Occupy Toronto

[charlene]

17 year old Meredith Lightfoot participated, on and off, in the Occupy Toronto event in St.James Park. The encampment started on October 15 and is currently being dismantled.


video might still work @ http://www.citytv.com/toronto/cityne...68476#VideoTag

[charlene]

http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/11...s-another-day/
picture at link above.
Gordon Lightfoot, who turns 73 on Thursday, arrived at the Occupy Toronto protest Tuesday afternoon. He said his daughter Meredith, who is 17, invited him. Meredith has slept in a tent at the camp in St. James Park since Oct. 15.

Hordes of camera crews, photographers, radio reporters and scribes had stood around in the mud of the park since 11 a.m., when city bylaw officers stuck eviction notices on all the pup tents with masking tape. A judge would later issue a stay on the eviction, meaning the occupants can stay put, at least until the weekend when a final decision will be made on whether they have the right to remain.

In the meantime, the media was bored silly: We descended hungrily on the singer and his daughter, who wears dreadlocks to her waist.

“She’s strong, she’s stoic, she’s brave,” Mr. Lightfoot said. “She’s a very precocious girl, she’s talented, she’s smart. She’s quite capable of looking after herself. She’s checkin’ in and being a part of it.”

The singer had bought Meredith a warm sleeping bag, but apparently it wasn’t enough; she caught pneumonia here, and planned to sleep at home on Tuesday night. Her father sympathizes with the protesters.

“There are too many young people and not enough jobs,” he said. But he didn’t take a militant stand in favour of the camp: “I don’t think it’s going to be another Oakland or Atlanta,” he said. “This is a peaceful, beautiful city. I’ve been living here 45 years and I love it here. Maybe they should be allowed to stay. But I have to be faithful and have trust in our politicians.”

The Occupy protesters in general reject capitalism in favour of true sharing, a philosophy Nicole LeBrasseur, a Mohawk visiting the camp from Montreal, summed up as, “The sharing of the one bowl, one spoon for all of humanity.”

The camp has charms: There is a yurt library full of books, a swing made of a 4” X 4” tied with nylon rope to the branch of a century maple, plenty of well-behaved dogs, and a bustling food tent where bushel baskets overflow with Ontario-grown apples.

Still, the 26 grey port-a-potties here gave off an acrid, fetid smell, and the hand-washing stations are out of water. This is one of Toronto’s oldest and loveliest parks, but today much of the grass is gone, replaced by mud: it looks like a barnyard trampled by 1,000 cattle. A 7,000-watt generator next to a maple tree gave off a noisy growl; the power went to the media tent. Jordon (“I’m a medic, marshal and part-time info,”) used the generator to charge cell phones.

The protesters call Occupy a spiritual event that has bonded them; Meredith, who did not give her last name, carried an acoustic guitar signed by everyone at the camp. Slogans include, “Smile on your brother;” “Balance, simplicity, logic, purpose;” “Peace, love and fair trade;” “Ganja and empathy.”

Over the afternoon there were signs of departure; some youth stuffed their sleeping bags away in big backpacks and hugged each other goodbye.

Others came to encourage the campers. Jason Hellsten, 63, a millwright who lives in Scarborough, wore a union jacket of Local 2309. He’s come here every two days.

“I believe the fundamental issue is jobs, jobs, jobs,” said Mr. Hellsten, who worked mostly at the Pickering nuclear generating station. “People have a right to a decent job. This is the greatest country in the world to live in, don’t get me wrong. But is it not up to the individual to improve things?”

At the south end of St. James Park stands a bronze bust of Robert Gourlay, 1778-1863, with this inscription: “Banished from Upper Canada in 1819 on false charges of sedition brought by the Family Compact.”

The pedestal bears a quote by Mr. Gourlay: “The first question in political economy should be, can the mass of people live comfortably under this or that management? But this most necessary question was forgotten, and many of the people have perished.”

One of the Occupy types had tied a tartan scarf around Mr. Gourlay’s neck, against the coming winter chill.

[charlene]

http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/11...-than-protest/
picture at link.

On Wednesday morning, I am still mulling over the strange spectacle of Gordon Lightfoot’s visit to his daughter in the muddy bog of St. James Park in Toronto Tuesday. The event said a lot more about the challenging nature of father-teen relations, especially with the added spice of dad’s celebrity, than it did about the month-old Occupy Toronto protest.

