Topic: G8/G20 June 2010 Protest Watch

[zipperhead_cop]

If some clever dude could come up with a riot shield that had stun probed mounted in it so zap whomever was in contact with the shield, they would make a bundle. 

Meanwhile, people deployed to the G8 should suppress making fun of anyone deployed to Hippiefest G20.... 

[milnews.ca]

This from the Toronto Sun/QMI:

Other Islamic terrorist cells like the “Toronto 18” exist in Canada, the Canadian Security and Intelligence Service’s former top strategic planner told The Toronto Sun.

And with police and intelligence agencies preparing for world leaders’ conferences in Huntsville and Toronto in June, David Harris fears jihadists may be preparing a major disruption for visiting dignitaries.

“It stands to reason that, with the G-20 here, it offers a wonderful opportunity to Islamist extremists and radicals of all types to launch an offensive,” said Harris, a lawyer and director of the international and terrorist intelligence program at Insignis Strategic Research Inc. in Ottawa.

The “ultimate goal” of such subversives is “to kill as many of the infidels as possible,” he said Monday. “By doing so, such extremists demonstrate the radical Islamist threat writ runs in Canada and is capable of compromising any security efforts,” Harris said.

The geography of a large city or the rural area of Muskoka where the G-8 will be held, is of no concern to determined terrorists committed to a cause, he said.

The G-20 summit offers a “choice target,” Harris said.

Other than saying larger cities are their likeliest hideouts, he couldn’t disclose specifics or the location of groups similar to the 18 GTA men arrested in 2006 ....

[mariomike]

1) Regarding the change in venue from Trinity-Bellwoods to Queen's Park:
http://www.trinitybellwoods.ca/media-release-labour-movement-announces-new-plans-toronto-g20-rally-march-no-longer-trinity-bellwood

I was stationed at the south end of Trinity-Bellwoods. Toronto Life magazine described Trinity-Bellwoods as "a desolute drag flanked by flophouses and seedy bars". Classic "inner-city". In recent years however, there has been some "gentrification". A lot of hipsters and suburbanites have moved in.
I can't say that I blame them, or anyone, for not wanting anything to do with hosting G20 in their neighbourhood.

2) "We view the G20 as an opportunity for interested street medics to:
•Use our skills/build skills to support our communities in protest
•Build and strengthen radical health care networks across this city, to discuss health and politics, and to discuss/work to dismantle hierarchies/structures in health care provision"
End Quote.

Toronto's Paramedics are the experts in street medicine. Not these people.
Nobody knows that better than Chief Bruce Farr. He joined the Department the same year I did, and has my complete confidence:
http://www.newstalk1010.com/node/1126001
http://www.newstalk1010.com/player/player?mediapath=&type=mp3&sid=81&nid=1125998&

J-EMS magazine reports that the G20 in Pittsburgh last year was "the largest EMS mobilization in the history of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania."

[milnews.ca]

This from the Power Shift G8G20 Facebook page:

Want To Attend The G8/G20 Summits? Join The Peoples Road Trip From Vancouver To The G8/G20
Share
 Yesterday at 13:25
Do you have concerns about the state of the world?

Is it Climate change and the Environment? Poverty? Economic development?  Human rights? Democracy? Whatever your concerns may be, you have a voice and your voice deserves to be heard. You are a citizen of this world too!!!

This year between June 25 -27 in Toronto, The People representing our voices are coming together for the 4th G20 summit.

This is what our PM sees as priorities to be discussed
http://g20.gc.ca/statement-by-the-prime-minister-of-canada-2/

Might there be other priorities that you would like to see discussed?  Possibly!

So here it is: We’re offering you the opportunity to let your voice be heard in Toronto!

Join us on an epic journey from Vancouver cross country to Toronto on the People's Bus.

On June 20th people from all walks of life and with a variety of concerns will be gathering at the Vancouver Peoples Summit. After this event we’ll be leaving on our road trip to Toronto, stopping in designated areas to pick up and join caravans from other locations in Canada to arrive together in Toronto on (remove ‘the’) June 24.

