Alongside my neighbours from the Danforth area, I joined the large march on Saturday afternoon on the first day of the G20 Summit in Toronto. We felt proud to be there alongside over 10,000 other Canadians -- women, unionists, students, teachers, people of all ethnicities and backgrounds -- demonstrating our commitment to peace and social justice. We passed by hundreds and hundreds of police without an incident.

Soon afterwards, while catching a meal on the patio at Fran's Restaurant on College Street, we heard glass breaking on Yonge Street, and saw a mob of about 150 coming around the corner, hurling chairs into windows. Someone threw a bottle through a window showering me in broken glass. What was most striking was that there were not any police in sight.

As the G8 development ministers prepared to meet in Halifax from April 26 to 28, the city's grassroots mobilized, with a colourful, festive community-based opposition rallying in public spaces.

Were it not for these protest speeches in the public parks, the large Sunday march in Halifax's downtown streets, and an early Monday picket, the G8 meeting in Nova Scotia would have gone largely undetected by the public.

The "G8 Welcoming Committee," as the coalition named itself, includes organized labour unions, First Nations groups, student organizations, women's groups, and environmental networks.