Better than any independent report is a collective report, this is an ever changing document and this is how it stands on November 17, 2011:
English Version:
On November 10th, 2011, students and other residents of
Montreal gathered to protest planned provincial tuition increases: a hike of
$325 per year over the next five years, bringing tuition fees from $2,168
presently to $3,793 in 2017.[1]
In the morning, before the main downtown protest, students at
Dawson College blocked entrances to their school, leaving only one door
accessible, which was surrounded by protesters with signs.[2] Classes at the school were cancelled
for the day.
The initial gathering point was the Berri–UQAM metro
station at 2 PM.[3] The CBC estimated 20,000 people were present[4], though the police placed the numbers at 15,000 and
the FÉUQ[5] at 30,000.[6] From there the protest marched up Berri, across
Sherbrooke and toward Premier Jean Charest’s office on McGill College. Many
violent protesters threw paint bombs and fireworks at the building[7] which had a police cordon in front of it before the
protest arrived. At 4:30 PM, “flaming projectiles” were reported to have been
thrown at police in front of Charest’s office.[8] By 4:41 PM, many protesters had left the area outside
Charest’s office, leaving small groups, while police stayed on site.[9]
At approximately 3:45 PM, 14 protesters, some wearing
bandanas (cite), attempted an occupation of the fifth floor of the James
Administration building at McGill University[10]. The doors were unlocked as it was
still during working hours for the building. Upon entrance, they raised their
hands and announced a peaceful occupation of McGill Principal Heather
Munroe-Blum’s office. After a banner reading “Nov 10. Occupons McGill!” was
strung from the window, McGill Security violently swarmed the students.
Security was called by the workers in the Principal’s office, who were allowed
freedom to stay or go by the occupiers. When news of the force applied to
students in the building reached the outside, the support for the occupation
began to draw a large crowd of protesters to the McGill downtown campus to
secure the safety and liberty of those inside[11].
As students and a few McGill professors (Adrienne Hurley, Ian
Gold, Greg Mikkelson -- conversational/eyewitness accounts) gathered around the
entrance to James Administration, the occupiers began to contact their
supporters on the outside. The occupiers relayed the situation from inside:
they claimed they were being physically assaulted by McGill security, thrown to
the ground, kicked, and punched in the stomach.[12] The crowd outside began to
strategize ways to help those on the inside.
At the front entrance, students tried negotiating their entrance, first
suggesting to security that they allow a pair to go inside and confirm that the
situation was peaceful before ceding to a single individual and finally asking
for security to merely take a camera in and quickly film the happenings
upstairs before returning it to the friends outside. All such requests were denied. Another phone call from within confirmed that
the administration (citation needed) had called the police, and as it had
become clear by then that there was no way to enter the building with McGill
security forcefully blocking every entrance, supporters decided to instead
prolong negotiations inside and protect their friends by blocking police from
entering to the building by forming a human chain in front of every entrance:
those on the side, front, and back. (*can this paragraph be rewritten to sound
more impersonal?*)
Approximately 20 students stormed the second floor lobby of
the building after somebody inside had left, and the security was unable to
re-close the opened door. Pushing and shoving occurred with the security
guards, and one girl was allegedly tackled on the ground by a security guard
without being subsequently helped up by him. The security had to reform another
wall past the lobby door so that more of the building wouldn’t be lost to the
protesters. The protesters sat down in solidarity with those on the fifth floor[13]. The fifth floor occupiers
negotiated for the unconditional release of everyone in the building, free of
police charges or McGill disciplinary investigation, with Provost Anthony Masi and Deputy Provost Morton
Mendelson[14] .
At 16:52hrs[15], approximately 10 to 20 non-riot
police on bikes arrived in front of the James Administration and stood by. The
officers then attempted to push the crowd back with their bikes. A police officer’s tire fell of his bike
after forcefully hitting a student demonstrator. Students cried out “shame”, denounced the confrontation
before tossing projectiles -- signs and pickets -- at the police,[16] who then departed. There was at
least one use of pepper spray at this point. (23)
At approximately 16:55hrs the police on bikes left[17], as riot police promptly arrived in
vans from University Street, entering through the Milton Gates. They marched up
to the entrance of the Administration building, striking their shields with
batons, before standing off against a human chain of students hoping to prolong
negotiations inside. Students chanted
for the safe release of the students inside and were by and large peaceably
assembling aside from a small group who taunted and swore at police, while
holding their ground. In response, the
riot police first used pepper spray on those students nearest the entrance and
attempted to disband them. A sitting demonstrator received a kick in the face
before a charge forward from the police that pushed demonstrators further back
from the entrance. The police then proceeded to disperse the crowd gathered in
front of the administration building with pepper spray, tear gas, batons and
shields[18].
