First Nations members stage G8/G20 protest
Posted June 24, 2010 5:14 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
First Nations members took their turn on the protest circuit Thursday, hoping to draw attention to aboriginal issues from international media.
They started at Queen’s Park in the morning and made their way towards Allen Gardens at Gerrard and Sherbourne.
Hundreds of First Nations members waved flags, including upside down Canadian flags, and pounding on drums as they marched through downtown Toronto, chanting “equality for everybody”.
Scott, a protester, told 680News “I’m here for my people, I’m here for the legacy of lives, and the cheating and stealing that’s been done to my people”.
When asked about the state of their current living conditions, one protestor said “poverty – that’s the best way to put it”.
Those marching said they want control of land they claim as their own, and are calling on governments to investigate the disappearance of 500 aboriginal women.
Protesters said a blockade of Highway 403 between Toronto and Hamilton planned for Thursday has been cancelled until further notice.
Provincial police said a planned blockade of the Trans-Canada Highway near Thunder Bay, Ont., has also been cancelled.
