Reactive to events following peaceful protest

Oxfam, in conjunction with a number of other groups, including the Canadian Labour Congress, the Ontario Federation of Labour, the Council of Canadians, Greenpeace and the Canadian Federation of Students, organized a peaceful demonstration in Toronto on Saturday which attracted over 10,000 people. We cooperated with police in advance of the event and had hundreds of trained marshals to maintain order and keep our participants safe.

We are dismayed at the violence that arose following our peaceful demonstration. Not only did this violence put the health and safety of individuals at risk, but it also drew attention away from the crucial issues being discussed within the Summits at a time when millions of lives are hanging in the balance as a result of ongoing poverty around the globe.

Many of the women and girls, men and boys with whom Oxfam works around the world daily experience violence within and outside their homes. This cruel reality hinders their ability to have their voices heard. Their choices are constrained by a culture of intimidation.

Given this experience, while Oxfam believes that protest is an integral component of active citizenship, we do not condone the acts of violence that erupted in Toronto’s streets on June 26th. We are an organization with a long-standing history of active peaceful citizenship; the principles of which can be found in our organization’s non-violent protest policy.

For further comment, please contact Karen Palmer, Media Officer at 1-613-240-3047.