Feb 28, Montreal: Stop Poilievre’s Corporate Power Grab
On the streets of Montreal last week a network of community groups, activists, artists and collectives participated in a street action to protest the radical corporate agenda of Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative party.
Here is an article in rabble.ca about the action, here is a special broadcast on the community radio stations CKUT 90.3 FM and here is a short video by CUTV.
This action aimed to transform a growing consensus and feeling of urgency into action. The theory behind this action is that the more movements take action together, the stronger our action will be when social attacks become clear and present. Spurred by action-oriented organizing, social movement networks are discussing how to move from opinion to action in response to corporate power grabs, whether they are tinted red or blue.
The inter-movement space and connectivity is creating the means to actively respond to either Poilievre’s scarcely-hidden plans for a shock-and-awe attack, or the astonishing Liberal proposals to increase military spending by $40 billion per year while slashing spending.
As we have seen to the south, if we leave “the resistance” up to corporate-backed political operatives, we will permanently be waiting for real solutions, and remain perpetually on the back foot. The only way to build transformative change is direct creation of agency by democratic social movements.
The key question is how can social movement forces create collective power that is resilient to a variety of unpredictable outcomes. Taking on the Conservatives before they arrive in power can alter how the future unfolds, but it also builds in flexibility and resilience through action-oriented relationships and communications.
Organizations that participated in the action in Montreal:
- Conseil central du Montréal métropolitain – CSN
- The Palestinian Youth Movement, Montreal chapter
- Climate Justice Montreal
- Council of Canadians
- The Immigrant Workers Centre
- Séro.Syndicat // Blood.Union – BUSS
- The Council of Canadians
With support from Alternatives, members of Solidarity Across Borders, Academics for Palestine, QPIRG McGill and many individuals.
Stay tuned for what’s next.
Photos by Allen Bleich.
Poet Ehab Lotayef
Poet Mireya Bayancela
March 1, Edmonton: #StopMapleMAGA, A social media twist on a classic protest art form
In front of computers and on Edmonton’s slush-covered streets, a newly-formed collective turned their concerns over the rise of the far-right in the form of Pierre Poilievre and Danielle Smith, and their endlessly erosion of our rights and their rampant scandals into an art and social media campaign.
Launched officially on Monday, March 3, 2025, StringsAttached fuses political puppetry with digital media savvy to critique and lampoon political figures. Their commentary can be found on Instagram and TikTok.
In Alberta, the stakes are no laughing matter. In a province that spawned both a provincial government gunning for trans rights and healthcare and a growing far-right ideology metastasizing on the national stage, Alberta is ground zero for Conservative corruption.
When political criticism is being silenced, necessity breeds invention. Through education and art, StringsAttached hopes to reach the average Albertan. Through radical joy, humour, and irreverence they aim to shift the narrative of political discourse towards a better future for all. Because you can’t touch grass when the Earth is burning.