OFL and Teachers Rally in Allan Gardens

And so begins the protests in Allan Gardens.

Today during the Ontario Liberal Leadership, a protest/rally was held in Allan Gardens after which the protesters walked over the leadership convention at Maple Leaf Gardens.  It is being referred to by hashtag #J26Rally as the Ontario Federation of Labour and Ontario Teachers protest Bill 115

Teachers, unions, media. Lots of folks protesting, banjos playing, sign carrying, drum beating in Allan Gardens right now! Many, many, teachers from all across Ontario bused in just for the rally.

I was impressed by how polite and courteous everyone in the park was.  A quiet “excuse me” would open the crowd up with enough space to walk through without having to trample even more of the gardens and winter plants. People were there with a mission, but there was a real sense of common purpose and unity that we don’t see nearly enough when people are trying to be heard.

Why was I there? Well, when a protest is less than a block from your house, it’s hard not to go see what’s happening. And it’s fascinating when photo ops come to you.  The benefits of a protest & march so close to home? You can come home when the camera batteries die and swap cameras.  Downside, the helicopters, chanting and amplified protest music make sleeping off the final stages of this flu a bitch. So new camera and back into the fray to watch the Ontario Federation of Labour and Ontario Teachers protest in Toronto.

Here’s a little slideshow of the sights.