The late-night raids that evicted the Occupy Wall Street protesters from Zuccotti Park in Manhattan should give municipal governments all over the world encouragement to do the same.
It’s already happened in Portland, Oregon, and Oakland, California, where camps were similarly forcibly shut by police.
But since the Wall Street movement was the prototype for Occupy Toronto and the rest of the North American protests, it becomes something of a precedent. If the NYPD can tear down the birthplace of the protests in the middle of the night, why can’t the Toronto police do the same to a offshoot protest here?
Occupy Toronto are right to resist any attempt to end its occupation of St. James Park. The idea behind the protest – economic justice – will live far longer than the protesters will live in the park, of course. But the physical occupation is too closely tied to the message to leave anytime soon.
Just look at the statements coming from the city about ending the protest.
“I think everyone can appreciate it’s been a peaceful protest but I think it’s time that we ask them to move on,” said mayor Rob Ford.
“They’ve had their run there, the people in the neighourhood have tolerated it … it’s time they move on,” echoed his deputy mayor, Doug Holyday.
“Return to normalcy,” is more or less what they’re saying. Back to business as usual.
But the whole thrust of the occupation was to change business as usual. Going back to it would be admitting defeat.
Business as usual, as the protesters point out, only worked for a small percentage of people – as low as one per cent of the population, they say. They are pushing for more fairness in our economic system, especially in our banking sector, where in recent years the Wall Street/Bay Street mantra of risk-reward has become reward-reward.
And Occupy Toronto has support in this: a majority of Canadians still agree with that message.
So going back home, back to school, back to work or back anywhere that is not St. James Park represents going back to business as usual. For the tireless and brave protesters in Toronto, that is not an option.
