Quebec Labor Unions Join Students in Historic Fight Against 'Bill 78'

[marmar]

Published on Saturday, May 26, 2012 by Common Dreams

Quebec Labor Unions Join Students in Historic Fight Against 'Bill 78'
'Biggest constitutional challenge in Quebec history” say students, labor

- Common Dreams staff


Not lightning, not heavy rain, nor threat of police arrest kept protesters off the streets of Montreal and other Quebec cities on Friday night, as violent rainstorm was met only with another rowdy demonstrations as students and citizens banged on pots and pans to continue their promise to hold nightly events until what they call is a 'draconian law' is overturned.

Friday nights rally culminated a week that saw over 2,500 arrests by Montreal police.

Earlier on Friday, three main student groups, who organized a march of over 400,000 Montreal students and citizens earlier this week and have been the driving force behind a protest movement that has only grown since it began in February, joined with over a hundred labor unions to file legal action against the Quebec government's Bill 78 -- a piece of emergency legislation that the groups claim suppresses dissent, restricts the right to peaceably assemble and, according to some, have the real intention of splitting up the student associations who have been so effective in challenging the government.

Lawyers worked through the night to complete their challenge, said Léo Bureau-Blouin, president of the Fédération étudiante collégiale du Québec, at a press conference outside the Montreal courthouse on Friday. “It’s the biggest constitutional challenge in Quebec history.” ..............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/05/26-4

[marmar]

1. AM Kick.

nt

[socialist_n_TN]

2. Kick. Once again, this is happening .........

right on the USA's doorstep and we hear nothing (or very little) about it. The student strike has been going on since FEBRUARY! And the solidarity is growing.

[Posteritatis]

3. The strike's been, but it's only ramped up enough to start making international news recently

It's been a constant background thing in the media here since February, but really started dominating headlines shortly before Quebec started working on that ridiculous legislation against the demonstrators.

I figured it was starting to get significant in more than a domestic sense when I saw the BBC regularly paying attention to it.

[socialist_n_TN]

4. But you would think that it would be getting more coverage........

in the media in the USA than it has since Canada, and specifically Montreal, is VERY close to a lot of the United States. Yet, per your post, the BBC is "regularly paying attention to it." But the media in this country is ignoring it.

[Posteritatis]

5. I actually wouldn't; I remember US coverage of the independence referendum

Nothing at all about that until the night of, and then mostly jokes.

People up here generally take it for granted that it's really, really unusual for any Canadian news to make US media, and rarer still for it to be taken as anything other than farce.