by
Max
Silverman on Friday, May 18, 2012 at 5:10pm
*PLEASE continue to
spread this note and the information contained therein, but *PLEASE* hold off
on sending your cheques for a day or two while we figure out the most secure
way to receive your donations. We are working on a cheque-in-the-mail and onliQC,ne
option.*
*I will be in Toronto
all week if anyone would like a presentation to your
union/committee/organization.*
Request for
solidarity and support for the Legal Committee of the CLASSE
Sisters, brothers,
We write
you during a dark time for democratic, human and associative rights in Quebec
with the following appeal for your help and solidarity. As you have no doubt
heard, the government recently enacted legislation that amounts to the single
biggest attack on the right to organize and freedom of expression in North
America since the McCarthy period and the biggest attack on civil and
democratic rights since the enactment of the War Measures Act in 1970.
Arguably, this recent law will unduly criminalize more law-abiding citizens
than even McCarthy's hearings and the War Measures Act ever could.
Among
other draconian elements brought forward by this law, any gathering of 50 or
more people must submit their plans to the police eight hours ahead of time and
must agree to any changes to the gathering's trajectory, starttime, etc. Any
failure to comply with this stifling of freedom of assembly and association
will be met with a fine of up to $5,000 for every participant, $35,000 for
someone representing a 'leadership' position, or $125,000 if a union - labour
or student - is deemed to be in charge.
The participation of any university staff (either support staff or
professors) in any student demonstration (even one that follows the police's trajectory
and instructions) is equally punishable by these fines. Promoting the violation
of any of these prohibitions is considered, legally, equivalent to having
violated them and is equally punishable by these crippling fines.
One cannot
view this law in isolation. In the past few months, the Québec student movement
- inspired by Occupy, the Indignados of Spain, the students of Chile, and over
50 years of student struggle in Québec; and presently at North America's
forefront of fighting the government's austerity agenda - has been confronted
by precedent-shattering judicial and police repression in an attempt to force
the end of the strike and our right to organize collectively. Our strike was
voted and is re-voted every week in local general assemblies across Québec. As
of May 18th, 2012 our committee has documented and is supporting 472 criminal
accusations as well as 1047 ticket and penal offenses. One week in April saw
over 600 arrests in three days. And those numbers only reflect those charged
with an offense, without mentioning the thousands pepper sprayed and tear
gassed, clubbed and beaten, detained and released. It does not mention Francis
Grenier, who lost use of most of an eye when a sound grenade was illegally
thrown by a police officer into his face in downtown Montreal. It does not
mention Maxence Valade who lost a full eye and Alexandre Allard who clung to
life in a coma on a hospital bed for days, both having received a police rubber
bullet to the head in Victoriaville. And the thousands of others brutalized,
terrorized, harassed and assaulted on our streets. Four students are currently being charged
under provisions of the anti-terrorist laws enacted following September 11th.
In
addition to these criminal and penal cases, of particular concern for those of
us involved in the labour movement is that anti-strike forces have filed
injunctions systematically from campus to campus to prevent the enactment of
strike mandates, duly and democratically voted in general assemblies. Those who
have defended their strike mandates and enforced the strike are now facing
Contempt of Court charges and their accompanying potential $50,000 fines and
potential prison time. One of our spokespeople, Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, will
appear in Superior Court under such a charge for having dared say, on May 13th
of this year, that "I find it legitimate" that students form picket
lines to defend their strike.
While we
fight, on principle, against this judicialization of a political conflict, we
have no choice but to acknowledge that the struggle on the streets has been,
for many, transferred to the courtroom and we must act to defend our
classmates, our friends and our family.
This defense needs your help. Many students have been denied access to
Legal Aid to help them to defend themselves. This, while students filing
injunctions to end strikes have been systematically granted Legal Aid. While
sympathetic lawyers in all fields of law have agreed to reduced rates and alot
of free support, the inherent nature of the legal system means we are spending
large sums of money on this defense by the day.
It is in
this context that we appeal to you to help us cover the costs of this, our
defense. Not only must we help those being unduly criminalized and facing
injunctions undermining their right to associate, but we must act now and make
sure that the criminalization and judicialization of a political struggle does
not work and set a precedent that endangers the right to free speech and free
assembly.
If you, your union, or your organization is able to give any
amount of financial help, it would make an undeniable difference in our
struggle. In addition to the outpouring
of support from labour across Quebec, we have already begun to receive
trans-Canadian and international solidarity donations. We thank you for adding
your organization's support to the list.
If you have any questions, please contact us via email legal
AT asse-solidarité.qc.ca. Telephone numbers can be given to you in a private
message. You can also send you donation directly to the order of
"Association pour une solidarité syndicale étudiante" (2065 rue
Parthenais, Bureau 383, Montréal, QC, H2K 3T1) noting "CLASSE Legal
Committee" in the memo line.
In solidarity,
Max Silverman
Law student at the Université du Québec à Montréal
Volunteer with the Legal Committee of the CLASSE
Andrée Bourbeau
Law student at the Université du Québec à Montréal
Delegate to the Legal Committee of the CLASSE
Emilie Charette
Law student at the Université du Québec à Montréal
Delegate to the Legal Committee of the CLASSE
Emilie Breton-Côté
Law student at the Université du Québec à Montréal
Volunteer with the Legal Committee of the CLASSE
