Thousands in Canada join anti-corporate protests

CANADA: Over 10,000 Canadians blew bubbles, strummed guitars and chanted anti-corporate slogans at protests across the country Saturday, as part of global demonstrations against corporate greed.

In Toronto, an estimated 5,000 people inspired by the “Occupy Wall Street” movement showed up in the city’s financial district, and later set up tents in a nearby park.

Thousands also protested in Halifax, Montreal, Quebec City, the capital Ottawa, Winnipeg, Calgary and Vancouver with a wide range of demands, from jobs to a fairer distribution of wealth, greater corporate accountability, “the truth behind “9/11,” a Palestinian state and animal rights. So far, the protests have been mostly peaceful. Police said two men, one of them carrying a concealed hammer, were arrested for trespassing at a bank office in Toronto. “I’m looking to see how the government reacts” to the demonstrations, Brent Hendren, 24, told AFP as he set up his tent in Toronto’s Saint James Park.

Despite colder temperatures forecast ahead, Hendren said he planned to be at the park for “as long as it takes.” Many protesters brought sleeping bags, tarps and other supplies for an overnight stay, while others came just for the day with their children.

“I believe a revolution is happening,” said 30-year-old Annabell Chapa, who brought her one-year-old son Jaydn along in a stroller.

At Confederation Park in Ottawa, the mood was festive as hundreds waved placards, some reading “The world has enough for everyone’s needs, but not everyone’s greed” and “Money talks too much.”

Holding up one end of an “Occupy Ottawa” banner, student Jess Menard, 20, said: “We need to stop consenting to an economic system that puts profits ahead of people.”AFP