If a protester has no place to go, will he come? Calgary will find out next week, and the lesson could be a harsh one.
Protesters against the G8 summit had planned to centre their activities in a tent city as near as possible to the summit site of Kananaskis Village, a remote recreational complex specifically chosen for its inaccessibility to the anti-G8 throngs. When they couldn't secure land for their "Solidarity Village," they turned to Plan B: a two-day musical and educational camp-out in a downtown skateboarding park in Calgary, the nearest urban centre and the home base for the media multitudes covering the summit, who are the target audience for the protesters anyway.
The City of Calgary wants no part of it. Officials rejected the protesters' application for the event, citing a bylaw that prevents the use of city parks for political demonstrations. City council could make an exception to the bylaw, but there's no indication that will happen.
It appears Calgary's leaders believe they can shut down potentially disruptive protests simply by giving the protesters nowhere to set up shop. The logic is that if protesters know they will have nowhere to stay in Calgary, they won't bother to make the trip. Who can blame the city officials for trying, given the mayhem they've seen in Seattle, Genoa and Quebec City?
Unfortunately, the strategy is flawed and counterproductive and could prove disastrous. Instead of providing an environment for peaceful protests, Calgary has forced protesters onto its streets. While the lack of accommodations may persuade some moderate activists to stay home, the more radical, aggressive, violent element won't be dissuaded.
The city's stubborn position will succeed only in stifling voices of reasonable political dissent in favour of the angry fringes, and they'll have a new target for their anger: the city itself.
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