Readin', Writin' and Protestin'

Victoria was home to the largest protest of the Gordon Campbell era yesterday, a pretty impressive thing considering the animosity directed towards Campbell and his government from organized labour in BC over the last number of years .

Thousands of people marched on the Legislature in support of the British Columbia Teachers Federation and their striking members. Stretching from the Legislature grounds, down the Causeway and past the Empress into the downtown area. The crowd of over10,000 braved the winds and walked in a steady downpour, vociferous and creative in their expressions of anger at the Campbell Liberals.

Now considering the fact that it is a strike by teachers, some of the protest signs were a tad more creative than your run of the mill labour confrontation.

Spotted around the Legislature grounds on Monday were:

"ATTENTION: The Following Bullies should report for Detention, Gordon Campbell, Shirley Bond, Mike DeJong."

"Prince George won't live in Bondage!"

Kill Bill 12!

"An Exorcist is needed in Victoria"

"Drunk with Power (complete with the ever popular Hawaiian Campbell DUI mugshot)"

And then there were those that probably weren't teachers but were there to offer moral support, all be it in need of a refresher course in grammar.

"WE AIN'T GOING AWAY"

With rotating public sector strikes starting today there will be many more opportunities for the labour movement to express themselves. Tuesday saw Northern BC behind picket lines as CUPE members walked off the job to show support for the teachers, closing rec centers, pools, city halls and interrupting garbage collection across the Northern half of the province. Other disruptions are planned for the rest of the week, with Vancouver to be the target of dissent on Friday.

The government meanwhile is busy trying to get the courts to act on the situation in a forceful manner, having named a special prosecutor, Len Doust to explore further charges against the union and union leader Jinny Sims.

For Labour the escalating action is just the beginning, sensing a chance to fight back after taking it on the chin for a number of years, the promise of more demonstrations has been made if the government does not negotiate with the BCTF.

A smart investor would perhaps invest in a supply of bristol board and sharpie markers, a stall outside of the Legislature might be a smart business opportunity for the next little while.