Good Friday started the weekend off with a call for a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in Nova Scotia. Attended by over 150 people from across the province, the rally outside of Province House had a lot of energy and positive reception from the media as well. Chapters from Inverness County, North Shore, Halifax and Annapolis Valley were in attendance, so the Council was well-represented!!
Radio-Canada captures “Fracking is super-lame” sign
Here are a few articles from the media on the fracking rally:
http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/1239914.html
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/story/2011/04/22/ns-fracking-protest-in-halifax.html
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Canada/20110422/earth-day-fracking-protest-110422/
http://www.marcellus-shale.us/Gas-Drilling_NEWS.htm The Canadian Press article even made it into several US websites, including this one.
There are some great photos on the Halifax Media Co-op website here: http://halifax.mediacoop.ca/photo/water-not-be-fracked/7031
After the fracking rally there was a anti-nuclear rally, which several folks met up with at Province House. We had great weather to accompany the call for no more nuclear in Canada.
Today, rally weekend ended with a labour-organized rally: “Stand Up! Speak Out! Jobs, Justice and Equality!” Both Adrienne Silnicki (health care campaigner) and myself spoke about what we and the Council of Canadians want and expect from our federal government:
King Harper also makes an appearance
– universal health care,
– respect for democracy,
– a National Water Policy that does not put corporate rights first,
– strong policies to achieve deep emission reductions
– protection of fragile Arctic and Gulf of St. Lawrence waters from oil and gas,
– green jobs, and
– fair trade deals to be negotiated, versus free trade deals like CETA!
There are so many important issues that other raised at the rally, including pensions, poverty, women’s issues, and others. I only hope that, come May 2nd, we will elect a government that cares about the same issues that we do!
Angela Giles
Atlantic Regional Organizer