You can be part of this great movement of the people!

How? Easy! read the schedule/requirements below and sign up to be part of the journey!

Start: Vancouver June 20 departing time 8pm from the Vancouver People's Summit on Main and 33rd.

Stop 1: June 21 Calgary ( location tba)

Stop 2: June 23 Winnipeg (location tba)

Arrival: June 24 Toronto ....

Post attached if link doesn't work for you.

- edited to fix links -

[milnews.ca]

This from CTV.ca:

Aboriginal protesters are planning to stage blockades at major rail routes in the days leading up to the G20 summit in Toronto, CTV Toronto has learned.

It is believed that the protest will be staged on Thursday, June 24. The G20 Summit will take place in the city's core on the weekend of June 26 and 27.

Organizers from Red Power United, one of many groups planning to protest the meeting of world leaders, said the action will be called a "national day of protest."

They will be among dozens of groups rallying during the meeting.

Union members are also expected to fill the lawn at Queen's Park at a demonstration being spearheaded by the Ontario Federation of Labour. A march through the city centre will also be likely.

"We haven't yet decided the parade route," said OFL president Sid Ryan. "We will be working it out with police, but we will be marching as closely as possible to the perimeter of the security fence." ....

Red Power United:  web page - Facebook - National Day of Action details (Facebook)

More links to G8/G20 & protest info here.

- edited to include link to article, and link to updated page o' links -

[milnews.ca]

This via the Toronto Star:

As the City of Toronto prepares to be the host of the G8/G20 international meetings, debates have emerged about the security arrangements.

This is neither new, nor particularly Canadian. Indeed, there is much to learn from international experience in this respect and also from our own history, painfully reviewed after the 1997 APEC Conference in Vancouver, when public outcry over unnecessary and forceful arrests, pepper spray used on peaceful protesters, and Charter violations led to a full investigation and public hearing.

The lessons from both the APEC report and the more recent international reports based on Britain’s 2009 experience policing the G20 are clear: security arrangements must start from the proposition that freedom of expression, freedom of peaceful association and public demonstration are protected aspects of international gatherings, not actions that should be impeded or eliminated.

There is a duty to facilitate peaceful protest; there is no duty to make it disappear ....

versus this in the St. John Telegraph-Journal:

Like flies at a picnic, motley rabbles of radical leftist/anarchists can nowadays be counted on to swarm international summits anywhere on the globe, parroting anti-capitalist cant and acting out "revolutionary" fantasies.

As with the flies, they're more pest than threat, but a costly and annoying distraction for police. So it was at last month's G8 conference in Halifax, and will be at the forthcoming G20 leaders' summit in Toronto on June 26-27, with the 200-member Toronto Community Mobilization Network reportedly gearing up to coordinate G20 protests.

Their most egregious effect is expense to taxpayers and inconvenience to the public - Toronto's G20 requiring what's being described as Canada's biggest security operation since the Second World War, involving Ontario Provincial Police, RCMP and Canadian Armed Forces, with most of Toronto's financial district to be locked-down for two weeks behind three kilometres of fencing protecting a security zone around the Metro Convention Centre summit site.

In the 1960s, the late, great, cartoonist Al Capp created a fictitious political movement he called SWINE - Students Wildly Indignant about Nearly Everything - for his comic strip, "L'il Abner." SWINE re-emerged in the late '90s as a loose coalition of dissident groups nominally protesting "globalization," but essentially advocating the same threadbare ideology political leftists have spouted for the last 150 years.

It's an abiding conundrum how even a small minority can still buy into Marxist dogma as a solution for anything, after socialism's demonstrably dismal record everywhere it's been tried, its failures ranging from mediocre economic anaemia at best, to depths of genocidal despotism. The strident class-warfare message remains as tediously tiresome as it was 40 years ago, and sometimes even deadly, as we saw in Athens last week ....

[milnews.ca]

This from the Canadian Press (Toronto Police Service release attached for ref):

A section of the park where the Ontario legislature is located will be used as a demonstration site during next month's G20 summit in Toronto.

