REPORT FROM QUEBEC: Earth Day 2001
by Bob Kunst
Oral Majority
Yes, I did get gassed, and yes, we did make an impact and here is what
happened.
I'm typing this from Kinkos on 72nd St., Manhattan, awaiting the EARTH
DAY
protest against Bushit at the U.N..That will be another report.
Meantime, I managed to get to Quebec on Thurs., and got to the main fence
with my banner: "Bush Stole The Election"
CBC T.V. was doing commentary and picked up on the banner both in video
and with the commentator in French. It would be the beginning of a great
deal of media and also the scoop on what really happened in Quebec.
I
haven't stayed for the 3rd day of the Summit.
4/19/01 also marks the "Rememberance of the Holocaust"...."The Warsaw
Ghetto Uprising" and the "Oklahoma City Bombing."
I mention all of this as key to the atmosphere at this Summit, and also
in
comparison to the last Summit in 1994 in Miami when all of these leaders
got together. At that time my Shalom International brought the Nazi issue
into the Summit with 11 protests on why Canada had 15,000 Nazi War
Criminals, the U.S. had 10,000; Argentina had 30,000 and Latin America
had
30,000 and what was anyone going to do about these mass murderers and
their offspring wanting to finish the job. We had no problems, no
violence and got over 100 media and
also put pressure on Argentina to extradite Nazi murderer Eric Priebke
to
Italy for trial in the murder of 333. Argentina would relent and extradite
and Priebke would eventually wind up in jail.
So here we are 2001, and what is the state of the insanity today?
Quebec City is beautiful and historic and surrounded by a wire fence and
security costing $50 millions in Canadian, but with a massive message of:
1. keeping out the people, from this cabal of dishonesty and deceit.
2. rubbing in the face of the freedom loving people of Canada that this
fence is the image instead of oppression and the symbol of
'globalization',a tyranny of corporate control, that is uncontrolled and
threatening the very survival of the planet via the profiteering to
destory anything and everything in its path toward this mania.
Of course this "Wall of Shame" had to come down.
Or did it, as I voiced to everyone I could ,which was plenty, that instead
of taking down the wall, we need to keep it up and keep this "Ghetto of
Greed" filled with these 34 leaders, I call "Toxic Waste", and keep them
imprisoned in their own concentration camp.
Instead of tearing it down, we could sit by the thousands at each of the
10 gated areas and keep them in this prison of their own doing and let
them try to fly them out, while we urge that the rest of the sleaze
leaders also be put in there and this would indeed save the planet.
At Lavall University, on the first evening I would do Canada's Public
Radio. In all of the media, the approach is: "Gore Won, Bush Stole The
Election", is illegitimate, and has 'isolated' the U.S. from the rest of
the world, and Oral Majority is here to isolate Bush from the rest of the
world instead, and that he does not represent the U.S.
While others had a hard time even getting into Canada at the borders,
including labor people from the U.S., as reported in the Boston Globe on
4/19/01, I had no problem and of course at the main gate, Rene Levec St.,
I immediately made friends with the police as I always do.
So on Friday, by Noon, I was already set up with table, banner, two more
signs: "Stop Bush" and "Wake Up America-Bush Stole The Election" and a
table filled with "No More Bushit" buttons and stickers, "Buck Fush"
buttons and lots of flyers on who we are and our web site.
Reaction was just terrific, in both having most of the street to myself
,so the view from a distance was most obvious, and then as it got crowded
still standing out like a sore thumb.
Media and people came quickly to photograph, do interviews, donate for
the
merchandize and conversation in general.
I get Mexican T.V. video and then a Mexican newspaper; a Montreal based
English radio station, 940, which was key in the whole episode of
reporting the 'riots', which of course has to be divided into those who
wanted to make a point on the mess of the planet and those wanting the
publicity for themselves, which is the Black Block Anarchists, at
everybody elses expense.
Meanwhile, not to digress, I'm getting loads of attention, but Fox T.V.,
only 20 ft. from me ignores me, but wants to interview a guy with a 'pig
mask' but next to my table. Afterwards Fox comes over and asks me
if I
was in Tallahassee during the mayhem and I reply, "Yes" and ask him why
he
is ignoring me, and he says the issue is over and I remind him that my
presense here means it isn't and also that the Chinese just 'tested'
Bushit for being 'illegitimate', and none of our 'allies' joined with us
for the same reason.
I also mention that the Canadian Prime Minister had only a couple of weeks
ago stated that Bushit was "Naive" and "Ignorant", but this comment of
a
head of state against a U.S. 'leader', was also ignored by the media, to
protect Bushit's image and 'coup' and in addition Fox was one of the
worst. As we spoke Oral Majority and others in Tampa were demonstrating
against Fox.
I was adding "Illegitimate" to "Naive" and "Ignorant."
"Your Silence Won't Protect You" was a bumper sticker I saw on a car, also
carrying a gay decal.
Now I'm using this message as part of my overall statement to folks, in
the media and now the crowd is building, after I am interviewed for a
Green internet sight and I attack Nader for also being a whore in going
for the money, one of Bushit's key players is now admitting that Nader
got
monies for his sabotage.
Magill Univ. Radio (Montreal); National News; Journal de Quebec come for
interviews.
Then an extraodinary group with black crosses over their mouths, in very
slow motion going towards the fence. This 13, drawing a great number
of
people and cameras and right in front of me.
A U.S. flag in now in the street and one upside down.
Then a huge group of 'flower' people called the "Pagan Cluster", are doing
a huge circle right in front of me, only to be replaced nearly 3 P.M. with
a huge group of protesters now coming from the University to the fence
and
'it begins'.
