Simon Pole reminds us ,Tories Sent Troops Into Winnipeg 1919 .that it was the Borden Conservative government in 1919 that ordered the Army and RCMP to put down the Winnipeg General Strike.
They were backed up by the Chamber of Commerce (then known as the Board of Trade) Militia, the Committee of 1000, armed members of the ruling class, vigilantes in our own Wild West show down. At least one striker was killed and hundreds injured.
The Borden Government also ordered the army into Calgary where they put down the sympathy strike there, forcing railworkers and posties to go back to work at gunpoint.
And it would be remiss not to mention it was under the Conservative government of R.B Bennettthat the RCMP acting as a paramilitary army massacred striking Estavan Miners and their families in 1931.
And it was again the Conservative government of R.B. Bennett that ordered the RCMP to stop the On to Ottawa Trek in Regina, which also resulted in injuries and death to unarmed unemployed workers.
On June 3rd and 4th, after seeing the government's indifference to their plight, more than 1,000 men decided to go to Ottawa to present their grievances, hoping to create awareness for their cause. They set out first by train, but after receiving a decree from Prime Minister Bennett, they were denied access to the train cars. Eight men undertook the walk to Ottawa to argue their case, while 2,000 others settled in Regina, where they were fed and lodged by private citizens while being sustained by the government of Saskatchewan. The Prime Minister refused the delegation's demands and the eight returned to join the Regina group. On July 1st, 1935 they organized a public protest that was broken up by police squads who came to arrest Arthur Evans and a number of other speakers. This act prompted a riot, with the marchers throwing stones at the police officers. Two people died in the clashes, including a local constable; dozens of people were injured; and 130 were arrested.
R.B. Bennet was from Calgary West, and originally had sat in the Alberta Legislature before being elected to Ottawa and later to become leader of the Conservative Party.Sound familar?
The jack boots you hear are the Conservatives marching to power under Calgarian Stephen Harper.
The army. With guns. In our Cities. In Canada. It has happened before.
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