Police announced today that Queen's Park North will be the so-called designated speech area during the summit.

The site was moved after residents opposed a plan to use Trinity-Bellwoods Park for the protest area.

Activists have said they won't stand for having protesters penned in at designated demonstration areas.

They maintain the G8 and G20 are responsible for policies that create injustice around the world, and therefore the entire planet is their protest zone ....

Zat right?  The "injustices" may be happening everywhere, but the rules are set based on the ground you stand on, in this case, Canada and Ontario.  Nice try, though... 

[milnews.ca]

This from rabble.ca:

"The Canadian Peace Alliance is calling on peace groups and individuals to join us for a rally and march during the G20 meetings on June 26th, in Toronto. We will be meeting at a rally organized by our friends in the labour, environmental and social justice movements at Queens Park for a mass march through downtown Toronto.

The G20 countries are some of the biggest arms dealers in the world, responsible for more than 85 per cent of global military spending and 95 per cent of global arms production. They will spend $1.2 trillion on the military this year. The CPA is demanding that this money be re-allocated for food, education, green jobs, environmental programs, health-care and to improve the lives of the people of the world.

Poverty and environmental degradation are chief causes of conflict in the world. Spending massive amounts on the military, rather than addressing the root causes of conflict is a wasteful and counter-productive process. True security comes when the people of the world can meet their basic needs for a happy, healthy life.

In Canada, the Harper government has overseen the largest military spending increases since the WWII. The Canada First Defence Strategy, the blueprint for the militarization of Canada, allocates an unprecedented $490 billion to buy tanks, warships, bombers and other weapons. Canada is now the 13th largest military spender globally and is 6th among NATO countries in war spending.

The Government of Canada has already spent more than $20 billion, and the lives of 143 Canadian soldiers and countless Afghan civilians to wage war in Afghanistan. The majority of Canadians are opposed to the war yet the Harper government has announced that they will keep Canadians in Afghanistan to train the corrupt Afghan Police and Army to continue to prop up a government of drug warlords. In typical fashion, this secretive and deceitful government has announced that there will be no debate in the House of Commons on the extension of Canada's role in the war.

It is time for the people to stand up to the G20 war mongers and call for an end to war. Join us to raise the voice of peace at the G20 meetings this June."

Canadian Peace Alliance:  Main page - CPA Steering Committee - Afghanistan page - CPA "Fact" Sheet on why Canada is really in Afghanistan (hint:  Vaseline=p-------m jelly) attached

[Technoviking]

I agree with them that an end to war would be a great thing; however, only the dead have seen the end of war.


(Thank you, Plato, I hope you don't mind me quoting you)

[milnews.ca]

(Thank you, Plato, I hope you don't mind me quoting you)

I'm sure he's OK with you footnoting.

[Journeyman]

I was initially puzzled by their statement, "poverty and environmental degradation are chief causes of conflict in the world."

...but then I checked out their website and "fact" sheets; it turns out that this is simply one out to lunch statement amongst pages and pages produced by mad tinfoil hatters.

[milnews.ca]

This from the Canadian Press:

Giant papier mache heads of the G8 leaders will soon be making a long journey from the U.K. to Canada for the international summit — but they won't quite make it to the G8 itself.

The massive heads are a fixture of demonstrations at the G8 summits, and their creators at Oxfam are just one of many groups who say they won't be making the three-hour drive north from Toronto to Huntsville, Ont., for the summit.

With the G20 summit being held in Toronto almost at the same time as the G8 — the G8 is June 25-26 and the G20 is June 26-27 — many prominent groups are sticking to the big city, where they expect to draw the most attention to their issues.

There's no word yet on how the giant heads, made by Oxfam in the U.K., are getting here — coach or cargo? — but they won't be trekking north to Huntsville, said spokeswoman Karen Palmer.

"At this point Oxfam Canada isn't planning any actions for Huntsville, largely because it's only a day and also because the security situation is so tight," said spokeswoman Karen Palmer.

"For us in terms of trying to get public attention and trying to draw awareness to the issues it's just easier (in Toronto)."