Every kid wants their parent’s approval and support; for Meredith, who is 17 and plays guitar quite competently herself, it was a bit like bringing Dad over to her first place on her own, to meet her friends, only in this case her “place” is a park filled with tents, in one of which she had caught pneumonia because it’s just so cold at night. It may be that the visit had not been planned to coincide with the biggest group grope by the Toronto media since the occupation began; we were all around because city bylaw enforcement officers had served protesters with an order to vacate the park.

In any event, Meredith found her father’s attention to be almost entirely taken away from her and focused on the television cameras. Mr. Lightfoot, who apparently enjoys the spotlight, was obliging to us, and Meredith stood beside him patiently for awhile. Finally I asked her if she had anything to say. She said the media “was blowing the wrong things all out of proportion,” and made a brief plea on behalf of her Occupation family, before running suddenly off in tears.

Dad, for his part, told the press that he loves his daughter and stands by her, before tip-toeing with Meredith past all the wires to her tent. Later she stood reflectively amid the park’s chaos and played the first part of the Paul McCartney song, “Blackbird.” She may have been relieved when the old man left. Growing up is hard to do.

[charlene]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle2237476/

[charlene]

http://www.metronews.ca/halifax/cana...viction-notice

[charlene]

http://www.digitaljournal.com/blog/1...=comments&sc=0

[johnfowles]

Originally Posted by charlene

http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/11...s-another-day/
picture at link above.

I wished to attach the referenced photo to this to save it for posterity or something like that.
I tried to upload it directly from that newspaper web page but was told that the link was invalid I therefore saved it to my hard drive both with and without the popup caption and am attaching both images forthwith

[charlene]

I have that in my file but I guess it failed to load. I had to try about 6 times and then gave up and did it on my daughters laptop. My computer is acting up again! It closes the website when I try to put pics in my posts.

[Moose]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/multi...3/?from=sec434


This was my favorite of all the photos - a so typical Dad & Daughter moment! It was near the end of the Photos of the day.

[charlene]

geeze - I couldn't get that bunch of pics to save..
She was not happy that she was asked about dad showing up..she walked away and then came back and dragged him off leaving Canada's media quite shocked and mouths agape at her behaviour.

[jj]

i think she was dragging him off to a touch football game (Gord's still got sure hands)
...i assume that why she's got the sun reflector make-up on

they should Occupy the Skydome seats...most have been vacant since '93

but seriously, Gord looked pretty chipper and we are all glad no one was hurt... rarely have I seen so many cops (or Timbits) ...this calls for a tax hike

[bjm7777]

Originally Posted by charlene

geeze - I couldn't get that bunch of pics to save..
She was not happy that she was asked about dad showing up..she walked away and then came back and dragged him off leaving Canada's media quite shocked and mouths agape at her behaviour.

Certainly trying to do something on her own from under her dad's shadow...but the pic reminds us dads of our own daughters...

[charlene]

http://www.gigcity.ca/2011/11/23/pre...oving-forward/

PREVIEW: Gordon Lightfoot keeps moving forward

November 23, 2011
By Lowell Thomson

When Gordon Lightfoot showed up at the Occupy movement in Toronto to support his protesting daughter, a lot of people jumped to interesting conclusions about the man. Internet boards were full of Canadians either decrying him as an aging hippie, or cheering him … as an aging hippie.

It was selling the man a wee bit short. He’s a smart cat, a product of the Dylan/Kingston Trio era of folk music, not some commune. In fact Lightfoot, who plays 8 p.m. Friday at the Jubilee Auditorium, is a legend, but is also pretty enigmatic, shunning press except when absolutely necessary, famously skipping questions he sees as intrusive and generally trying to keep his private life private.

He’s done it for four decades, so he must have something of a handle on it. Part of the his technique has been self-effacement: he’ll quickly point out in an interview with Postmedia that he has two failed marriages, but forego any long public contrition for the mere publicity value, keeping the specifics to himself. It’s an exceedingly polite “fuck you” to the reality TV generation.

So how anyone reached any conclusions about his showing up at Occupy Toronto is a bit puzzling. He said he admires their courage. That was about it. He didn’t discuss his views on capitalist democracy and how it compares with other political/economic systems. He didn’t decry libertarianism or wax hateful towards Ayn Rand. Sure, he was writing anti-war, pro-environment songs in 1970, before most of the Occupiers were born, but it wasn’t like he pitched his own tent.