Mind you, it will take only 5 minutes for 10 sections of this fence to
come down. So with all the yelling and cheers and then a block away the
tear gas is starting and I say it's too crowded and dangerous and the need
to pack up and move out of here.I get packed but then the gas started
coming directly towards us.My car is parked below this level of the street
and by the time I get my
stuff down to the street a gas cannister goes off right near my car but
the wind is blowing right to me.
I couldn't breathe. Everyone around there was in tears and choking.
It was amazing!
I load the car, and there are folks lying on the street by the car, and
in
pain for the gas as well as myself.This guy is pouring water into our eyes
to wash it out and I'm offering Club Soda for the lungs.
Then I get in the car and get out of the thousands now in the streets,
and
chanting that this is the 'face of democracy' and 'solidarity go,go'.
"Fuck the Summit" tee-shirts were everywhere.
I went to the public library to do an instant report but it wouldn't work
and then went to a place called Scanners to right my report and after
doing it, that too got screwed up.
So I go for dinner and then meet with one of the folks from Halifax
protesting and we talk, and decide to go for a beer in the old city and
by
midnight the tear gas is still flowing by cloud fulls all over the place,
and this Friday is over for me, watching all the kids, and folks, who are
innocent, all suffering such pain.
Saturday, marks the anniversary of Colombine shooting by those two Nazi
kids.
It's finally a gorgeous day, when two days earlier it was 20 degrees.
Now it's labors turn and I set up my booth and do a bangup job with media
and folks loving the stuff and mucho conversations as 30,000 are
mobilizing here for their march to plea for sanity at this Summit.
Bushit meanwhile told CBC the night before he would leave the Summit if
there was another incident. And now at 9 AM he is addressing the
Summit
on 'trade' being the vehicle for 'liberty' and 'democracy',(Can you
believe it?), while the Canadian Prime Minister says that 'democracy' must
also be 'legitimate' and 'relevant', which I see as another attack upon
Bushit's credibility.
As the parade moves on, there are many powerful messages and a very
decidedly anti-Bushit attitude thankfully I was both providing and
supporting.Yesterday someone had chalked in front of my table: "Free
America-Trade Bush" and today folks had signs that "Bush Sucks", besides
what I was doing and 600+ were carrying our messages to the rest of the
people, besides again speaking to numerous media.
Imagine the massiveness of it all in just a few hours of this frenzy.
By the time I'm packed up now, my other half is calling from Miami and
telling that on t.v. live, is this group now getting 'gassed' and doused
by water cannon( which didn't work the day before) and for no provocation.
Meanwhile,the anarchists were trying to divert the parade to come with
them but labor kept them separate.I walked a bit in the parade, and there
were now 100 with bar code masks on their faces again walking in street
theatre, among so many like them and Greenpeaces' 4 story condom, etc.
and
these folks didn't deserve getting gassed, which four blocks into for me,
the whole place was reaking from.
I would speak with 3 woman and we could see on top of the hill clouds of
gas, and they told me that the building covered with it was a nun's
nursing home and hospital. I was shocked.
Ten blocks away, my eyes were tearing and I was coughing.This attack and
retreat scenario would go on for all afternoon and into the
late hours and by then I had already left, but was listening to the
reports on 940 every fifteen minutes, and 34 police had been hurt as well
as 50 protesters and 150 arrests while the 'riot squads' from around the
country were being sent in.
Three media trucks had been vandalized. A bunch of CIBC bank windows had
been broken. The peaceful protesters were screaming at these anacharists
that none of this was necessary and they were ruining the message the rest
wanted to present.
Meanwhile, 3000 marched in solidarity in Vancouver; 500 in Winnepeg; 1000
in Halifax; 50 in Windsor; and tunnel from Detroit blocked for 20 minutes
by 40 on U.S. side and another protest at border crossing in Vt.By 7 P.M.
portions of the roadway were being broken up and thrown at the police,
says this reporter on 940 and she is choking on the air from all the gas
being thrown, while the fence by the cemetery has been taken down and now
100 police and reinforcements are coming.
Just before leaving I would be interviewed by a camera crew representing
the steel workers, which will be on their net, and we got along
terrifically and they liked my message and then told me that the police
had rigged all the ATM machine cameras and hotel cameras to work with
them, and 3 police helicopters at all times filming this 'Big Brother'
approach to a people demanding to be heard. The Summit claimed they had,
but this show of force
from its inception and then denial, has only made this deception one of
the issues being protested and surely no trust exists on these levels.
I must say that I did also meet other Americans, who came to be a part
of
this and also that while the Canadians were decidely anti-US corps. they
were totally with us and I had nothing but praise from them for even being
there.
If only Americans had this passion given we have lost our government, our
freedom, our liberty, our meaning and purpose with this election theft,
that is a ho hum business as usual approach to the masses .And yet today
at the U.N. will be out 100th protest since Nov. 7, 2000 and today also
marks the anniversary of the libertion of Elian Gonzalez and our 16
protests there after to support Janet Reno, and today I hear the Cubans
say that Gore lost Fla. and the election because of this, in claiming
credit to justify their right-wing politics.
Since the last Summit, the
Nazi/BigBrother/exclusion/righ-wing/illegitimacy/issues are as large as
ever, for those not in denial.
Yes, the Queen turned 75 yesterday as well, and Brits were protesting the
government's actions on Foot and Mouth, and Americans are too fat and too
not with it to get to even first base on this mess, except those we've
managed to reach out to, but is the tip of the iceberg.
Where is our passion on this betrayal by GOP/Bushit and arsenic and
untreated sewage in our water among the catastrophies?
Where indeed.
Yours Faithfully,
Bob Kunst