For now, the papier mache head-makers could have another problem on their hands. Britain just elected a new prime minister, David Cameron, and Palmer hasn't yet heard if there's a rush order for his head, as they take about a month to make ....

....  The Integrated Security Unit, which oversaw security for the Vancouver Olympics and consists of RCMP, Canadian Forces, the Ontario Provincial Police and local police forces, is expecting most of the action to be in Toronto.

"We recognize that with the advent of the G20 and its proximity...it's probably relieving some of the pressure we would have experienced up in Huntsville," said OPP Sgt. Pierre Chamberland.

"Nonetheless, we're not taking anything for granted and we still want to make sure we're well prepared."

The official location of the G8 protest zone or "designated speech area" hasn't been released, but Chamberland said it would be away from the businesses of Huntsville's picturesque main street.

"We're looking at doing it along the Highway 60 corridor area so it would be closer to the site itself," he said.

[milnews.ca]

Shared in accordance with the "fair dealing" provisions, Section 29, of the Copyright Act.

Send anarchists to the island: Blizzard
But please keep them out of our parks — they’ll only wreck the trees and shatter the quiet
Christina Blizzard, Toronto Sun/QMI, 16 May 10
Article link

Queen’s Park North (QPN) is an island of leafy tranquillity tucked away behind the Legislative Building.

Cut off from the rest of the city by Queen’s Park Cres. and Wellesley St., it’s a quiet oasis in a concrete jungle.

Did I say quiet? Tranquil? Not for much longer.

It’s the designated place of protest during the G20 and G8 Summit, June 26-28.

Frankly, I’m not sure how you tell a bunch of anarchists where to demonstrate. Isn’t the whole thing about anarchists that they are, well, anarchic? They don’t do what they’re told.

So if we want them to demonstrate in QPN, shouldn’t we use a bit of reverse psychology, and tell them we’re designating, say, High Park for their protest? That way they can protest at QPN — and look like they’re defying the evil state.

I took a stroll through QPN to check out the facilities last week.

It is full of trees. A statue of Edward VII stares down imperiously from a giant plinth. There’s a fountain.

It’s also a stone’s throw (no, that’s not an invitation) from the Legislative Building.

As someone who’s covered a lot of demos here, I found it odd they’re not using the lawn to the south of the Ledge, where most protests take place.

According to Meaghan Gray, a spokesman for Police Chief Bill Blair, you have to go through a permit process to use the Legislature’s south lawn.

QPN is a city park, so the city and police can use it freely.

(Let’s spare a thought for the cops. They’re the ones on the front lines who stand the greatest chance of getting hurt in all of this.)

So why not use the Exhibition grounds?

“It has traffic impacts,” Gray said. “It’s pretty close to the Lake Shore and the Gardiner and obviously we are expecting some traffic disruptions that weekend.”

OK, but think about University Ave. It’s home to some of our biggest hospitals. All it will take is one child to die in the back of an ambulance that’s been held up by protesters on its way to the Hospital for Sick Children and there’s going to be heck to pay.

I’m worried the protesters will damage the trees at QPN and I fear they’ll vandalize the historic and beautiful Legislative Building.

We have better places for them:

- Toronto Island: We’re expecting leftist demonstrators from around the world to squat downtown for the duration of the conference. Why not introduce them to our own home-grown bunch of left-wing squatters on the island?

They can all sit around, hum The Internationale and swap notes about the workers’ struggle and the failure of capitalism. Our islanders could make them granola and herbal tea and they can all stamp their Birkenstocks and raise their hairy armpits in a united act of defiance.

- Exhibition Place: You never know, they might enjoy the midway.

- Algonquin Park: Sure, it’s out of the way. But with any luck, they could all get lost — or eaten by bears.

Premier Dalton McGuinty said last Wednesday he welcomes the protests.

“We welcome these leaders from other countries here. We do so though, as a democracy. If some people have got some concerns about some policies, we welcome their representation and their opposition,” McGuinty said, adding he just hopes they demonstrate peacefully.

