G20 goes home, but not soon enough

[sabotabby]

Conflicting reports about a police raid on the Toronto Community Mobilization Network's convergence space, which turned out to be false, though there is still a police presence. At one point, demonstrators were blocked in and detained by police, but then let go. Rumours of rubber bullets being used near UofT. (For non-Hogtowners, neither the convergence space nor UofT is nowhere near where the summit was happening.) About 150 people have apparently been arrested doing strike support for the workers at Novotel.

The UofT Graduate Student Union was raided. The house of a young couple was raided at 4 am by armed police—the victims had nothing whatsoever to do with the protests. Two people were arrested at a solidarity rally at the detention centre on Eastern Ave.


Peaceful protesters boxed in by police at Queen and Spadina today.

nihilistic_kid gives us a poetic explanation.

Now, everything's quiet again. I went with bcholmes and S. to see Cherry Orchard at the Shaw Festival—it was awesome and I so needed to get out of the city. As we came back along the highway, we saw the motorcade taking the G2O delegates to the airport. Someone made or rented a gigantic billboard that read: "G-20: Go jump in the lake."

I am completely exhausted. It's over at last. Well, it isn't, because there are still people in jail or who have been charged who need our support, and there's still all sorts of disinformation in the media that needs to be countered, but for now I am a sleepy sabotabby who needs to sleep.

Comments

[pofflewomp.livejournal.com]

aaargh.
I am still shocked, probably very naively so, that police are allowed to prevent peaceful protests, do this "kettling" crap, arrest people willy-nilly...aaaaargh!!!!!!!!!!!!! It really scares me. I think that's partly why I don't do more protesting - it is so scary I prefer to sit in denial thinking we live in a free, enlightened country!

Cool billboard!

Also I have been thinking for a while that I want to see some Chekhov. I loved him when I was a teenager because he has kind eyes and had such a brutal, awful childhood but somehow kept things together and was a lovely person. There is a photo of him and Gorky sitting together at his villa and they both look beautiful.

[pofflewomp.livejournal.com]

bloody hell. Just read the one about the non-anarchist couple! All written as if it would be fine to hold guns at the heads of anarchists but not at the heads of conservatives or democrats or whatever other political denomination...

[lienne.livejournal.com]

hhbggghgfgvcvcvvgc

I actually do not remotely have the words

pounding my keyboard with my fist is all I've got

[tanyahp.livejournal.com]

I read about the raid on the University...the "take" on it in the mainstream media is one of total justification for police abuses. Needless to say, I am appalled. Is there anything you think we plebes can do from here in the US?

[sabotabby]

Is there anything you think we plebes can do from here in the US?

Absolutely! People are still being held under reportedly horrible conditions, with no access to toilet paper or water. frandroid says he was held for 27 hours without legal council. And our Prime Minister is blustering to the world about "thugs." There have been 900 arrests, including journalists, passersby, and even children.

International condemnation is really what we need. I doubt Harper checks his e-mail, but it's pm@pm.gc.ca.