What started as Occupy-style sit-ins in Montreal has grown into something different entirely. Thanks to Bill 78, which limits the freedom of assembly, Quebecois and beyond are spilling out on the streets with their kitchenware.
Tonight at Dufferin Grove, Toronto gets to bang on its own pots and pans in solidarity.
The practice of making noise comes from the Spanish-speaking countries of South America. It’s called the cacerolazo, after the word for cacerola, which means stew pot. The last major cacerolazo was in August of 2011 in Santiago, Chile, organized by students.
This video of Casserole protests in Montreal has gone viral, and helped spread the protest technique.
The protest in support of Quebec students and against Bill 78 will be held in Dufferin Grove Park at 8p.m tonight, along with a number of others around the city.
There’s one in Leslieville, Winchester Park, Seaton Village, at the corner of Grace and Harbord, at Harbord & Huron, heading west toward Dufferin, and in Parkdale.
Attendees are asked to bring pots, casserole dishes, and wooden spoons, while dressed in all red. According to the official Casserole Night in Canada page, simultaneous protests are scheduled for this evening across the country, where the pieces of kitchen cutlery are noted as “weapons of liberation.”
There over 1,000 people who’ve accepted the Toronto invitation on Facebook alone. Protests from Vancouver to Grand Manan Island, NB, have similarly received a strong show of support. Word has spread to Brussels, where one Facebooker writes, “Que la force soit avec vous! Solidarity from Belgium.”