I thought he was just a tad over-enthusiastic, until I figured out the master plan. The weekend they’re in town is the last weekend before July 1. That’s right. It’s the last chance for a protest against the dreaded HST.

Neat ploy, don’t you think? The feds and the province foist an unwanted tax grab on us. Then they invite agitators from around the world for a festival of indignation and Molotov cocktail-throwing to drown out our protests the week before it kicks in.

Co-incidence? I don’t think so.

christina.blizzard@sunmedia.ca

[mariomike]

Toronto Sun:
"So if we want them to demonstrate in QPN, shouldn’t we use a bit of reverse psychology, and tell them we’re designating, say, High Park for their protest? That way they can protest at QPN — and look like they’re defying the evil state."

High Park? <shudder> I hope not. NIMBY.

Toronto Sun:
"OK, but think about University Ave. It’s home to some of our biggest hospitals. All it will take is one child to die in the back of an ambulance that’s been held up by protesters on its way to the Hospital for Sick Children and there’s going to be heck to pay."

True. They don't call it "Bedpan Alley" for nothing. You can park at Mount Sinai ( My personal favorite. They say it has more volunteers than any other hospital in Canada. ) on the west side and wheel your patients through University Avenue's underground tunnels to Sick Kids and TGH on the east side, or vice versa. But, it takes time.

[milnews.ca]

From the G8/G20 Toronto Community Mobilization site:

Schedule of Events
This is the basic framework for actions in June 2010 before and during the G8 and G20 Summits in Canada. If you are organizing an action during this time, please contact the Toronto Community Mobilization Network immediately to ensure that all actions are safe and supported. A full schedule is coming soon.

Please read our Solidarity and Respect statement, the Accessibility Statement and Statement/Guidelines on Sexual Assault
 
18 – 20 June 2010: 2010 People’s Summit (http://peoplessummit2010.ca/)

21 - 24 June 2010: Themed Days of Resistance (Build Up)

21 JUNE
All Out In Defense of the Rights of All

22 JUNE
Gender Justice Demonstration
Queer Liberation Demonstration

23 JUNE
Climate and Environmental Justice Actions

24 JUNE
Indigenous Sovereignty Demonstration
People are encouraged to host meetings, film screenings, panel events, performances, marches, rallies, direct actions in cities across the world that fit in to these themes. Please let us know what you are planning. Write to action@torontomobilize.org
 
25-27 June 2010: Days of Action
In opposition to the G8/G20 and with a will to transform, people across Turtle Island are organizing community-based days of action in Toronto, Canada that will support
~ self-determination for indigenous peoples
~ climate justice
~ income equity and community control over resources
~ migrant justice and an end to war and occupation
~ gender justice, queer and disAbility rights
 
25 JUNE:
Toronto Community Day of Action.
Justice for Our Communities
2:30pm. Allan Gardens.

26 JUNE:
Family Friendly March/Rally.
People First. We Deserve Better.
1:00pm. Queen's Park

Get Off the Fence
4pm
Grange Park

Saturday Night Fever
 
27 JUNE
All Day Autonomous Direct Actions

2pm
Funeral March

Evening
Anti-Prison Demonstration

To see how you can participate, visit the Get Involved section.

[zipperhead_cop]

The “ultimate goal” of such subversives is “to kill as many of the infidels as possible,” he said Monday. “By doing so, such extremists demonstrate the radical Islamist threat writ runs in Canada and is capable of compromising any security efforts,” Harris said.

So in reality, the people who will actually be getting blown up would be the hippie protesters who are congregated in nice, high density groups?  I hope they tell The Man to stick it when his empire expanding paramedics show up trying to spread their capatalist agenda with their blood oil soaked bandages. 

[milnews.ca]

This from twocircles.net (PDF attached in case link doesn't work for you):

Much before world leaders descend here for the G8 and G20 summits next month, anti-globalization and green protesters are already gearing to greet them wearing masks of these leaders. Coming here for the G20 summit, Manmohan Singh will be paying a first visit by any Indian prime minister to Canada in more than a decade even though three Canadian prime ministers have visited India since then.

