http://ca.news.yahoo.com/blogs/canada-politics/defend-coast-protesters-stage-mass-rally-b-c-152951842.html
By Andy Radia
Politics Reporter
By Andy Radia | Canada Politics – 14 hours ago
Anti-oil pipeline activists have planned two events: one rally starting on Monday morning on the grounds of the Š
It’s going to be a protest-mania this week in British Columbia.
Anti-oil pipeline activists have planned two events: one rally starting on Monday morning on the grounds of the legislature and a series of rallies on Wednesday at MLA offices throughout the province.
Some are dubbing Monday’s sit-in the “largest act of peaceful civil disobedience on the climate issue that Canada has ever seen.” Organizers are expecting upwards of 3,500 protesters and a series of high profile guest speakers including Green Party leader Elizabeth May and B.C. NDP leader Adrian Dix.
Zoe Blunt from the Forest Action Network says while she expects the event to be peaceful, they want to send a message to Prime Minister Harper and B.C. premier Christy Clark that Canadians don’t want tar sands pipelines and tankers on the west coast.
“We’re sending a signal to the government about exactly how strongly people feel about stopping tankers and pipelines and how far they’re willing to go to make sure that happens,” she told Yahoo! Canada News.
“People are willing to commit civil disobedience and they’re willing to risk arrest and risk their freedom to show the government that this is not acceptable. People will not accept this.”
The demonstrators will essentially be protesting in front of an empty building, given that the governing Liberals have cancelled the Fall sitting of the legislature.
The cancellation was one of the reasons organizers added the second day of protest, at the constituency offices of 55 MLAs.
George Hoberg, a UBC professor who is organizing the demonstration in premier Clark’s riding, says he’s expecting about 250 people at his event.
“We’re expecting [Clark] to be there, because if she’s not at the legislature she should really be in her constituency office, right?” he told Yahoo!.
The so-called ‘Defend our coast’ protests are endorsed by the likes of David Suzuki, Stephen Lewis, Daryl Hannah, Michael Moore, Ellen Page and Pamela Anderson.
In a recent interview with Vancouver Co-op Radio, reprinted at Rabble.ca, Suzuki talked about the need for civil disobedience in the battle against pipelines.
“I think we should be ready to put our bodies on the line if it’s imperative to really make a demonstration about how urgently we feel about this,” he said.
“We’ve got to be ready to put our bodies on the line.”
The protests get under way at 11am pacific standard time.
B.C. legislature jammed with pipeline protesters
: Thousands of opponents of the Northern Gateway pipeline packed the lawn at the B.C. legislature in Victoria.
[ Related: Jim Prentice predicts legal confrontation with First Nations over oil sands pipeline ]
Special thanks to Richard Charter