I arrived late due to a few tasks and having to install the tripod (which turns out, didn't need to be used).
Speaker had the reverb turned on high, which impacted how loud it was, so nobody past 100 meters could hear it unfortunately. Had I arrived on time (ie. no tasks to complete), I would have mentioned to them to turn it off before it started so it would be much louder and it would have projected for at most 300 meters, maybe more.
00:00Service is there to help us, the people of this country.
00:03He is slashing the budget of so many of the departments that provide the services that we need in this country.
00:11People are hurting. We know the austerity agenda is only going to make worse.
00:15The fact that our groceries are too high.
00:20Our rents are too high.
00:23People cannot afford to pay their mortgages.
00:25All of that is making it so, so difficult for working people.
00:30And as a member of the United Steelworkers, I will tell you, and I'm sure you already know,
00:35what it means if you're a steelworker up in Algoma or in Hamilton or some of the steel fabricating factories here in the city of Toronto.
00:46People are losing jobs. Thousands of people are losing jobs.
00:49And we know in Ingersoll, in Brampton, in Oshawa, in Windsor, so many other places.
00:55In Quebec, the aluminum industry.
00:58In the West, the paper workers.
01:01These people are losing jobs, good union jobs.
01:05And we are supposed to support...
01:07We are supposed to support a war budget.
01:12Invest in trains, not warplanes.
01:14I mean, it is not what the working class in this country are fighting for or have fought for.
01:20Our parents before us, our grandparents, and those who come recently to the country, they come with that same history of working class fight back.
01:27And so what we are saying clearly today, and there will be many other rallies like this across the country,
01:33that we do not accept it, we will stand up against it.
01:36And I will tell you as well, you may have other speakers who speak to this,
01:40we have been fighting this government when they have legislated workers back on the job,
01:45whether it be the Port of Montreal, the Port of Vancouver,
01:48we have seen what they tried to do to the air flight attendants and so many more.
01:52And the CUPW, the Canadian pollster workers, have been fighting for the public service that we deserve.
01:58We deserve home delivery. We deserve all of that.
02:03And they are trying to privatize, privatize, privatize to help their wealthy friends.
02:09And we stand firmly in support of the Canadian Union pollster workers,
02:13the workers who fought across this country,
02:16and who are going to fight again, hopefully until victory,
02:19because they know we are behind them.
02:21So we're here. This is the beginning.
02:23We have to tell Carney and all of the Liberal government,
02:26we have to tell Ford that we will not accept it,
02:29we will organize, we will organize, and we know from our history,
02:32when we organize, we can win.
02:34Solidarity forever. Thank you very much.
02:40This is a good-looking group of people.
02:44Two years ago, D4P took over the street in front of this address
02:48to tell our MP that it was unacceptable, ridiculous, and unconscionable
02:54that Canada do nothing while a genocide is unfolding before our eyes
02:59and in every single screen in the world.
03:01Shame! Shame! Shame!
03:04Our MP has not moved much since then,
03:07but that doesn't mean that we're done pushing her.
03:09There is an exciting new opportunity with a private members bill
03:12that's currently in Parliament called the No More Loophole Bill.
03:16Have y'all heard of it? Yes.
03:17Yeah, okay. For those who haven't, and for our friends across the street,
03:21the flow of military goods between Canada and Israel
03:23operates through three distinct avenues right now.
03:25Direct commercial exports,
03:27imports of Israeli military technology and hardware,
03:31and indirect exports,
03:32where Canadian arms are shipped to Israel
03:34through transfers via the U.S.
03:36This uses a loophole
03:38that exempts military exports
03:39to the U.S.
03:41from having to go through Canada's permitting requirements,
03:43human rights risk assessment regime,
03:46and any measure of transparency.
03:51Every year, Canada exports over a billion dollars
03:54of military goods to the U.S.,
03:56the vast majority without permits,
03:58without regulation,
04:00or any tracking of their final destination.
04:03Our arms exports to any other country
04:06require permits and are evaluated for risk
04:08of being used to commit war crimes
04:10or other gross violations of human rights.
04:12But most of our military exports to the U.S.
04:15are exempt,
04:15and it's time to put a stop to that.
04:18As just one example,
04:19dozens of Canadian facilities
04:21produce components of the F-35 fighter jet,
04:24which are primarily transferred
04:25to Lockheed Martin's factory in Texas
04:27to be assembled,
04:28and then some are sent to Israel,
04:30where the IDF has been using guns
04:31to drop 2,000-pound bombs on Gaza.
04:34Yay!
04:34The Canadian government has paused
04:39issuing direct permits
04:40for military exports to Israel,
04:41but it did not impact all exports.
04:44Canadian-made military goods
04:46have continued to flow to Israel
04:47through the U.S. loophole,
04:49which is what the No More Loopholes Act
04:51formerly called an act to amend
04:52the Export and Import Permit Act
04:54is hoping to do.
04:56This has been proposed by MVP,
04:57MP Jenny Kwan,
04:59a member of Parliament
05:00who actually cares about her constituents,
05:02who actually does something
05:03when they are brought over by grief
05:06every single day,
05:07looking at what's happening
05:08to our families and our comrades
05:09across the ocean and across the world.
05:12So come find me
05:13and other folks from D4P after.
05:15We've got some nifty pamphlets for you.
05:17You can pass them along.
05:18And most importantly,
05:19you can send a letter
05:20to your MP right now.
05:22There's a nifty QR code you can use.
05:24You don't have to type it yourself.
05:26You don't have to call.
05:27You don't have to go to their office,
05:28although you fucking should.
05:29Woo!
05:29Woo!
05:30Woo!
05:30Woo!
05:31All right.
05:32Good to see you, folks.
05:33Woo!
05:34Woo!
05:34Woo!
05:34Woo!
05:34Woo!
05:35Woo!
05:35I think they are getting slashed at the knees.
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