“The world was watching”

UPDATE June 29/2010 - Toronto Star - Legal “Charter Challenge.”

Sadly this is not over yet, about 1000 citizens gathered at a peaceful demonstration in front of Police Headquarters last night chanting and protesting the arrest of many innocent people who were caught up in the sweep.

Check out this YouTube video of the rioting on Saturday during the G20 Summit in Toronto, you’ll have a better idea of what I’m talking about.

Hope this is the last G20 summit we have in Toronto for a long time. As of Sunday morning almost 1000 people had been arrested/detained and put through the Toronto Police Service (TPS) holding/processing centre in the makeshift jail at the Toronto Film Studios - dubbed Torontonomo Bay  near Lake Ontario.
Just clowning it up two feet from the police line at Richmond/Bay on Saturday night. I did see one female officer crack a smile but most were stone cold.

Daniel … Toronto, CANADA
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These police lines (on the right) were all over the downtown core well away from the “red zone” fence and it was just a cat/mouse situation where the riot squad moved from place to place all weekend, and it didn’t appear they had any rhyme or reason. They will say it was all carefully planned.

Local residents of the Queen/Pape area where the Film Studio Detention Centre “Torontonomo Bay” was built were not happy. I spoke to several area residents the they said “they were not notified by the city of the erection of this Detention/processing centre.”(dubbed by locals as Torontonomo Bay) Toronto is one of the top five populated cities in North America and we have never used tear gas before, but they did Saturday and hopefully never again.

Many said they heard about it on the local news but after Sundays use of tear gas for the first time in Toronto’s history they were even more upset.

“It seems to be mostly the younger generation that don’t respect the police and act up this way,” said area resident Rosemary. She went onto say “when it’s over I don’t think it will stop at future protest, now they know how to stir things up, and it would have been better at the CNE grounds.” (Canadian National Exhibition like a State Fair) “it’s location makes us nervous and if there is any violence while we’re watching, we’re out of here.” she concluded.

Why did they not build this detention centre on the fringes of the city, maybe Steeles/DVP in a field, or Downsview Airport? (now decommissioned)

I believe the violence was uncalled for, but nearly all this destruction was done by members of the group “Black Bloc” (tactics) who go from city to city to around the world creating this violence. They say they never hurt anyone, but just destroy Corporate Companies which is not true, it hurts us all. Destroying a police vehicle or a Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) vehicle costs the taxpayer a second time after paying over a BILLION dollars for security for the G20 Summit.
In that regard, the police did a great job as they arrested about 70 of them Sunday morning staying at a University of Toronto dormitory residence. Overall 1000 were arrested/detained over the weekend.
Later in the evening (Sunday) the police, Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) surrounded about 100 residents/protesters with the idea that some of the violent people were amongst that group. They made them stand at Spadina/Queen for about four hours without being allowed to leave or use a washroom, while it rained very heavily.



A little fine art done right at Bay/King just after a police car was torched.

Hopefully we shall learn from this terrible incident but the people that stood in the heavy rain for 4 hours and the destruction that was committed by the “Black Bloc” tactics were criminal acts and must be dealt with, but it is clearly a sad day for Toronto and CANADA, we must never let this happen again.
One person said to me, “this is my Woodstock of our time” and will never forget this as I’m sure I will never forget it.

UPDATE - June 30/2010 - There are many horror stories coming out about the treatment of many innocent victims caught up in the sweep of the “Storm Troopers” during this past weekend. I think one of the best first hand, well written articles I have read so far is in the CityTVNews24 station when one of their young reporters was arrested, held for about 6 hours and released without charges.
A class action suit has been started for those arrested/detained outlined in an article in the Toronto Star by the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA).

This was one of the saddest videos I have seen of the Black Bloc group destroying Young Street while most officers stood by and did nothing. WATCH the video (at top) very disturbing. I must have walked by there, up Yonge Street from Queen Street about half an hour after this happened and have read reports that the police were not to engage the Black Bloc? Is this true, and WHY? I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall as the police discussed this strategy.

And what was the thinking of all those stores on Yonge Street and College Park NOT boarding up their windows? Many downtown stores did so, and I’m thinking it is because many of these stores rent the space and do not own the buildings and the owners thought it would cost them money to board up the windows, but if they were smashed, they had insurance for such an occurrence.

Another very sad Toronto Star story of how these thugs/criminals “Black Bloc tactics” created fear and damage to small business owners along Yonge Street, not just Corporate Giants who they SAY, they are against. As one owner said, “we weren’t worried, since the police were right next door at the Cheslea Inn and we expected protection” but not one cop was seen on Yonge Street Saturday afternoon from Queen to College. I predicted this two weeks ago that the “red zone” would be protected but what about other parts of the city, the police said regular patrols would be covering the city as usual, unfortunately they were not, and we need answers from those in charge, why not, we need an inquiry now, with full disclosure.

Just a thought, not really sure why many did not protect their buildings from these loons.
They (police) say the citizens, the protesters became a mob scene, I think they got it backwards, it’s the police that seem to be the MOB in this YouTube video.

Should we let this pass and do nothing?
How does the story go .. The military came forward and shut down the Jew that was peacefully protesting and arrested him, then they got away with it, so they came back and took away the Christian for peacefully preaching on the street, arrested and took him away and nobody said anything. Then they came for me, and I wish I had spoken up earlier when they took away the Jew and the Christian. We better all wake up and not let this happen to any of us because we may end up in Torontonomo Bay (Detention Centre) I bet it’s still open.

You be the judge …

Daniel .. Toronto, CANADA

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