To serve and protect
Aug. 13th, 2018 09:42 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sabotabbyI was feeling really guilty about prancing around the world whilst my comrades back home prepared for a counter-protests against the fascist World Coalition Against Islam (WCAI) and its cronies. Fortunately, owing to infighting, the main rally was cancelled (they blamed a Bollywood festival which was supposedly happening in the square, even though no such festival was planned—though now I desperately want a Bollywood musical about punching Nazis and you know I deserve one). The exchanges online were all screenshotted for the lulz.
Our local fash are dogged, however, and a few still planned to show up, and I was worried as usual that our side wouldn't have the numbers to keep them from marching.
Fortunately, very few showed up and the ones who did were forced to hide in City Hall until the cops could get them away. But they showed up late, I guess, hence this amazing picture.
Toronto Police Services
But Freezed Peach!, 2018
Site-specific performance art
(Title courtesy ofrdi. Photo courtesy of No Borders Media.)
While it's pretty funny that cops showed up to guard an empty space that fascists were supposed to be in, well. I've gotten into a lot of internet debates with people who are fully willing to cede the fight against racism and authoritarianism to the state, condemning antifa as needlessly violent, etc. And this picture is a good example of why we can't do that. Because despite the fact that there is zero threat to public safety here, the cops find the prospect of anti-fascism dangerous enough that they must assemble in large numbers to protect the idea of fascism.
That should scare the shit out of you. And piss you off if you pay taxes in Toronto.
Our local fash are dogged, however, and a few still planned to show up, and I was worried as usual that our side wouldn't have the numbers to keep them from marching.
Fortunately, very few showed up and the ones who did were forced to hide in City Hall until the cops could get them away. But they showed up late, I guess, hence this amazing picture.
Toronto Police Services
But Freezed Peach!, 2018
Site-specific performance art
(Title courtesy of
rdi. Photo courtesy of No Borders Media.)While it's pretty funny that cops showed up to guard an empty space that fascists were supposed to be in, well. I've gotten into a lot of internet debates with people who are fully willing to cede the fight against racism and authoritarianism to the state, condemning antifa as needlessly violent, etc. And this picture is a good example of why we can't do that. Because despite the fact that there is zero threat to public safety here, the cops find the prospect of anti-fascism dangerous enough that they must assemble in large numbers to protect the idea of fascism.
That should scare the shit out of you. And piss you off if you pay taxes in Toronto.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-14 04:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2018-08-14 04:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2018-08-14 09:50 pm (UTC)(tl;dr: if you are standing near cops, you might have to dodge an egg. if you are filming people with a big camera, they might try to cover your camera lens with their hands and tell you to bug off.)