the Coalition to Repeal the 8th said: "I would really like to see someone like Leo Varadkar would have an understanding that it is not enough to come out in favour of one aspect of human rights while completely ignoring another."

Leo is also expected to meet with business and tourism leaders and attend a reception with the Irish community in the city.

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Thinking of making the move to Canada this year?

Well, now's your chance to secure that dream job before you even step foot on the plane.

USIT are hosting a job fair on August 14 in their branch on Aston Quay, where a world class hotel group will be looking to hire for their ski-resort based in Whistler.

Situated just north of Vancouver, British Columbia, Whistler is home to one of the largest ski resorts in North America.

And with activities like snowboarding, tobagganing and ski jumping on offer, this picturesque town is the perfect place to spend a winter abroad.

Interviews will be held for cooks, baristas, receptionists, servers and ski attendants (to name just a few) and there will be an opportunity for potential employees to secure their contract on the same day.

The fair will allow interested Irish passport holders or anyone who possesses or qualifies for a two year IEC visa to be guaranteed an interview for a winter hotel job.

Contracts begin in November 2017, and range from 6 to 24 months.

Some employees may receive access to nearby affordable accommodation in Canada and discounts on ski and leisure passes. 

Interested applicants can secure their guaranteed interview slots by joining the Work in Canada programme with USIT. For more information see their website www.usit.ie.

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In what is thought to be the first case in the world, a baby has been born as gender neutral in Canada.

The baby, Searyl Atli Doty, has been issued a health card with the letter 'U' in the gender box for 'unknown'.

This comes as Searyl's parents fight to allow their child to pick its own gender identity in years to come.

The baby's parents are going to court after the Vital Statistics Agency of British Columbia refused to issue a birth certificate for the child.

“We’re not actually asking to have anyone’s ID changed against their will. We’re just asking to change the structure of how identification, particularly the birth certificate, starts out,” Searyl's parent Kori said.

Kori said that the family's goal is for the child to discover its own identity, and even when people ask if the child is a boy or girl, Kori has a swift retort.

“Often I’ll just say I don’t know yet, or I’m not rushing to apply those types of labels on this kid. Right now they’re just a baby.”

The parents explained that it was a massive turning point when Searyl's health card came in the post, marked with 'U'.

“For us, it’s a huge step forward,” they said.

Main image: Kori Doty Facebook

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We've all fanaticized about heading off to Canada for the trip of a lifetime, but those international flights can be seriously pricey. 

WOW Air are here to help.

The budget Icelandic airline have announced flights from Ireland to Canada for a measly €150 each way to celebrate Canada's 150th birthday. 

 

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All flights have stopovers in Reykjavik, and the final destinations include Toronto and Montreal.

'Canada’s 150th birthday celebration falls on 1 July, Canada Day, which marks the enactment of the Constitution Act of 1867 which united the three separate colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick,' said WOW in a statement.

'Ireland ranks 11th in the world for Canadian work permits and 27th for residency permits.'

 

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So if you've been planning on moving abroad or just heading over to see family, now would be the time to book.

The offer is valid is valid from today on various flights from Cork and Dublin airports. 

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Anti-Trump Americans made many satirical tweets during the recently called election claiming that if Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election, they would move to Canada.

Well, call their own bluff they did: disgruntled Americans unfurled their maple-leaf flags and crashed Canada's emigration website as Trump was elected 45th president of the United States.  

Officials confirmed that the crash was due to a massive spike in web traffic, some of which spilled out onto Twitter as the events unfolded.

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It all started with the site becoming increasingly slow as users fought to look up forms and requirements for emigration. 

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The site officially crashed in the early hours of the morning as Trump was within striking distance of winning, his promise to built a wall between the US and Mexico clearly still fresh in people's minds. 

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Initial frustrations were to be expected, as the inconvenience of it all got to a few potential emigrants.

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We're not sure if this merits emigration, but to each their own. 

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Some Canadians couldn't help but comment on the matter themselves. 

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And even Canada itself got in on the trend, 

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And others are still hung up on Barack Obama

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It seems like you can't just please anyone.

Niall Horan had a rather odd exchange with a fan while on the Kyle and Jackie O Show promoting his new single.

Niall had a Q&A with fans on the radio show, and a comment by Canadian student, Eve, left the Mullingar man totally red-faced.

 

A photo posted by Niall Horan (@niallhoran) on

While speaking to Eve, she was in a college class when Jackie O said: "Tell [your friends] you're on line with Niall right now and they will totally lose their minds."

But Eve bluntly replied: "But I live in Canada… no one really cares."

 

A video posted by Niall Horan (@niallhoran) on

OUCH.

Niall just began to laugh nervously as Jackie tried her best saying: "Oh sorry buddy… we would chop that out if we weren't live."

Poor Niall, we would have went mental for him!

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To most of us, today is simply the start of a new month – Howiya July, looking good! 

However, on this fine Friday, Canadians across the globe celebrate the founding of their lovely country with Canada Day. 

Back in 1867, an act was passed that combined three former British colonies into one nation, and so Canada was born.  

canada

This beautiful country, that shares a border with our American friends, has a lot to be proud of. It has become renowned for it's majestic scenery and the wonderful individuals that populate it. 

With a population of just over 36 million people, it's no wonder that some of our favourite celebs hail from this snowy land. 

canada

And we are here to highlight our favourite Canadians of all time, and thank them for the impact they have had in today's world. 

Drake

Our favourite R&B master, Aubrey Graham, is a Toronto native. Drake frequently refers to 'the six' in his music, which is a slang word for Toronto.

As a platinum award-winning artist, we have no doubt that Canada is proud of this 28-year-old super star. 

drake

Ryan Gosling

Ryan, who made us fall in love with him in The Notebook, was born and raised in the Ontario region of Canada. 

No real explanation needed here, THANK YOU Canada, thank you for giving us Ryan Gosling. 

ryan gosling

Kim Catrall

One of our favourite New Yorkers, Kim was actually raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, where she moved at just three-months-old. 

The actress, who is widely loved for her sassy portrayal of Samantha Jones in Sex and the City, lives in New York full time, but also still owns property in her homeland. 

samantha jones

Matthew Perry

Ah, Chandler Bing, the nineties would not have been the same without you! 

Matthew Perry grew up in Ottawa, Ontario with his mother Suzanne, who was press secretary to the Canadian Prime Minister in the 1980s. 

Could he BE any more Canadian?

Justin Bieber

What would a list of awesome Canadians be without the Biebs? Useless, that's what! 

The Sorry singer hails from Ontario, and happens to be close friends with fellow Canadian, Drake.

Justin has French-Canadian roots, and as a result is fluent in the French language. OUI OUI! 

Justin Bieber

We thank you Canada, have a fantastic day of celebrations! 

Centre Images: giphy.com, popsugar.com

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