Supporters of Wet’suwet’en block trains at Macmillan Yard in Vaughan
Yorkregion.com
Feb. 18, 2020
Abhya Adlakha
Standing in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en land defenders, supporters blocked all trains leaving in and out of Macmillan Yard in Vaughan, Ontario on Saturday morning.
Trains going west to Hamilton, London, New York and Michigan were blocked as of 10 a.m. As of 1 p.m., all north and north-west traffic to Sudbury, North Bay, BC and on to Wisconsin has also been blocked.
The protesters gathered at Bloor and Spadina Sts. and took the subway north to Pioneer Village subway station, then proceeded to Macmillan Yard. Approximately 200-300 people were gathered, chanting “What do you when justice fails? Block the rails!” as about a dozen cars from York Region, Toronto and CN Rail police were stationed nearby.
Protesters carried signs saying “Uphold Indigenous sovereignty,” “Hands off Wet’suwet’en,” “Capitalism is organized crime,” and “No RCMP on Wet’suwet’en lands.”
“We are here to shut down Canada. To Canadians who feel inconvenienced by our actions they should think about the stolen Indigenous lands they currently stand on, the genocide the same government has committed on my grandparents, on the older generations. We are the newer generations who are standing up for a younger generation. We’re here to protect everyone’s right to a healthy environment and that means solidarity with Indigenous land defenders,” said Vanessa Gray, 27, a member of Aamjiwnaang First Nation near Sarnia and spokesperson for Toronto Wet’suwet’en Solidarity.
The news comes after Via Rail and CN recently suspended their services indefinitely amid the Wet’suwet’en blockades.
The protests come in support of the Wet’suwet’en land defenders, who are being forced off their land by the RCMP to make way for the Coastal GasLink (GCL) pipeline project. The RCMP enforced an injunction against the Wet’suwet’en chiefs for blocking construction of the GCL pipeline.
Protests are ongoing throughout Canada in support of Wet’suwet’en.
Protestors in Toronto shut down Yonge and Dundas intersection during Friday evening rush hour.
Meanwhile the federal Indigenous services minister met with representatives of the Mohawk Nation Saturday to discuss a rail blockade that has shut down rail services across Eastern Canada.
Marc Miller says the situation is “very tense, very volatile” and it is time to talk as members of the Mohawk Nation block the line in support of the hereditary chiefs of the Wet’suwet’en.
The blockade on Tyendinaga Mohawk territory near Belleville, is in its 10th day.
Miller requested the meeting to “polish the silver covenant chain,” which the Mohawks say refers to one of the original agreements between the First Nation and the Crown.
Protestors in Quebec also blocked the rail line in a First Nations community -- several people from the Mi’kmaq community of Listuguj set up a blockage next to the tracks.
And there were peaceful demonstrations in Victoria, British Columbia.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said the blockades and subsequent rail shutdown is “becoming a very serious threat” to the Canadian economy.
Federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau says Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer’s suggestion of ordering police to end rail line blockades across the country is unhelpful.
Scheer wants the prime minister to order the public safety minister to tell RCMP detachments to end blockades by supporters of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs opposed to construction of a natural gas pipeline through their territories in northwestern B.C.
But Garneau is dismissing Scheer’s remarks.
“This is a complex situation and I think that that does not indicate an understanding of the situation,” he said.
Trudeau says he has no plans to order the RCMP to end the blockades of vital rail links across the country. Speaking in Munich, where he’s attending a global security conference, Trudeau brushed off demands made in Ottawa earlier by Scheer.
“We are not the kind of country where politicians get to tell the police what to do in operational matters,” said Trudeau.
