Toronto police estimated that over 4,500 people gathered across the street from the U.S. Consulate on March 14 to mark Al Quds Day. Separated by barricades and cops, the ‘Imperialist Hands Off Iran’, anti-war crowd vastly outnumbered the pro-Zionist, pro-Shah monarchy supporters – by a ratio of at least 4 to one.
A Toronto Star article about the face-off on University Avenue, titled “Judge dismisses province’s bid to stop Al Quds rally”, mocks the failure of Premier Doug Ford and hard core Zionists on city council to convince an Ontario judge to grant a last-minute injunction to stop the annual pro-Palestinian gathering. The result was simultaneously a Ford flop, and a victory for freedoms of speech, assembly and association.
The March 15 front page article in Canada’s largest readership daily newspaper, quoted Stephen Ellis, legal counsel for the Al Quds Committee, and this writer, who rallied Socialist Action supporters and allies. Event organizers asked that the SA banner “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will be Free” be carried near the front of the parade.
During the very chilly, rather windy afternoon, SA members distributed hundreds of leaflets displaying headlines “Hands Off Iran!” (see the attached file, beside the photos below), “Stop the US Assault and Canadian Complicity in Venezuela” and “Smash Zionist Genocide”. Event participants, coming from as far away as Hamilton, Mississauga, Thornhill and Cobourg, contributed over $50 for buttons and copies of Red Review magazine. Two young women asked to join SA.