At 16.57hrs[19], riot police entered the Roddick
Gates, circling and pushing protesters onto University Street with pepper spray
and riot shields.[20] The Montreal Gazette reported
that for the next hour, “horses and at least one tear gas grenade were used to
push the lingering [protesters] onto Milton [Street].”[21]
Police proceeded to push students out of campus through the
Milton gates. Here, riot police and police on bikes lined up in the middle of
the intersection to allow kettled (source?) students out of the Milton gate
area
Students who
had not been a part of the protest and who just happened to be on campus were
also allegedly harassed and pepper sprayed by the police (citation needed).
McConnell Engineering Building was locked down as students moved inside to wash
out pepper spray; other buildings around the Milton Gates were also locked to
prevent students from entering or leaving.
Four arrests have been made by the SPVM (Montreal police
force) due to aggressive behaviour toward police officers, theft, etc.[22] These four have been confirmed as
three men and one woman.[23] (apparently only one was at mcgill.
the other three were at the protest proper, though details are sparse)
Version «française» :
Le 10 novembre 2011, une manifestation organisée par
l’Alliance sociale (syndicats, associations étudiantes, groupes communautaires)
a eu lieu pour dénoncer, entre autres, la hausse des frais de scolarité de
1625$ sur cinq ans annoncée par le gouvernement Charest.
Le rassemblement a eu lieu au parc Émilie-Gamelin (station du
métro Berri–UQAM) à 14h00. La CBC a annoncé qu’il y avait alors environ 20 000
personnes. Le SPVM avance pour sa part le nombre de 15 000 et la FEUQ, celui de
30 000. Lorsqu’il fut mis en branle, le cortège se dirigea d’abord sur Berri,
puis sur Sherbrooke pour s’arrêter enfin sur la rue McGill College devant les
bureaux du premier ministre Jean Charest. Quelques manifestants ont ensuite
lancé des bombes de peinture et des feux d’artifice sur l’immeuble protégé par
un cordon policier. À 16h30, des témoins rapportent avoir vu des projectiles en
feu lancés aux policiers devant les bureaux de Charest. À 16h41, la grande
majorité du cortège avait déjà quitté les lieux. Seuls de petits groupes et la
police demeurèrent sur place.
À 17h, des policiers anti-émeutes ont passé le portail
Roddick. Ils ont repoussé une partie des manifestants sur la rue University
avec des lacrymogènes et leur bouclier.
À 17h44, il restait seulement un lieu problèmatique, le
portail Milton (sur les rues Milton et University). Treize manifestants ont
occupé le 5e étage de l’immeuble James (administration) à l’Université McGill,
plus particulièrement le bureau de la rectrice Heather Monroe-Blum. Cette
occupation a commencé à attirer une foule sur le campus.
Les manifestants à
l’intérieur de l’immeuble ont négocié avec les (???)
Environ 10 policiers sont arrivés en vélo et attendaient. Ils
ont essayé de repousser la foule avec leurs vélos. La foule a repoussé la
police et a lancé des ordures aux policiers qui se sont alors repliés.
Pour arriver à renvoyer les 13 manifestants dans l’immeuble,
des employés de Sûreté McGill les ont bousculés et ont fait usage de coups de
pieds.
Environ 4 minutes après, des policiers anti-émeutes sont
arrivés sur la rue University. Ils se sont rendus a l’entrée de l’immeuble
d’administration en frappant leur matraque sur leur bouclier. Là, ils ont fait
face à la ligne d’étudiants qui protégait ceux restés à l’intérieur. Les
étudiants ont scandé des slogans et ont crié aux policiers qu’ils ne
bougeraient pas. Après une valse-hésitation, les policiers ont répliqué en
utilisant des bombes lacrymogènes, des matraques, et des boucliers. On a dit
qu’il y avait aussi des policiers à cheval. L’utilisation d’une grenade
incapacitante a été avancée.
`
On a fermé l’immeuble McConnell (ingénierie) et d’autres
immeubles près du portail Milton.
Le SPVM a arrêté quatre personnes pour voies de fait, vol,
etc.
First-Hand Accounts
Official Responses:
Useful Twitter Accounts:
Articles:
Photos:
Videos:
● Riot Police at McGill University
Protest
Twitter hashtags:
● #non1625
● #realtalk
● #10nov (Francophone tweeters)
[14] http://thelinknewspaper.ca/article/2200 & http://www.mcgilldaily.com/2011/11/letters-from-5th-floor-occupiers/ forthcoming french translation in Le
Delit also in Daily News story by Henry Gass http://www.mcgilldaily.com/2011/11/students-occupying-james-administration-assaulted-by-security/
[15] First hand account, Ross Brown (time taken
from creation timestamp of source video uploaded to YouTube).
[17] First hand account, Ross Brown (time taken
from creation timestamp of source video uploaded to YouTube). http://youtu.be/6Zz4HYaTnq4
[19] First hand account, Ross Brown (time taken
from creation timestamp of source video uploaded to YouTube).
