On Monday, March 25, I joined our Regional Organizer Mark Calzavara in Toronto at a conference on building the people power to stop the Ford government’s regressive plans for the province.
The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) organizers of the Power Of Many gathering had reportedly been expecting 300 participants. Over 900 labour and community activists showed up, highlighting the appetite for serious organizing to resist Ford’s attacks on people and the planet.
The gathering began with an Indigenous welcome and territorial land acknowledgement, which recognized the need to disrupt colonialism as we build the resistance to the Ford agenda.
WHAT’S AT STAKE
In office for less than a year so far, Ford’s attacks have already been swift and far-reaching.
These have included: attacks on LGBTQ rights, attacks Francophone rights, attacks on public services including for Health Care, attacks on Autism services, attacks on students and workers, attacks on climate and environmental protections, axing the officers of the Ontario Child Advocate and the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario, cancelling the scheduled minimum wage hike, and emboldening and promoting the racism of the far right. To name just a few.
The Power Of Many conference aimed to galvanize grassroots organizers around a campaign to confront and stop this series of attacks.
“This is about the rise of the right. This is about the rise of hate,” said Melisa Bayon, the OFL’s Political Action and Outreach Director, who noted that the 1% is exploiting this racism to advance their neoliberal agenda.
“There’s a lot at stake, but there’s a lot of hope. This government is vulnerable… and we can actually win. Power Of Many… is a resistance campaign,” said Bayon, who outlined the Power Of Many campaign plan. “We can’t wait for the election. We have to do it now.”
“We must unite against the rising tide of Islamophobia, racism, and hate,” said OFL President Chris Buckley. The conference also highlighted the important anti-racism work of the Migrant Rights Network.
“Based on the attacks on student unions, right to work may be introduced,” said OFL Research Director Thevaki Thevaratnam. So-called right to work policies are actually designed to undermine workers’ rights and crush unions.
Thevaratnum also highlighted the serious risks posed by the new health super agency will have major new powers to privatize health care in Ontario and the importance of championing greener communities as part of building resistance to the Ford agenda.
BUILDING THE POWER OF MANY
How do we build the power of many to resist current and future attacks? The conference underscored the importance of anticipating what the main points of confrontation are likely to be and where our movements will have the most leverage, as well as the need to start preparing now.
“Why can’t we do days of action like we did in the 90s?” asked Toronto and York Region Labour Council President John Cartwright. “We’ve got some work to do to get there. How do we take on this government in a real confrontational way? We build from the ground up in our communities.”
“We have to know where the weak links are in their chain. And we have to put pressure on those links,” said Cartwright. “Power comes from our organizations being laser focused,” to ensure conservative MPPs are confronted by resistance everywhere they go.
WHAT NOW?
As longtime anti-poverty organizer John Clarke remarked, the degree of success will come down to the competing forces of the Power of Many vs. the Power of Money.
The success of the Power of Many campaign will depend building strong community-labour alliances rooted in our communities, and coordination across the province.
There are a variety of ways Council of Canadians supporters, chapters, and allies in Ontario can get involved in Power Of Many organizing and help shape the resistance to the Ford agenda.
Regional Activation Meetings
There are several Regional Activation Meetings coming up: in Ottawa on April 2, in Kingston on April 2, and in Sault Ste. Marie on April 3.
$15 and Fairness
One of the Ford government’s first moves was to cancel the hard won gains of the Fight for $15 and Fairness. You can take action for $15 and Fairness right now.
Education Rally at Queen’s Park
Parents and educators are organizing a Rally for Education at Queen’s Park on April 6, to defend public education against proposed class size increases, downloading Autism support onto public schools, and reducing the number of educators across the province.
Equal Pay Day
The Power of Many conference highlighted the pay inequity that for every $1 a White man makes, Indigenous women make $0.45, for racialized women it’s $0.50, and Ford is making this worse by attacking pay transparency. We can make a real difference for intersectional pay equity on Equal Pay Day on April 9.
Province-Wide Day of Action
Important immediate next steps include regional activation meetings and rallies for education and health care, and a province-wide day of action on April 17. Stay tuned for details here.
Mass Rally to Defend Health Care
Natalie Mehra from the Ontario Health Coalition called Ford’s bill attacking public health care in Ontario “the worst piece of legislation I’ve ever read.” The resistance to Ford’s attacks on health care include town halls and an emergency mass rally at Queen’s Park on April 30.
Provincial Day of Action
The Power Of Many campaign is supporting and mobilizing a series of town halls and mass protests leading up to a provincial day of action on June 7. Stay tuned for details here.
Power Of Many organizing materials are available here and here.
