Montreal: Rail Lines Blockaded in Solidarity with Gidimt’en Week of Action

Action report on blockade in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en in so-called Montreal. Originally posted to Montreal Counter-Info.

More than 50 people blockaded five parallel rail lines outside a CN rail yard in Point Saint Charles, Montreal for more than an hour and a half this Saturday, October 9th. We were there to support the Wet’suwet’en fight to defend their territory against the Coastal GasLink pipeline. There were two banners, one saying “#AllOutForWedzinKwa 1312” and the other “All Out For Wet’suwet’en #ShutDownCanada.” Multiple trains were stopped and some rerouted, and some still seemed be sitting idle on the tracks for at least an hour after the blockade ended. Maybe because of a backlog, or an inspection of the tracks.

We decided to leave as a demo, walking down the tracks for a while then and switching to the streets of the surrounding neighbourhood, chanting slogans against colonization and the police, and in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en land defenders. Some groups of young people were clearly excited to see us, took flyers, and followed behind us for a while before we dispersed. We significantly outnumbered the police who showed up, and they kept their distance. There were no arrests.

We were responding to the calls for solidarity actions over the past two weeks from the Gidimt’en clan, with this action falling on the first day of their recently called Week of Action that will continue until October 15th. We encourage others to take up the call and start organizing actions in your area! As in previous years, we expect this to be the first in a series of actions in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en land defenders as they brace for another RCMP invasion of their territory.

On September 25th, land defenders destroyed road access to Coastal GasLink’s drill site at the Wedzin Kwa river. A series of blockades were put in place, and the drill site was occupied. When hereditary chiefs arrived on the site, they were threated with arrest, and denied access to their territory. Since then, land defenders have held strong despite having been tazered, subjected to pain compliance techniques, and arrested by the RCMP and CGL security officers. Several more blockades have been erected, and the Wet’suwet’en are still occupying the drill site that threatens their land.

“Our way of life is at risk. Wedzin Kwa is the river that feeds all of Wet’suwet’en territory and gives life to our nation.” – Sleydo’, Gidimt’en checkpoint spokesperson

Coastal GasLink is pushing through a 670 km fracked gas pipeline, that crosses through Gidimt’en territory. Under ‘Anuc niwh’it’en (Wet’suwet’en law), all five clans of the Wet’suwet’en have unanimously opposed all pipeline proposals. For over 15 years, the Wet’suwet’en and their allies have been actively fighting off incursions on their territory, and have made call-outs for people to come onto the Yintah to support, or act in solidarity in their own cities and towns. In 2020, solidarity actions took the form of numerous rail and highway blockades, which paralyzed the Canadian economy.

While the world is descending into climate chaos caused by the wealthy but impacting the poor, and Canada digs up the mass graves of indigenous children murdered by the genocidal residential school system, it’s imperative that we take action to dismantle the colonial state and society that facilitate these atrocities.

Solidarity with land defenders on Cas Yikh territory.
Fuck the RCMP. FUCK CGL. Fuck Canada.
Shutdown Canada 2021.

“We need all the frontlines to be throwing down right now.” – Sleydo’, Gidimt’en checkpoint spokesperson

#AllOutForWedzinKwa
#DefendWedzinKwa
#LandBack
#RematriatetheLand
#DefendTheYintah
#CGLofftheYintah
#WetsuwetenStrong
#ShutDownCanada21