Labour Day Archives - Occupy Toronto

CLASSE calls for rest period – “Social Strike” does not rest: July 22 march, August 1st Casseroles HUGE

Occupy Toronto 04 August 2012 by Michael Holloway From ROAR Magazine, August 4, 2012 “O, Canada, we stand on guard for thee!” by Nadim Fetaih They said that it had fizzled out. They said it was over. They said a lot of things. But one thing is clear: here in Montreal, the fight is far from over. “On July 22nd, I went to Montreal to witness what was said to be a dying fight — but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Oh the folly of our times, believing that regrouping is in fact the destruction of a movement. What I saw was a beautiful sight of solidarity for the student cause in Quebec. Men and women, young and old, were out in full force, proving once again that the movement, which hides for but a moment, is only growing stronger below the radar of the media and general population. As a person living in Toronto, all I could do was mire at the beautiful stories that would find itself within my city limits, to reach my ears as I would listen attentively at the admiration of my fellow Canadians. For the first time in a long time, I truly feel proud to be Canadian. A mass movement is growing. …” Read the rest at ROAR Magazine | “O, Canada, we stand on guard for thee!” | by Nadim Fetaih published August 4, 2012 – http://roarmag.org/2012/08/o-canada-we-stand-on-guard-for-thee/ Ontario Students’ Mobilization Coalition (OSMC) is calling for a resumption of Casseroles, August 22, 2012 – Facebook Event | “Call to Action: Solidarity with Quebec, August 22” – https://www.facebook.com/events/366182496785845/ OSMC Tweet embed: Mark your calenders and tell your friends! fb.me/wPcAVbOG — OSMC (@OntarioSMC) July 31, 2012 I posted this overview of the situation in Quebec on my time-line in Facebook on Wednesday 01 August 2012 at 11:17 pm edt: The Liberal Party has called a snap, summer Quebec Provincial Election! The 35 day campaign will result in a polling day of September 4th — days before the end of summer holidays first day back to work after Labour Day. My analysis: On the one hand, a way of keeping voter turn out low; and on the other hand to stop the growth of the mass movement by introducing an issue that could divide it: Whether or not to put all effort into elections – or as CLASSE has said – continue to build the movement towards a “Social Strike” – a general strike of all Quebecois to defeat the neo-liberal agenda – to force the opposition Parti Quebecois to change party policy away from the neo-liberal austerity economics – and towards a progressive policy of infrastructure renewal and expansion – towards a reboot the global economy. Meanwhile tonight, CUTV is live broadcasting Casseroles as at least 10,000 people on the streets of Montreal for the 100th night of Casseroles – much more than anyone expected. Also, a heavy riot gear equipped police presence – and – plenty of the black bloc activists clad in their team’s black garb. (Apparently interlocutors for the police to fight – in order to create spectacle; and violent images so ‘state broadcasters’ can confuse those still fence-sitting – in order to stop the growth of the mass movement which is at this time, the States’ key objective. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/story/2012/07/31/quebec-election-call.html [edited for clarity]...

History of May Day, and “The Corporate Tax Dodgers” #OWS musical protest theatre

Occupy Toronto 27 April 2012 by Michael Holloway “The Tax Dodgers” are a musical and political street theatre group made up of Occupy Wall Street members – the non-violent, civil disobedience protest movement. They produced and preform this unique version of “Take Me Out To The Ball Game” – titled “Take Me Out to the Tax Game”. Lyrics Take me out to the tax game. Bail me out with the banks. Buy me a bonus and tax rebates. Never pay nuthin’ not fed’ral or state. So it’s shoot, shoot, shoot for the loopholes. It’s law, so you can’t complain. For its one, two, three-trillion you’re out, Since we rigged the game! Take me out to the tax game. Flip the bird to the crowd. Losers pay taxes, we take rebates. ‘cuz we make the rules for the corporate state. And it’s wham, bam, slam through the loopholes. We always win, what a game! We’re the one, yes, the one percent, And we have no shame! The video above was edited from a report posted at The Real News Network, April 19 2012, “Spring Revival: Occupy Wall Street Seeks to Rejuvenate Movement“. The edit is the last minute and a half of the original news item –http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3… The Real News Network’s “Occupy” label –http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=846 “Spring Awakening at Central Park” – an ‘Activist Training Weekend’ held on April 14th 2012 in Central Park in Manhattan. The New York, NY area General Assemblies came together for an extrodinary General Assembly to plan towards a day of political theatre, civil disobedience and protest against an economic system rigged in favour of International Business Elites, and for a fair economic deal for the 99%. May Day 2012, or “#M1″ is a call for everyone to take the day off work, all work, even unpaid work (like house work) and come out with your family and make your voice heard – now at any one of over 150 cities across the Canada, Mexico and the United States that are planning #M1 events. The Rallying call is: #OWS – May 1, 2012 – A Global General Strike – No Work — No School — No Housework — No Shopping – #M1 OccupyToronto (#may1to) – http://occupyto.org/2012/04/may-1st-day-of-action-join-us/ Occupy Wall Street (#M1) A City-by-City Link List –http://occupywallst.org/article/may-day/ AdBusters Occupy Blog – http://www.adbusters.org/blogs/adbusters-blog/may-2012-insurrection.html The History of “May Day” – the original Labour Day May 1, “May Day” is the original ‘Labour Day’. Back in the 1880′s the movement for the 8 hour work day and other worker’s rights, was high lighted by a strike in Chicago during 1886/87 – a long strike of the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company. The strike was broken when the State used Agent Provocateures to set off a bomb in amongst a crowd of demonstators and police during an out door meeting of strikers – a day after company poice – or “Pinkerton’s” – opened fire on the workers picket line at the plant with live rounds. The events at the out door meeting became known as “The Haymarket Massacre” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haymarket_affair). The device killed seven police officers and at least four demonstrators. Four union organizers, that some believe were just ‘patsies’, were hung by the neck until dead for the crime, on November 11, 1887. The events set back the movement for workers rights for about 10 years, but eventually the ‘Haymarket Affair’ became the catalist that united a nation wide general strike that ensconced bargaining rights through federal legislation that guaranteed the right to collective bargaining for all who chose to join a union – and by osmosis changed working conditions for the better for all people, as working conditions began to parallel those bargained for in the unionized sector. This workers rights movement was one of the key the foundation stones of the economic agreement between labour and owners that later (after the Second World War) lead to what became known as The Affluent Society – also known as the Middle Class – or in our times, the Consumer Driven Economy [more accurately, the Savings driven economy] (see: “The Affluent Society” 1958 – by J.K. Galbraith –http://books.google.ca/books/about/The_affluent_society.html?id=iLtdAAAAIAAJ) Related Video: “OWS Spring Awakening with the Tax Dodgers!” –http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPslGojm7Q4 mh...