The Canadian resort of Huntsville in northern Ontario will play host to the two-day G8 summit from June 25. The leaders of the eight rich industrialized nations will then join other world leaders for the two-day G20 summit being held in Toronto from June 26.

Since thousands of demonstrators have fought bloody battles with police at each G8 summit now, Canadian authorities are busy chalking out foolproof security measures.

As demonstrations at the G8 summit at the remote resort may not draw a huge public attention, most protest groups now plan to target the G20 summit in Toronto to get worldwide publicity for their issues.

The huge papier mache heads of the G8 leaders - a permanent feature of protests at G8 summits now - will be flown in from Britain to Toronto, according to the protesters.

The heads are made by Oxfam who are said to be busy with orders for the head of the new British prime minister David Cameron.

Among the major organizations protesting against G8 policies will be Amnesty International, Greenpeace, WorldVision and the Canadian Labour Congress.

The G20 summit will be held at the Toronto Convention Centre which lies next to the busy business heart of the city.

Canada's Integrated Security Unit comprising the federal Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Canadian forces and provincial and city police have been entrusted with security arrangements for the two summits.

[milnews.ca]

UPDATE:  The anarchists shared bits of the Toronto Star story here (latest anarchist post also attached as Anarchists-TorStar-19may10.pdf)

This from the Toronto Star:

It will be militant. It will be confrontational. And some things may be smashed.

In a rallying call that has its made its way onto numerous anti-capitalist websites, a group of Ontario anarchists is dropping clues of its plans to disrupt the G20 summit.

The Southern Ontario Anarchist Resistance (SOAR) plans to take part in the June 26 People First march — a popular public rally at London’s G20 summit in 2009 — before continuing down to the security fence to “confront the police state.”

“This action will be militant and confrontational, seeking to humiliate the security apparatus and make Toronto’s elites regret letting the dang G20 in here,” said the message, which first made rounds early last week.

The message promotes several protest events, including a roaming street party, and implores its members to support a variety of tactics.

“Respect for diversity of tactics also means not smashing things while we’re part of the labour child-friendly march, and remembering that although we might think certain tactics are pointless/annoying, we should not needlessly antagonize those people,” the posting reads ....

We'll see....

More on this at the Globe & Mail.

Here's the posting referenced in the TorStar piece (PDF attached if link doesn't work):

The G20 is meeting in Toronto this June! But, if that's interesting to you, then you probably already knew that, and perhaps you've moved on to asking yourselves -- What is to be done? ---- We are calling ourselves Southern Ontario Anarchist Resistance (SOAR), and this June, we want you to hop to Toronto. In the last decade, our movements have spent a lot of time arguing about summit hopping. This conversation has often been interesting and productive, but we feel that the time has come to stop talking, and to start causing some crap! SOAR is calling for three actions, between the afternoon of Saturday, June 26th and the evening of the 27th. Here's a short rundown of the actions we're calling so far:

Get off the Fence! -- On Saturday, June 26th, we will form an anti-colonial, anti-capitalist presence to walk in solidarity with the big People First march, before continuing on towards the fence to confront the police state and Toronto's corporate culture. This action will be militant and confrontational, seeking to humiliate the security apparatus and make Toronto's elites regret letting the dang G20 in here. Meet by 1pm at the Northeast corner of College and university.

Saturday Night Fever Later, from late on the 26th ‘till dawn on the 27th, come join us for a roaming street party! We will dance through the streets of Toronto to the music of guerilla DJ's and renegade bands, taking back space from the corporate spectacle that this city has become.

Autonomous Direct Action All day Sunday, we are calling for diverse and creative actions aimed to disrupt business-as-usual. As the leaders of the G20 nations make their final deliberations, let's demonstrate the diversity of our discontent.

These actions are being organized around an affinity group structure. By coming to Toronto as part of an affinity group, you will be best able to plug into that structure, thereby making sure that your party is as awesome as possible. We encourage you to form affinity groups with your trusted friends, lovers, comrades, etc. An affinity group is a small group of people, about 3-10 or so, who are interested in similar tactics and have similar levels of comfort. They can be thought of as the basic building block of the larger, decentralized group that we will form during these actions. In a demonstration, affinity groups are able to communicate and make decisions quickly and autonomously, and can act with greater efficiency and safety.

