Norman Nawrocki (born in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

), is a

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

-based comedian,

sex educator Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including emotional relations and responsibilities, human sexual anatomy, sexual activity, sexual reproduct ...

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...

artist, musician, author, actor, producer and composer.Norman Nawrock
Les Pages Noires
Accessed 15 October 2006 Nawrocki together with Sylvain Côté were the founding members of "rock 'n roll cabaret" band

Rhythm Activism Rhythm Activism was a Canadian, Montreal-based musical collective, revolving around the core duo of Sylvain Côté and Norman Nawrocki. The group, formed in 1985 as a poetry and music ensemble, evolved into performing a politically radical brand ...

. Nawrocki owns Les Pages Noires, through which he has published twenty albums and three books.

Early life and education

Nawrocki was born in the East End of

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

Ukrainian Canadian Ukrainian Canadians ( uk, Українські канадці, Україноканадці, translit=Ukrayins'ki kanadtsi, Ukrayinokanadtsi; french: Canadiens d'origine ukrainienne) are Canadians, Canadian citizens of Ukrainians, Ukrainian desce ...

parents. He attended

Langara College , mottoeng = Knowledge is Freedom , established = April 1, 1994 , type = Public , endowment = C$5.8 million , administrative_staff = , faculty = , president = Paula Burns , students = 22,000 , city = Vancouver, British Columbia , coun ...

and

Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a public research university in British Columbia, Canada, with three campuses, all in Greater Vancouver: Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, and Vancouver. The main Burnaby campus on Burnaby Mountain, located from ...

, and co-edited the university's newspaper The Peak. He left without graduating.

Career

In 1993, Nawrocki created ''I don’t understand women!'', the first of several anti-sexist,

sex positive The sex-positive movement is a social movement, social and philosophical movement that seeks to change cultural attitudes and norms around sexuality, promoting the recognition of sexuality (in the countless forms of expression) as a natural and he ...

, comedy cabarets on the topic of

date rape Date rape is a form of acquaintance rape and dating violence. The two phrases are often used interchangeably, but date rape specifically refers to a rape in which there has been some sort of romantic or potentially sexual relationship between ...

sexual harassment Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fro ...

and

violence against women Violence against women (VAW), also known as gender-based violence and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), are violent acts primarily or exclusively committed against women or girls, usually by men or boys. Such violence is often consi ...

. In 2001, Nawrocki and

Godspeed You! Black Emperor Godspeed You! Black Emperor (sometimes abbreviated to GY!BE or Godspeed) is a Canadian post-rock band which originated in Montreal, Quebec in 1994. The group releases recordings through Constellation, an independent record label also located i ...

drummer

Aidan Girt Aidan Girt is a Canadian drummer for the Montreal-based post-rock collectives Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and Exhaust. He is also a solo electronic artist under the names ''OSB'', ''1-Speed Bike'', and ''Bottleskup Flenkenkenmike'' and continues ...

formed a duo called Bakunin's Bum, named after the

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...

philosopher

Mikhail Bakunin Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin (; 1814–1876) was a Russian revolutionary anarchist, socialist and founder of collectivist anarchism. He is considered among the most influential figures of anarchism and a major founder of the revolutionary ...

."DaZoque! DaZoque!"
''Exclaim!'', By Eric Hill 1 January 2006 Their recording, ''Fight to Win!'' was released in 2001 on

G7 Welcoming Committee Records G7 Welcoming Committee Records was a Canadian independent record label based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The label mostly released material by artists and speakers with a radical left-wing point of view. History G7 Welcoming Committee Records was ...

as a benefit for the

Ontario Coalition Against Poverty The Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP) is an anti-poverty group in Ontario, Canada, which promotes the interests of the poor and homeless. The group uses publicity-generating direct action techniques such as squatting and demonstrations whic ...

and featured spoken word by anti-poverty activists over instrumental music. In 2004 he wrote, recorded and released his first solo album, ''Duck Work''. By the end of 2005 Nawrocki was teaching a course at

Concordia University Concordia University ( French: ''Université Concordia'') is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College and Sir George Williams University, Concordia is one of the t ...

's School of Community & Public Affairs on ''The Arts, Radical Social Change and Community Economic Development''. As well as starring in ''Uncle Eddie's guide to art appreciation'', by Donald Goodes.Norman Nawrocki's biograph
Les Pages Noires
Accessed 15 May 2007 On 25 February 2010, Norman Nawrocki has signed, together with 500 artists, the call to support the international campaign for

Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) is a Palestinian-led movement promoting boycotts, divestments, and economic sanctions against Israel. Its objective is to pressure Israel to meet what the BDS movement describes as Israel's obligations ...

against Israeli apartheid.Tadamon!: 500 Artists Against Israeli Apartheid
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Bibliography