The National Post declared that he “apparently loves the spotlight” a statement doubly rife with irony when you consider the private Lightfoot was written off by some of the press as dead accidentally last year and has continually refused attempts to write any biographies.

Lightfoot told CBC he was only there to support his daughter, the CBC cameraman duly asked the important question: which one of your songs sums this up?

Gord answered “Restless.”

Gord’s Comedy Gold, as it were.

I’m rather glad a guy who made a living writing poetic, lyrical music about carefree highways and old shipwrecks has at least some sympathy for the folk camping out, not because they’re going about things the right way, but because their intentions are good and the ultimate cause – corporate and investment agency accountability – is intensely important to social progress in North America.

“I really admire these folks here in Toronto,” he said, adding he was “amazed” by what was going on.

Maybe that’s why Lightfoot’s music was always so authentically Canadian, so close to the bone: he’s a smart guy, who sees the bigger picture and sees little value in discussing it with media largely looking for soundbites. He’s also one of our most successful songwriters ever from a career standpoint (seriously, look it up on Wiki) .

Business reporter David Olive, of the Toronto Star, summed up Lightfoot’s perspective intelligently in an article last week, noting internet searches on Wall Street corruption are up over 500% since the protests began.

“It’s not going away. It’s going online, as the Arab Spring organizers did. Occupy has boundless opportunities to keep making its point, with rallies, marches, petitions, demos and sit-ins. The Occupier grievances are real and widely felt. An intolerable 1.3 million Canadians are without work. Twenty-six million Americans are unemployed, under-employed, or have given up looking for work. In both countries, middle-class incomes have stagnated even as living costs – for rent, tuition, fuel – have skyrocketed. And the current, gross disparity in wealth matches that of gilded ages past.”

Gilded ages past? Careful, David. You and Gord start getting all artistic on us and you might get people talking about peace, love and understanding, or something.

That, and a little sensible regulation of the U.S. equities markets.

[lighthead2toe]

Excellent, and well written piece by Lowell Thomson.

He said everything I would say only did it as a skilled professional journalist.

This article covers every piece of ground that Gordon Lightfoot has walked on as he carries on in life and continues to do so in the very same manner.

He went there at the request of his daughter, not because he wants to, or needs to be for that matter, in or anywhere near the spotlight.

When questioned by the reporter he answered eloquently, politely, and everything he said made sense.

He is in fact a gift to society, a national treasure; made his mark and soldiers on as he lives out his golden years. Seize the moment you get to hang out with guys like him because if you don't, your wasting your time and worse, theirs.

[bjm7777]

Great Lowell Thomson piece...

[Rob1956]

Nice kid, but as usual, ask her why she's really there, and you get an answer as generic as the house-label aisle in your local grocery store. She's rich, she's bored...and at 17, why was she at the park day after day, and not in school...? Just asking. Gord seemed as perplexed as most non-Occupiers as to why they're there. Very interesting and revealing video.

[T.G.]

Although not a socialist by any stretch, I do sort of appreciate the fact that the daughter of a well-to-do musician would make the effort to make a statement about the sorry state the world is in, rather than take a "let them eat cake" attitude which might be too easy to fall into.

[Rob1956]

It just bothered me that Gord seemed to have to walk on eggshells around his daughter. Meredith seems quite volitile, but Gord has the disadvantage of her being part of a "broken family"...divorce and all. Meredith seems to have the upper hand in that relationship, and it irritates me that Gord has to put up with it. For her to grab her father that way and pretty much demand he act a certain way, was very disrespectful. If my daughter did that in front of all those people, I'd sit her down and explain exactly why it would never happen again.

[Auburn Annie]

Having been the parent of a 17 year old girl, (and for that matter having BEEN a 17 year old girl many moons ago) my sympathies to Gord. Not easy without the media. And he can't help that they focus on him, not her and the "movement."