We've got a month and a half to get ready for this! Let's gather in the secret, quiet places, and discuss with our trusted buddies what would excite and inspire us. Then, once we share a vision, let us scheme how to create it. Here are some things to think about when preparing as an affinity group:

-Comfort level – what sort of things are you willing or not willing to do?

-Legal preparations – How will you deal with arrests?

-Getting used to working as a group – In the coming weeks, make some time to go adventuring together.

-Have a plan – What sort of roles will your affinity group take on during the events? What are you good at? How will you apply those skills?

-Material preparations – What will you need to bring to do what you need to do? Don’t forget water!

Once you have an affinity group, SOAR wants you to get involved with the planning of these actions! In the coming weeks, we will be organizing spokes councils, where representatives from affinity groups can come help plan the details of the actions, and to plug in by committing to taking on certain roles as a group. If you are interested in attending such a meeting, drop a line to torontospokes @ ecologyfund.net. And of course, the internet is not a safe place to discuss any specifics of these actions.

All SOAR events celebrate a diversity of tactics, meaning that we support all the many different ways that people choose to resist our common enemies. We will not condemn or attempt to prevent or control actions being taken by others, and will vigorously resist state repression against anyone. That said, respect for diversity of tactics also means not smashing things while we're part of the labour child-friendly march, and remembering that although we might think certain tactics are pointless/annoying, we should not needlessly antagonize those people. Not that y'all would ever do that.

It's gonna be a great summer folks.

Be the riot you wish to see,

Southern Ontario Anarchist Resistance

More protest open source info links here.

[zipperhead_cop]

Them:  "ARWEN?!  You mean there is going to be a hot elf chick?  I can't wait!!" 

Us:  "Mark your target when it comes. Look to your front."

[milnews.ca]

Meanwhile, a news conference is set for Thursday to "hear about the issues - reasons why people are mobilizing against the G8/G20":

(....)
The Toronto Community Mobilization Network also invites everyone to attend its press conference this Thursday...

Here are the details: 

When: Thursday, May 20, 2010
Time: 10am - 11am
Where: Steelworkers Hall, 25 Cecil Street, Toronto
 
Why:
Come to the first Toronto Community Mobilization Network press conference and hear about the issues - reasons why people are mobilizing against the G8/G20. Hear from community organizers, activists and groups organizing events during the days of action. Make a Toronto Community Mobilization Network t-shirt for yourself! Help us make t-shirts for the network to help in fundraising efforts!!!
 
Join us to hear speakers on:
Indigenous Sovereignty - Defenders of the Land
Income Equity - Ontario Coalition Against Poverty
Disability Rights - Damn 2025
Gender Justice Coalition
Labour Rights
Environmental and Climate Justice
Queer Rights
Migrant Justice - No One Is Illegal
Anti-war - Canadian Arab Federation
 
Spread the word!!

#30#

[milnews.ca]

This from the Integrated Security Unit:

The Integrated Security Unit (ISU) has selected a location for the Designated Speech Area (DSA) in Huntsville for the G8 Summit on June 25 and 26, 2010.

Designated Speech Area in HuntsvilleThe DSA will be located on the west side of Golf Course Road, approximately 500 metres from Earl’s Road, north of Highway 60. The site will be equipped with basic sanitary installations and the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) will be responsible for ensuring public safety.

“Our mandate is to ensure the safety of everyone involved with the G8, from the world leaders, to visitors, protestors and residents”, said Chief Superintendent Alphonse MacNeil, head of the ISU. “We have worked diligently with different groups to support the peaceful exercise of freedom of speech and lawful assembly.”

Parking for buses that may bring protestors to Huntsville has also been arranged. Information on the DSA site and the bus parking location will be available on the ISU website at www.g8-g20isu.ca ....

