Toronto Police Brutality during the G20 Weekend

Eyewitness Account

Article and pics by

Alex Jamieson Jr. 

Editor

Toronto Native News 

At around 2:30 pm on Saturday, June 26, four motorcycle police from Toronto pulled up at the corner of Queens Park and Bloor Street. They lined up on Queens Park Street south of Bloor and faced the intersection stopping traffic from going south on Queens Park Street towards the provincial legislature buildings. A few minutes later a squad of about 10 officers on mountain bikes pulled up alongside the motorcycle police and stopped. They were followed by police in full riot gear including helmets, body armour, metal batons and shields. 

Bewildered onlookers, some anticipating a motorcade of international dignitaries on their way to attend the G20 Summit taking place near the Toronto's downtown core, gathered at the busy intersection to watch the police action, 

There was no motorcade however and within 20 minutes police numbers at the intersection had risen to well over 500 officers and still growing. Lines began to form at the intersection with police on bikes and many more on foot. They were carrying telescopic metal batons which can extend from 8 inches to 2 or three feet in length in a second. The batons themselves are illegal to possess in Canada because they are easy to conceal and can be deployed so quickly. They can easily break an arm or produce severe damage to anyone hit in the head with such a device.

Sensing something more than a motorcade, onlookers continued to gather, taking pictures and wondering out-loud about what was unfolding at the corner. Then as the police numbers had swelled to close to a 800, the group of them turned in unision to face south on Queens Park Street. A few more orders were shouted out and all officers began donning gas masks. They also engaged in rousing cheers among themselves at the prompting of their superiors. It was reminiscent of a sports team bolstering their resolve to beat the opposing team. The 'beating' however, that resulted from this team though would prove to have a much more literal conotation to the term.

Beating their batons against their shields, the police lines extended to both sides of the street including  sidewalks. Passersby and onlookers had to either also head south on Queens Park Street or get around the menacing-looking police formation by going down private driveways or climbing over property fences.

Expressions of disbelief, confusion and fear were obvious among those trying to avoid the oncoming police lines. Others took pictures sensing that something big was about to happen. 

 

Having picked up their pace to a fast walk, the Police contingent were close to overtaking those trying to stay clear of the heavily armed formation. Close to a thousand officers now were marching towards Queens Park. Many of them had been borrowed from other police forces in Ontario.

As the mixture of Toronto's "finest" and imports reached the top of north end of the Legislative grounds they stayed on the roadway rather than go through the parkland. Some protestors were still leaving the area at the time from a peaceful demonstration that had occurred an hour or so earlier in front of the Legislature.  Carrying protest signs and dressed like old time hippies they appeared peaceful and many had children in strollers with them.

As the police group of around 1000 strong neared the western side of the legislative buildings, they started arresting people who were unfortunate enough to be within their grasp. A couple men standing near the roadway were taken roughly to the ground and arrested. It wasn't clear why they were arrested and thrown to the ground and handcuffed. Their bags were searched and thrown to the ground rather than kept for those now in custody.

There didn't appear to be any reason for their arrest of the two other than standing near the roadway and watching the procession pass.

After passing the Legislature building the police stopped, formed a line across the road and then started marching towards the protestors who were congregated in the front of the legislature grounds at the intersection of Queens Park and College Street.

At the intersection there were more police formed in lines facing north. They too were in full riot gear and appeared to be pointing what was likely bean-bag guns at the protestors.

Realizing they were being boxed in by the approaching police from the North and the line at the intersection, many of the group started to look for a way to escape. Another, smaller group of about 15 protestors, appearing to be in their early 20's, remained sitting on a raised grassy island in the roadway between the lines at the intersection and the oncoming police on mountain bikes with metal batons and police in riot gear with tear gas. 

As others ran away the group stayed put with the police still advancing. The group continued to sit in peaceful protest until the police formation tear gassed them and then moved over them and the grassy island with mountain bikes. 

Some of the protesting group left with injuries or having been tear-gassed and while others were arrested. The majority of the remaining group of protestors and observers were then pushed back towards the legislature buildings after another line of riot police formed on the East side of the roadway. The crowd began running in fear of being gassed or stuck as the police started to run towards them. They were pushed back toward the buildings for a hundred meters more and then the police stopped after having arrested more people.

After ten or so minutes the police retreated back South to join the lines of police already formed at the Queens Park/College Street intersection. 

