More than 100 protesters, many in First Nations regalia, sang, danced and marched around the fountain at Centennial Square on Saturday afternoon, repeating their call for improved environmental protection in Canada.
The protest that was originally scheduled to take place a few blocks away at the Bay Centre, but was changed due to a scheduling conflict with a bridal show featuring a real wedding.
For weeks, First Nations and their supporters across the country have protested Ottawa’s budget omnibus bills, which critics say drastically reduce the number of environmental assessments required for resource development across the country.
“We’re here to show [Prime Minister Stephen Harper] that we’re together as one because together as one we can defeat these bills,” protest’s organizer James Taylor.
Despite the protests, Harper and members of his majority government said last week they have no intention of changing recently passed legislation, which they say will go a long way to improve conditions in First Nation communities.
