PHOTOGRAPHY about Solidarityposted on July 20, 2010 by Tami Starlight
Post G-20 March and Rally for Civil Liberties in Vancouver
Approximately 70 to 90 people rallied in Vancouver Saturday in solidarity for those arrested, detained, abused and illegally searched during the G20 demonstrations in Toronto.
The pink bloc attended the rally in support of the full diversity of civil disobedience tactics, as well as queer issues, that seem to be regularly unaddressed at these so-called "mainstream rallies/demos".
There were some shouts of "take it off!", from one rally attendee, towards masked up members of the pink bloc.
All in all, the attendance was fair, with no skirmishes or arrests. Some members of the pink bloc could be heard yelling "fuck the police", as well as the odd boo, while some of the speakers were giving their speech.
One issue stood out mostly, for me, (while I was taking the photographs and handing out the recent colorized edition of Balaclava!) was the absence of deep resolve and conviction in the speakers. Some speakers seem to vaguely slam the black bloc. Certainly being crafty in their words, as to not be obvious, but alluding to denouncing certain types of demonstration tactics.
This really is a long standing divisive reality within the activist movement.
Yet as an activist, DTES advocate, progressive non profit lover and VMC reporter, i am inspired by those whose wisdom and fortitude have kept me well informed to where we have been, but just as important, where we could and should go as an activist, social justice minded community.
Perhaps we all need to truly live the slogan - SOLIDARITY.
All my relations/Namaste
Tami Starlight - proud member & reporter with the VMC.
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Comments
Thank you
Thank you for the photos and report, Tami. It would have been better attended if it was a solidarity rally with the arrested instead of another one co-opted by that creepy Canadians Advocating Political Participation front group. No media coverage of the event at all anywhere else online.
The impact of black bloc
The impact of black bloc tactics of property damage (to call it violence is a bit of a stretch) cannot be judged at this time. No one really knows how this will all play out. Black Block may have encouraged the public to support a tightened the grip of security at the expense of our freedoms, or, on the other hand, it may have opened the closet door on a conservative agenda that only revealed itself on Sunday with mass arrests after it felt comforted by the black block giving its actions legitimacy.
We'll see.
There are certainly other
There are certainly other impacts which you have ignored. It did carry out massive property damage (over $1 million is a conservative estimate). It did result in international media coverage of unrest in Canada to the world. It may have attracted youth who are sick of traditional political organizing to consider new tactics... etc etc...
Some of the speakers were
Some of the speakers were people who had been arrested in Toronto. They spoke from a very vulnerable place about abuse and violation they experienced. An important note about the Pink Block booing, is that it was directed at the politicians, not the people who were reporting on thier traumatic experiences of getting arrested during G20.
Pink Bloc people were holding back a lot of frustration hearing long speeches about Canada, and how police action during the G20 went against Canadian values. For a lot of people, in this instance, trans, queer and indigenous people, Canada itself is a violation of everyday life and of people's bodies.
Pink Bloc wanted to challenge this normalizing of Canadian values, while at the same time, showing a festive solidarity with everyone who had been arrested or brutalized by police in Toronto.