PHOTO: Graffiti - Meagan Perry

Keeping up with the Canada-wide protests of Bill C-51? You’ve come to the right place. Read on for your list of “must reads” on Bill C-51, petitions, and for a curated Twitter feed rounding up all the action from the protests on Saturday.

Bill C-51 will give CSIS new powers to disrupt activities that potentially “threaten the government”, and give the government of Canada new powers of surveillance. Many see it as another step toward silencing all forms of dissent in Canada. This weekend, there are protests scheduled across Canada to display opposition to Bill C-51. Click here to see a full list of emerging protests from our friends at LeadNow.ca

For a feed of higlights about the protests on Twitter, scroll down to the bottom of the story on Saturday.

Below we’ve compiled some of the critical reads on Bill C-51. Be informed. Know of other vital reads? Please post them in comments below the story. 

  • First, for a general background and more info about the protests, check out this blog post from rabble.ca’s newest staffer, activist toolkit coordinator Maya Bhullar. For that handy map of where to protest in any of 60 and counting communities in Canada, click here.
  • Take action from your computer by signing on to these petitions right now
  • As you start your reading, here is a primer on what’s in the bill from rabble.ca columnist Matthew Behrens.
  • Canada’s own Privacy Commissioner thinks Bill C-51 is a dreadful idea. Here’s Karl Nerenberg’s take on just what the report said.
  • C-51 is just one example of how Harper has strayed far from the Canadian Conservative tradition of Borden, Diefenbaker and Mulroney. His style is more that of Richard Nixon with a touch of the old Soviet Union. Read more from Karl Nerenberg here.
  • The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives senior editor Stuart Trew has been sitting in on the C-51 hearings. You can read up on what’s happening with C-51 at their blog.
  • Opposing C-51 is the most important task facing the labour movement right now, says Nora Loreto.
  • Ralph Nader isn’t impressed by Bill C-51 either, and he has written to Stephen Harper to let him know.
  • C-51 will have at least three disastrous consequences for privacy, and Michael Geist tells you about them here.
  • David Suzuki has also written about C-51. He urges us not to sacrifice freedom out of fear.
  • Here’s what Paul Weinberg has to say about how C-51 will affect protests in support of Palestinians and against Israeli policy.
  • Is it a coincidence the Harper government has brought in Bill C-51 now? No, it is not. And, it further identifies that we need to get off the Harper path. Read more here.
  • Much of the media has tended to reduce the opposition critique of Bill C-51 to one thing: the need for better oversight. But all opposition parties, including the Liberals, share many other concerns. Read Karl Nerenberg’s report.
  • Linda Leon, of Whitehorse, Yukon,  has been writing letters to her MP, Ryan Leef. In this installment of her blog, she takes on C-51. 

  • Numerous experts have pointed out that Bill C-51 will create a secret police force with little oversight or accountability; facilitate government spying and information sharing on innocent Canadians. Read Krystalline Kraus’s blog post here.

Those are just a few of the articles rabble.ca has produced to talk about C-51. Read all of our news on Canadian Politics here. See you in person, or in spirit, on the streets.

 

Meagan Perry is editor-in-chief of rabble.ca.

meagan

Meagan Perry

Meagan Perry began her work in media at the age of 17, broadcasting at her high school’s lunchhour intercom radio station. She then moved on to a decade in community radio, working as news director...