As many as 2000 people rallied on a wet Saturday afternoon (March 14) at Toronto’s Nathan Phillips Square to show their opposition to the Harper government’s proposed Bill C-51.
The rally was opened by grassroots indigenous women drummers and directly followed by speeches from NDP MP Andrew Cash and Green Party leader MP Elizabeth May.
The pre-election bill, designed to grant the Canadian Security and Intelligence Service (CSIS) sweeping new powers to combat terrorist threats such as ISIS, has the political parties split. The NDP and Greens say they will vote against it, while the Liberals are planning on voting for it along with the Conservatives.
Trinity-Spadina Liberal MP Adam Vaughan was among the crowd, but declined to speak to NOW on the record during the rally, saying he was in attendance to be educated by the speakers.
Other speakers at the rally included Dr. Pam Palmater of the Indigenous Nationhood Movement, Vanessa Grey of Aamjiwnaag First Nation, 17-year-old Iranian-Canadian spoken word artist Nasim Asgari, Afghan-Canadian feminist anti-war activist Suraia Sahar, lawyer Paul Copeland, Syd Ryan of the Ontario Federation of Labour, Marie Clarke Walker of the Canadian Labour Congress and Rabble.ca founder Judy Rebick.
The rally turned into a march down to CSIS’s Front Street office.
More photos here.
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