No One is Illegal: May Day Action

Hundreds of people marched through the streets of Toronto to demand justice for migrant workers.  The march was organized by No One is Illegal.

Justice for Migrant Workers

According to flyers handed out by No One is Illegal volunteers:

“Under the Tories a broken immigration system has been shattered. Half of all people arriving in Canada today are on temporary visas without a path to permanent immigration status. Over half a million others live without any status.

People without status are denied education, health, shelter or food while working and paying municipal, provincial and federal taxes.

Canada uses detentions, deportations, temporary work programs and US style immigration raids to tear families apart, create fear amongst and against non-status peoples and pit workers against one another.

Canada, and Toronto in particular, are responsible for causing migration. Here hide some of the worst mining companies in the world that steal the livelihoods of millions, forcing them off their lands and out of their homes.

Canada is occupying Afghanistan and Haiti and is participating in the terrorizing of the people of Iraq, Colombia, Mexico, Palestine and Tamil Eelam among others.

Wars, greedy corporations and racist economic policies force migrants to come here to be used as disposable labour in this sweatshop city.

We refuse to be silent spectators as our communities are robbed and attacked. We refuse to be criminalized and made invisible. Today we will be seen. No One is Illegal!”

No One is Illegal

No One is Illegal

Activists unfurled a giant banner outside the Eaton Centre Shopping Mall saying: No One is Illegal

Sergio Campusano (left) and Jethro Tulin (second from left) address the gathering to talk about their experiences dealing with Toronto-based mining company Barrick Gold in Chile and Papua New Guinea. Sergio and Jethro were selected by their communities back home to travel to Canada to speak out on their behalf and inform Canadians about the human rights violations and environmental devastation that they are fighting against as a result of Barrick Gold's operations.

For more information about Sergio’s and Jethro’s struggle against Barrick Gold:  Indigenous Leaders Confront Barrick Gold

Global Resistance to Canadian Mining

For more on why there is a rapidly growing global resistance movement against Canadian mining:  Someone Else’s Treasure

The Philippine community was out in force to demand landed status for live-in caregivers

For more on the Philipine migrant workers’ rights see:  SIKLAB-Ontario

A large number of the Tamil community were there to condemn state-terrorism in Sri Lanka

For more on the Tamil’s struggle in Sri Lanka:  www.savetamils.org

Although the mood was festive and peaceful, for the most part, several arrests were made later in the afternoon. Much of the crowd had dispersed because of the rain, but many of the protesters continued toward the American consulate to show their solidarity with Tamil protesters who have been camping there for eight days to demand a stop to the bloodshed in Sri Lanka. Police formed a barrier to prevent the two protests from merging. Tempers flared on both sides and the police eventually moved in and dragged away several protesters.

I’ll post more on the arrests later. For now I’d rather focus on why people were there in the first place.