PDF map of site attached

[zipperhead_cop]

PDF map of site attached

Is the green dot a graphic, or did they put down a massive tarp to collect standing water for mosquito breeding?   

[recceguy]

I love the G8 ISU FAQ page

Setting the Record Straight

Q- Is the international media staying at Pearson Airport?

A: There will be a Media Centre, foreseen to be at the Direct Energy Centre, which will accommodate media working needs.  Accommodations will be the responsibility of the media.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Q – It has been asked if individual residents have been provided with funds to upgrade a landing strip for the military and/ or leaders?
A. To date no funds have been paid from the ISU.  Over next few months the logistical requirements for the summit will be known and any contracts tendered will be in compliance with the Government of Canada regulations and policies.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

( I love this one!)

Q- It was asked if any summit leaders will be positioning their submarine in area waters, and if destroyers would be stationed in Lake of Bays.

A: We cannot talk about specific security issues but appropriate and reasonable security measures will be taken and that includes the establishment of marine restriction zones, the extent of which has not been determined yet.  However, the event is several months away and the Integrated Security Unit will be in charge of all security measures for the summit.
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Q – It was asked if Barack Obama will be flown back to the United States each night after Summit meetings.

A: We cannot talk about specific security measures for any of the leaders.  The Summit Management Office will be planning for the accommodations and transportation needs of all the leaders and their delegations.
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Q- There have been a lot of marijuana busts recently, is it because there are satellites picking up the infrared heat from the grow ops?
A: Annually in September police services throughout Ontario are partners in a marijuana eradication program called Project Shabot.  This program targets marijuana grow operations throughout Ontario.  These recent seizures are not the result of any ISU actions.


http://www.g8-g20isu.ca/g8/rumours-rumeurs-eng.htm

[milnews.ca]

Holy fack - I couldn't have made those up!

Meanwhile, anarchists are claiming responsiblity for firebombing an Ottawa bank - more here from CanWest:

An anti-establishment group claimed responsibility for the firebombing of a Glebe bank early Tuesday morning.

The group also vowed to “be there” at the upcoming G8 and G20 summits in an online video that shows a massive fireball exploding from the front window of a Royal Bank of Canada branch on Bank Street and First Avenue.

In the short clip, one person emerges from the branch’s side door and is then silhouetted against a vivid orange flash. Another person follows him out the door and the pair begin to head west across First.

The video abruptly cuts to scrolling text.

“The Vancouver Olympic games are over, but a torch is still burning,” the text reads.

Firefighters responded to the blaze at about 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, and had it under control just after 4 a.m. No one was injured.

The video was posted on an anti-establishment website at 11:59 a.m. Tuesday. It appears to have been shot on a handheld camera from the northeast corner of the intersection ....

Here's the post, with a PDF attached in case something happens to the original post.

If the rant is to be believed, these fine upstanding folks may be busy elsewhere:

.... On June 25-27 2010, the G8/G20 ‘leaders’ and bankers are meeting in Huntsville and Toronto to make decisions that will further their policies of exploitation of people and the environment. We will be there.

We pass the torch to all those who would resist the trampling of native rights, of the rights of us all, and resist the ongoing destruction of our planet. We say: The Fire This Time ....

[milnews.ca]

This from the Globe & Mail:

In what’s shaping up to be a story about cottage-country casualness versus Ottawa’s security jitters, a popular local official has been forced from his job after allegedly sharing his G8 pass with a fellow firefighter.

Fire Chief Stephen Hernen had survived floods and fires during a decade on the job in Huntsville, Ont. But he was shunted aside this week after being faulted for an alleged security breach.

Mr. Hernen, who had spent months planning for the G8, was “temporarily reassigned to administrative duties” pending an investigation, according to a statement circulated Monday by the town’s bureaucracy.

Circumstances suggest the decision to reassign him was made grudgingly by city councillors, though they refuse to disclose any details. Sources, however, told The Globe and Mail that Mr. Hernen stands accused of violating security protocols by temporarily lending his G8 security key, thereby giving access to a sensitive RCMP-controlled facility, to his assistant fire chief ....

Town of Huntsville statement attached.