[Lisa J]

interesting video, as are the comments. I've raised three children to adulthood and having done so, I can say I have seen that behavior from my kids many times. I don't really think she was being disrepsectful. It seems she has a reason for being there and she not only wanted her voice heard, but she wanted her dad to see what she has been doing. Her dad being there is big news and and his being interviewed took away from the message and from time spent visiting her as a father. Parents of teens have been in situations such as this where we are careful not to upset our children. Not out of fear, but more because they are often fragile while navigating their journey to adulthood. They want to be taken seriously and we don't want to hurt them.

[teherie]

If I am to believe his biography, Gordon Lightfoot left the comfort of small town Orillia at the ripe old age of 19 and headed to music school in LA. I guess someone encouraged hime or at least gave him the freedom to go. I for one am glad they did. Maybe it was the same reason he showed up to support his daughter.

As Harry Truman once said, "the only new things to learn are the history you don't know." Here's the crux of the matter for Occupy Wall Street even if the waters (and the message) get muddied by the media and casual observers on the sidelines.

"Theodore Roosevelt was a product of the old gilded age; he knew his times, and those who dominated them, well. We are in another gilded age. What Roosevelt said then about the business leaders in 1907 seems very relevant today. He called them: “….Malefactors of great wealth….these men …combine to bring about as much financial stress as possible, in order to discredit the policy of the government…so that they may enjoy unmolested the fruits of their own evil doing….I regard this contest as one to determine who shall rule this free country—the people through their governmental agents, or a few ruthless and domineering men whose wealth makes them peculiarly formidable because they hide behind the breastworks of corporate organization”. His words sound pretty relevant to our situation today.

Theodore Roosevelt’s policies to rein in dangerous business practices did not give rise to left-wing revolution in our beloved country. It brought, rather, some greatly needed reform, something we need now, just as we did in TR’s day. Social stability based on fairness is part of that Common Good that helps all Americans, the rich as well as the poor. The absence of such stability led to horrendous results in Europe in the first half of the twentieth century as we all know. It required a great and terrible war to defeat the fascist regimes that exploited that social instability for their own nefarious ends. Investing in social stability, taking steps to pay for the government we need, adjusting the tax code to diminish income inequality, these are steps we all need if the America we love is to prosper."

This concept applies to all of us, regardless of our citizenship.

[niffer]

Very well said.

[DellroyGM]

Really liked Mr. Thompson's piece. My youngest daughter is going to school in Cincinnati, and is part of the Occupy Cincinnati movement. She was camping out for the first several days, got interviewed a time or two. I'm proud of her being a part of something, even if their goals are a bit - er - fuzzy. One positive thing that seems to be coming out of it is, they are getting more people to sign up to vote. Most importantly, Chelse (my daughter) is keeping her primary purpose for being in Cincinnati topmost in her mind - she is, after all, in her senior year in school.

-DellroyGM

[charlene]

Occupy Sudbury protesters clearing out of park
http://www.thesudburystar.com/Articl...spx?e=3396728- PICTURE @ link
By Carol Mulligan

Occupy Sudbury protesters received a going-away present from a Canadian icon Tuesday night, just hours after getting their walking papers from the City of Greater Sudbury.

Protesters camped out at Memorial Park since Oct. 22 were told to evict the downtown green space after a prospector's tent they were using as a warming centre caught fire and burned early Tuesday.

Wednesday morning, a few protesters were hard at work packing up and clearing out their makeshift campsite, fuelled by pieces of a large slab cake sent to them by Gordon Lightfoot.

Lightfoot performed at the Sudbury Community Arena where the city presented him with a cake decorated with a guitar, his name and the date of his performance.

He ate one piece of it, then had his roadies deliver it to the park, said protester Mark Mahonen. He said Lightfoot's daughter has been active in the Occupy Toronto protest.

A retired chiropractor, Mahonen said he has spent thousands of hours researching and reading about the world economic situation and its injustices.

"See, not everyone who's out here is just some uneducated bum, you know?" he said when asked what he did for a living.

Mahonen said he relates better to people who have a simpler outlook on life and aren't: "Me, me, me. Gimme, gimme, gimme."

"People that are here don't want more for themselves. They need more just to get food on the table. They want an equal share of what's going on on Earth here, and there's too many people not getting it."

Mahonen said Occupy Sudbury participants are leaving the park, but will continue to be active in the community raising awareness about social injustice.

He suggested events such as flash mobs would be held to keep attention on the message of the Occupy movement.


Read more later in The Sudbury Star.

[imported_Next_Saturday]

He "let them eat cake?"