Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament Rally – Toronto Edition
Posted on 23 January 2010
As Canadian as you can get. Tim Horton's and all.
First off, this was actually my first protest/rally experience in my almost 25 years on this earth… and this was certainly not by accident. For the most part I am against the concept of protests. I feel they often get out of hand, get off point, and are generally ineffective.
That said, why did I attend this one? Well, it was for a cause I truly believe in, but moreover, I knew that with the large numbers that were expected for this rally I felt it actually could make a difference. Now honestly speaking, I have absolutely zero expectation of these rallies changing Stephen Harper’s policies, but I definitely do think it will motivate the opposition parties knowing so many Canadian’s are behind them and moreover will motivate Canadian voters to vote against Stephen Harper’s Conservatives. This is why I attended this rally.
Now, was it successful? Well, in Toronto I definitely think it was. There were definitely thousands of people out at Yonge-Dundas Square, numbers I have heard ranging up to 7000 and that is a number I would absolutely believe. It was a gigantic crowd. I was impressed. Canadians are disappointed with Stephen Harper’s blatant sidestepping of the democratic process, and today we were heard loud and clear.
The crowd had many great/amusing signs, but there was one thing in particular that did bother me – the NDP’s overbearing presence (in terms of signs) at a rally that was specifically designed to be non-partisan. The Green’s and Communist Party (yes, the Communist Party) had signs there as well, but there was no party as obvious as the NDP. I actually only saw one Liberal sign all day, which I was impressed by. The NDP didn’t seem to understand the concept of a non-partisan rally, and this disappointed me as I feel their blatant partisanship hurt the message of the rally.
I thought this was non-partisan, Jack?
Beyond that I was certainly a little confused by strange songs at some points (Oh Canada to anti-Harper lyrics offended me a little) and some speakers who were a little more radical than I would have liked, but for the most part the rally was a very positive experience. I would say, other than those few minor points I was very impressed with the rally. We got a huge crowd, which was for the most part happy, peaceful, good spirited, sometimes amusing, and appropriate for families. I always fear protests can get a little extreme and dangerous, but today’s protest stayed safe and good spirited.
In the end, and despite the minor gripes I did have, we held over 60 separate rallies across the country – and the reality is that today we got our message out. I hope the media coverage tonight is strong, because Canadians who were not out deserve to know what was going on today and why. Stephen Harper – I know you wanted Canadian’s to not care that you decided not to show up for work, but we do. You’re not doing your job, and we are not happy. Now Canadians need to stand up in the next election and show their frustration at the ballot box.
Check out my photo album of the rally.
Hey Steve, look at the crowd. We do care. Too bad for your anti-democratic agenda.
6 responses to Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament Rally – Toronto Edition
-
Affiliations
The Waterloo rally went pretty damn well. I was impressed. I’ve heard estimates of 500 or more.
I had many of the same impressions as you, Colin. Though the dictator thing never came up, some speakers used it as a cheap opportunity to promote the theme of “proportional representation” with no details (ie mmp, that other one from BC, etc), and the independent candidate went on a loony rant about how power has been centralizing since Trudeau and Harper has only played his part in the role the last several PMOs have been “working to achieve”.
The NDP were well-coordinated across the country, with special banners for the rally and lots of presence. I wasn’t sure what to think of it at first, but in hindsight, as long as it’s ABC, it’s ok.
That said, the NDP did give me a handout, which took away from the non/multi-partisan feel a bit.
I also ran into my master’s supervisor. That was cool.
Anywho, that’s my brief take on the rally I went to. Hope all is well, Colin.
-Graeme
nicely written – I’ll share. I kind of agree on the stance that Harper and his folks will hang on to any possible way to discredit the effort put forth. In that sense, perhaps the NDP went a little overboard. I was amused when you said some of the speakers where a little more radical than you would have liked, there were several speakers, which struck you as radical?
Thanks for the comment!
To be honest, I don’t know who any of the speakers were – I was pretty far back and never caught any of their names. I just remember a few of them pushing the more hard line arguments pretty hard (more along the “Harper is a dictator” type or argument). Or at least from what I could hear. Again, I was pretty far back. Either way, I am more in favour of talking reform of political process and about how Harper abused the public’s trust than the more hard line arguments. Not that I necessarily disagree with them, but I feel that the movement will get more resonance with the public as a whole with a more moderate/pragmatic approach. That is just my opinion though. In any case, it was a hugely successful day, and am really happy I was a part of it.
thanks for your response Colin – I think you’re right, I’m left wing – but I see the potential in all people coming together and making democracy work in this country. I respect all people so long as their beliefs benefit the whole not just the one. Good luck! see you at the next rally
It’s important to note that non or multi partisan does not mean non-visible. We all have different political views, and we were all united in opposing Stephen Harper’s hijacking of democracy. That doesn’t mean that flying one’s colours is inappropriate.
An analogy: Canada is taking the world stage in the Olympic Games. We all have our favourite NHL teams; I’m a Vancouver Canucks fan, you might cheer for another team. That doesn’t mean that throughout the Olympics we can’t cheer for Canada’s team together, while I wear my Canucks jersey and you wear another jersey. We’re united in our support for Canada’s hockey team, but we’re also able to fly our colours and promote our team allegiances without otherwise upending our unity.
Unless, of course, one of the parties takes offense to it and says “That’s not fair!”. Doing that, however, strikes me as, well, not fair.
Hey Peter, thanks for the comment.
I can’t disagree with you completely. Although I personally wasn’t a huge fan of the partisan signs, it certainly didn’t ruin the rally. You are right – it can be “multi-partisan” while still showing political stripes. I actually do like the analogy. I think more my fear was going to be the Conservatives coming back saying “well you said it wasn’t partisan, but look at all of those orange signs” than anything else… which is where I feel the rally can lose credibility. From a “our side” perspective though the partisan signage didn’t change the message.
In the end though, as I said, I definitely think it was a very successful day for the anti-proroguing cause, any minor gripes aside because they didn’t change the end result.