A-Infos (en) Canada, Quebec city: anti-militarist demonstration

About 300 anti-militarists took the streets Friday, March 28 in Quebec city. In 
a rare showing of unity, the main anti-capitalists groups of the city marched 
together, along with delegations from other cities, such as Montreal and 
Sherbrooke. The marchers commemorated the 90th anniversary of the riots against 
conscription and took the occasion to again express their opposition to the war 
in Afghanistan. ==> Our photo-report ---- 
www.flickr.com/photos/10060289@N05/sets/72157604305532435/ ---- Anti-militarist 
Quebec city ---- "Quebec city is not only a garrison town, it also has a proud 
anti-militarist past" said Mathieu, of the Northeastern Federation of 
Anarcho-Communists (NEFAC). It’s not on the agenda of the insipid 400th 
anniversary of the city, but 90 years ago, the city inhabitants rose against 
conscription. Five days of rioting occurred downtown, which ended in a bloodbath 
when the army opened fire on a crowd of civilians, leaving 4 dead and 35 
injured. "It’s this popular history that we want to take out of oblivion" added 
the anarchist militant.

Resistance to war

Today, Canada is still involved in an imperialist war. It is remarkable that, 
despite a propaganda campaign by the military, the popular opposition to the war 
remains, poll after poll. Unfortunately, this opposition to the war has found 
little space to express itself. "Many people in Quebec city are opposed to the 
use of their taxes in this war, Let's stop it!" Said Antoine, of Gauche 
socialiste. "They make war in our name, without asking us our opinion. The 
opposition to the war must be able to express itself, which is why we 
participated in the demonstration Friday "

Gathering in Saint-Roch

The event began at 5PM with a rally in Saint-Roch, in front of the Gabrielle-Roy 
Library. After a few speeches and slogans, the anti-militarists took the streets 
to go to the district of Saint-Sauveur, at the corner of Saint-Vallier and St. 
Joseph, where there’s a memorial to the dead of 1918. The march ended at the 
Parc Durocher and was followed by an anti-militarist conference organized by 
Alternatives at the AgitéE.

The organizers

The demonstration was an initiative of the Northeastern Federation of 
Anarcho-Communists (NEFAC). It was organized jointly by the Collectif anarchiste 
La Nuit, the Collectif Piranhas and Gauche socialiste. The following groups 
formally endorsed it and mobilized: Québec Solidaire Capitale-Nationale, 
Regroupement autonome des jeunes, PCR-Québec, Personne n’est illégal-Montréal, 
Bloquez l’empire-Montréal, l’Association des Étudiantes et des Étudiants en 
Histoire, Convergence l’Autre 400e and PCQ-Québec. This large anti-capitalist 
diversity probably make this event one of the largest open mobilisation of the 
political far-left in the city since the Summit of the Americas.
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