(no subject)
The last few days have been rather mouvementées.
Monday was the protest in Montebello over the SPP negotiations. (Click here for a backgrounder.) Got up quite early and caught the bus at Concordia; much to my delight, I hooked up with my friend Telyn who was travelling with the Pink Bloc, so spent the day with a fabulous bunch of queer protesters. We spent the bus ride up writing parody songs (A spoonful of protest makes the SPP fall down/In the most delightful way and I don't feel like tear gas from the old RCMP/Facing pepper spray and fences to protest the SPP/You'd think that in this country we could have some real democracy/So I don't feel like tear gas, no sir, no tear gas for me).
In Montebello, due to a barricade we had to enter the protest area via a rail line. The highway adjacent to the Château Montebello was blocked by a line of riot cops, and the edge of the highway was also barred by SQ officers. We spent the day alternating between chanting, dancing, listening to speeches from various dynamic coalition members (especially from immigrant communities), eating, interacting with clowns, and delivering impromptu fashion critiques to the SQ officers under the heading of "Queer Eye for the Cop Guy." (Sample: "Haven't you noticed you're all wearing the same outfit? Go home and change! Besides, that green totally clashes with your epaulets! It does nothing for your figure! Go put on some nice fuschia, or cerulean - bring out your eyes! You need to joozh yourself up a bit, come on!") Ran into Libby Davies and Peter Julian, as well as a reporter friend of Dad's.
The tear gas started to fly near the end of the day, especially right around 5:30. At the risk of belabouring the obvious, this wasn't necessary to "disperse the crowd," as by and large the crowd had already mostly dispersed of its own accord, since the buses were to leave at 6. (Also, lookie here: apparently they were using provocateurs.) Anyhow, I somewhat stupidly went forward to take pictures, and got a good snootful. A helpful medic doused my eyes with diluted Maalox, but there was a scary moment when the crowd started to skedaddle and I left my glasses behind on the pavement. Happily, she grabbed them for me.
Nothing like a bit of tear gas to make you feel alive!
This morning, wandered over to the dentist's office for my appointment, then up to the NDP HQ for a bit of Mulcairing alongside Jack in Côte-des-Neiges. It's scary how well I clean up: yesterday I was in army shorts and an ACT UP T-shirt, and today I was in my good pants, a freshly pressed white short-sleeve shirt, and combed hair, accessorized by my good NDP bag. I have many modes, yes.
In completely unrelated news, I was surprised to discover that a little Chinese figurine I've had for some time might be a figure of Guan Yin, the merciful goddess. It looks very much like this, except wood.
Monday was the protest in Montebello over the SPP negotiations. (Click here for a backgrounder.) Got up quite early and caught the bus at Concordia; much to my delight, I hooked up with my friend Telyn who was travelling with the Pink Bloc, so spent the day with a fabulous bunch of queer protesters. We spent the bus ride up writing parody songs (A spoonful of protest makes the SPP fall down/In the most delightful way and I don't feel like tear gas from the old RCMP/Facing pepper spray and fences to protest the SPP/You'd think that in this country we could have some real democracy/So I don't feel like tear gas, no sir, no tear gas for me).
In Montebello, due to a barricade we had to enter the protest area via a rail line. The highway adjacent to the Château Montebello was blocked by a line of riot cops, and the edge of the highway was also barred by SQ officers. We spent the day alternating between chanting, dancing, listening to speeches from various dynamic coalition members (especially from immigrant communities), eating, interacting with clowns, and delivering impromptu fashion critiques to the SQ officers under the heading of "Queer Eye for the Cop Guy." (Sample: "Haven't you noticed you're all wearing the same outfit? Go home and change! Besides, that green totally clashes with your epaulets! It does nothing for your figure! Go put on some nice fuschia, or cerulean - bring out your eyes! You need to joozh yourself up a bit, come on!") Ran into Libby Davies and Peter Julian, as well as a reporter friend of Dad's.
The tear gas started to fly near the end of the day, especially right around 5:30. At the risk of belabouring the obvious, this wasn't necessary to "disperse the crowd," as by and large the crowd had already mostly dispersed of its own accord, since the buses were to leave at 6. (Also, lookie here: apparently they were using provocateurs.) Anyhow, I somewhat stupidly went forward to take pictures, and got a good snootful. A helpful medic doused my eyes with diluted Maalox, but there was a scary moment when the crowd started to skedaddle and I left my glasses behind on the pavement. Happily, she grabbed them for me.
Nothing like a bit of tear gas to make you feel alive!
This morning, wandered over to the dentist's office for my appointment, then up to the NDP HQ for a bit of Mulcairing alongside Jack in Côte-des-Neiges. It's scary how well I clean up: yesterday I was in army shorts and an ACT UP T-shirt, and today I was in my good pants, a freshly pressed white short-sleeve shirt, and combed hair, accessorized by my good NDP bag. I have many modes, yes.
In completely unrelated news, I was surprised to discover that a little Chinese figurine I've had for some time might be a figure of Guan Yin, the merciful goddess. It looks very much like this, except wood.