* ''Rhythm Activism live'' (1987) (Les Pages Noires) * ''Resist much – obey little'' (1987) (Les Pages Noires) * ''Rebel moon : anarchist rants & poems'' (1997) (AK Press) * ''Chasseur de tornades'' (1998) ; (EDAM Montréal; Les Pages Noires) * ''No masters! No Gods! : dare to dream'' (1999) (Smarten Up! & get to the point) * ''The anarchist & the devil do cabaret'' (2003) , (Black Rose) * ''L'anarchiste et le diable : voyages, cabarets et autres récits'' (2006) (Lux Editeur) * ''Breakfast for anarchists'' (2006) (No Bar Code Press) * ''L’Anarchico e il Diavolo fanno cabaret'',

il Sirente Editrice il Sirente is an Italian book publisher with specialisms in human rights and international law, Arabic fiction and comics, investigation, actuality. The company was founded in 1998. The catalog, including works of nonfiction on topics m ...

, Fagnano Alto (AQ) 2007, . Original Title: ''The Anarchist And The Devil Do Cabaret'' * ''RED: Quebec Student Strike and Social Revolt Poems'' (2013) (Les Pages Noires) Distributed in the United States and Europe by AK Press

Discography

* ''I don't understand women!'' (1994) LPN012 (Les Pages Noires) * ''Less Rock, More Talk: Spoken Word compilation'' (various artists) (1997; 2000) ; virus254 (

AK Press AK Press is a worker-managed, independent publisher and book distributor that specialises in radical left and anarchist literature. Operated out of Chico, California, the company is collectively owned. History AK was founded in Stirling, Sc ...

Audio;

Alternative Tentacles Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 in San Francisco, California. It was used by Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single " California Über Alles". After realizing the potential for an independent label, t ...

) * ''Duck Work'' (2004) LPN018C * ''Letters from Poland / lettres de Pologne'' (2006) LPN020C

Bakunin's Bum

* ''Fight to Win! : a benefit CD for OCAP Ontario Coalition Against Poverty'' (2001) G7021 (

G7 Welcoming Committee G7 Welcoming Committee Records was a Canadian independent record label based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The label mostly released material by artists and speakers with a radical left-wing point of view. History G7 Welcoming Committee Records was f ...

)

Bush's Bum

* ''2TONGUE #5'' (various artists) (2004)

DaZoque!

* ''DaZoque!'' (2002) LPN016C (Les Pages Noires)

The Montreal Manhattan Project

''Draft 1.0'' (2004) LPN017C (Les Pages Noires)

Rhythm Activism

* ''Rhythm Activism'' (1986) LPN001 (Les Pages Noires) * ''Rhythm Activism Live'' (1987) LPN002 * ''Resist Much, Obey Little'' (1987) LPN003 * ''Louis Riel in China'' (1988) LPN004 * ''Un logement pour une chanson'' (1990) LPN005 * ''Fight the Hike!'' (1990) LPN006 * ''Perogies, Pasta and Liberty'' (1990) LPN007 * ''Oka'' (1990) LPN008 * ''War is the Health of the State'' (1991) LPN009 * ''Oka II'' (1992) LPN010 * ''Tumbleweed'' (1993) LPN011 * ''Blood & Mud'' (1994) LPN013C * ''More Kick! : live in Europe'' (1995) LPN014C * ''Buffalo, Burgers & Beer : a 10 year retrospective'' (1995) LPN015 * ''Jesus Was Gay'' (1998) G7006 (

) * ''

Return of the Read Menace ''Return of the Read Menace'' is a compilation album, released in 1999 on G7 Welcoming Committee Records. Track listing # Screeching Weasel, "My Own World" # J Church, "Tightrope" # No Use For a Name, "Hybrid Moments" ( Misfits Cover) # Pitchshi ...

'' (various artists) (1999) G7010 * ''

Take Penacilin Now ''Take Penacilin Now'' is a 2005 compilation album released on G7 Welcoming Committee Records. The compilation features almost every artist that has released material on the label. It features a new exclusive track from Propagandhi, unreleased tra ...

'' (various artists) (2005) G7040

SANN : Sylvain Auclair & Norman Nawrocki

* ''SANN : Sylvain Auclair Norman Nawrocki'' (2005) LPN019C

Videography

* ''Musiques Rebelles Québec ebel Music Quebec' (various artists) (2002) (Productions Multi-Monde) Welcome to Rebel Music Quebe
Rebel Music Quebec
Accessed 11 May 2007 * ''Uncle Eddie's Guide to Art Appreciation'' (2005) (Infringement performance)

Rhythm Activism

* ''That's the way we tie our shoes : a recipe by Rhythm Activism'' (1996) (Unbend films; Les Pages Noires) * ''Alive and kicking : the first ten years of Rhythm Activism'' (1997) (Les Pages Noires)

References

External links

Les Pages Noires

Editrice il Sirente
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nawrocki, Norman Living people Musicians from Vancouver Writers from Vancouver Musicians from Montreal Writers from Montreal Canadian punk rock musicians Canadian anarchists Canadian male novelists Year of birth missing (living people) Langara College people