As they did, protestors and observers also returned to the area recently overrun by riot police and regained the ground they had initially occupied before the police raid on the group, just minutes earlier.

Even the raised grassy island that the police line went over with tear gas metal batons and mountain bikes just minutes before was once again occupied by the protestors, observers and others taking pictures.

Editorial

It is not clear why the police felt it necessary to spray and assault young people sitting on the grass on an island in the roadway. The area was at least 20 blocks from the huge fences surrounding the gathering of world leaders. The group of protestors and observers were not threatening anyone or holding any weapons of any sort. 

It is also not clear what the objective of the police was by removing the young group with such force only to leave the area minutes later.

If the police objective was to join the contingent of police at the intersection they could have merely went around the raised island leaving the young people to sit on the grass.

If the objective however was to make a statement and make an example of those who would dare protest during the G20 Summit then they succeeded in that. 

If another objective was to express their displeasure at earlier burnings of police cars and breaking of store windows then they did that too. 

An analogy of the menacing actions Chief Bill Blair and his officers that day could be a vacuum cleaner sucking up everything in its path or bottom dragging fish nets indiscriminately scooping up whatever happens to get trapped in the net.  Then they sort out their catch and throw away the fish they don't want. That's what happened here. Close to 1,000 people were arrested with about two-thirds not being charged with an offense.

It would like rounding up a whole neighbourhood to filter out a handful of suspected criminals. In the process hundreds of people would have to be arbitrarily detained, even though they were not suspected of doing anything illegal.

Thats what Bill Blair and the Toronto Police did that G20 weekend in Toronto. The blatant and arrogant suspension of human rights in Toronto.

Some police cars had been burned up and some windows were smashed but there were no injuries of citizens or police. Not one.

Why was there such police brutality?

          

Was it a well thought-out and measured response to the criminal activity that occurred, to arrest and detain 900 people for the actions of a handful? 

Or were the police, from the top down acting in a reactionary manner with anger and vengeance on their minds?

It has to be the latter.

Who, in their right mind would send thousands of armed police into crowds of protestors where a car backfire, fireworks from the upcoming Canada Day celebrations, or the suicidal actions of one could spark a bloodbath in the "confusion." It has happened before.

Was a few police cars and store windows worth that risk? Is Blair insane with lust for power? Was he prompted perhaps by peer pressure to show the rest of the bullies that he can be just as effective as them in disregard for human rights?

Was this all a show for the world leaders at the G20? With right-wing conservative Stephan Harper at the helm on the country the G20 brutality shown by police and their task masters may have been an exercise in showmanship.

 

An earlier riot in Montreal after the Habs lost in the playoffs also resulted in torched police cars and much more damage that in Toronto yet hardly anyone was arrested, certainly not 900.

 

Another scary aspect of this ominous suspension of human rights is how easily the indivdual officers followed the commands of their superiors, even if it meant engaging in criminal acts themselves or total disregard for due process of those arrested.

Police officers are not bound to follow orders from their superiors if they include illegal acts.

Yet thousands of individual Canadians provided with guns, body amour, metal batons and tear-gas,(not to mention a hefty weekly salary) did all of this without hesitation.

Basic human rights and Charter rights, including freedom of the press were arbitrarily suspended by Blair as journalists were assaulted and arrested also without charges being laid afterward. So much for the public's right to know.

Toronto Police Chief Blair is defiant these days, a week later, and he doesn't regret the brutality and potential for tragedy during the G20 weekend. 

If he is left to continue on as Chief of Toronto Police than the message is: don't mess with us cause this police brutality will happen to you, and this time a car may backfire or a firecracker may go off and you may get shot.

It happened at Ipperwash in 1995 and Oka in 1990 and Kent State during the Vietnam era. People ended up dying in those conflicts with confusion being cited as the primary cause of the resulting gunfire and bloodshed, and history has a way of repeating itself. 

A comprehensive public and independent Inquiry Must Be Called Now for people in Canada to ever begin to have respect for the police again. Chances are, the closer to the truth we get from an inquiry the higher we will go. Stephan Harper, Dalton McGuinty and who knows who else should all be forced to testify under oath and be charged with criminal offenses if warranted.

Police Chief Blair should have been fired days ago and charged with assault causing bodily harm and then tossed into one of his cages for 18 hours with handcuffs still on.  

 

For anyone else wanting to exercise their freedom of expression through protest, including Native people who have many issues to protest about, this may be a long hot summer in Canada...and it's only just begun.

Keep Safe.