Multi-coloured tents are filling downtown Ottawa's Confederation Park as demonstrators join with the international Occupy Wall Street movement to protest what they see as injustices across a broad spectrum of issues, from the economy to the environment to indigenous rights.
The movement came to Ottawa on Oct. 15 when more than 500 people gathered at the park at Laurier and Elgin streets to hold a public meeting and decide by consensus what site they would occupy.
"We are here to occupy Ottawa," Brigette DePape told the crowd of mostly young people dotted with families and seniors.
"This is what democracy looks like," said the 22-year-old activist and former parliamentary page who lost her job after holding up a sign reading "Stop Harper" during last June's Throne Speech.
The movement began with a call to "occupy Wall Street" by Vancouver-based anti-consumerism magazine Adbusters.
On Sept. 17 protesters in New York City took up the call and marched through Wall Street denouncing the global financial system they accuse of concentrating money and power in the hands of a few while marginalizing the vast majority of citizens.
Since then, occupations have sprung up in hundreds of cities all over the world.
"I feel there is a bit of history-making going on," says Ria Heynen, a retiree who was protesting at the Ottawa rally.
Another protester, Mike Abraham, says he wants to raise awareness about the shrinking middle class. "My concern is that . . . the main message might end up being co-opted by somebody's more fringe messages."
Members of the Air Canada flight attendants' union were at the rally protesting the government legislating them back to work. Another man held high a photo of Moammar Gadhafi.
It's important to know everyone at the protest is representing only themselves, says Alex Hill, a student at the University of Ottawa and a member of Occupy Ottawa's legal committee. "Everybody here is coming with their own pet issues," he says.
But this diversity gives the movement legitimacy, argues Hill. "There's been some discussion about whether or not the group has a coherent message yet," he says, "But I think it's precisely because it's such a grassroots process that these things take time."
That lack of a single message has been the reason behind the bulk of the criticism against the movement.
"We don't have one coherent message, we have many coherent messages," says Arun Smith, a student at Carleton university, who also works for the government.
The general assembly began at noon. After discussing several proposals, the group decided to stay in Confederation Park instead of moving to Parliament Hill or Major's Hill Park near the U.S. embassy.
Confederation Park is owned by the National Capital Commission. The commission will let the police take the lead on whether or not to kick the protesters out of the park, says Jean Wolff, a spokesperson for the NCC.
But it's not up to the police to decide to remove the protesters because the land is owned by the NCC, says Ottawa police Staff Sgt. Dave Thomas.
The police haven't received any complaints about the protesters, says Thomas. Interactions between police and protesters have been good and they will only step in if any criminal activity happens, he says.
It's good to see people getting involved and exercising their right to protest, says Jordan Charbonneau, vice-president of the Centretown Citizens Community Association.
"A lot of Centretown residents share the concerns that the protesters are voicing. I'm sure many Centretown residents are taking part in the protests," says Charbonneau.
If the movement continues to grow the protesters might disrupt life in Centretown, says Charbonneau. But the police are doing a good job and protesters know they aren't there to damage anything or disrupt people's lives, he adds.
A week after the rally, the camp had grown to 50 tents. There was a kitchen, a media tent, a warming hut and four portable washrooms.
"This movement is open to all," says DePape. "We hope that everyone who walks by will join,” she says. "We're all part of this together."
No comments:
Post a Comment