AK Author Cindy Milstein on the Maple Spring
Our friend and author Cindy Milstein has been spending quite a bit of time in Montreal recently and has been thoughtfully blogging about the Maple Spring.
A Little Bit of Direct Democracy (for Now), Montreal, Day 55
The past two days, I finally got my first chance to check out self-governance in Montreal: a neighborhood assembly yesterday, and the CLASSE Congress today. Both in 100% French, and my French is next to nothing. But I can recognize some words, such as “démocratie directe” and “autonomie.” Better yet, I can read the body language of good cheer and respectful interactions, and follow the informal & formal processes–all of which put most of what I participated in and saw within US occupy to shame.
This Bike Is a Poster, or “A-Anti-Anticapitalista,” Montreal, Night 51
This past weekend in Montreal’s unfolding maple-spring saga pitted the Grand Prix’s blatant display of wealth and sexism against the brave display of disruption and solidarity. Many of the always-illegal marches were a collaborative call from CLAC, an anarchist organization that’s at least 10 years old and probably more like 12 or so, and CLASSE, the most radical of the student associations, including many anarcho-syndicalists in particular from what I hear.