Toronto G20 protests - You Should Have Stayed At Home - the fifth estate

Summary

Eight months after Toronto’s 2010 G20 summit, The Fifth Estate revisits the protests through eyewitness footage and interviews with people who said they were peaceful bystanders or demonstrators caught up in police actions.

The program contrasts images of vandalism, including damage to police cars, with footage of police operations against crowds that appeared peaceful. Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair said officers initially facilitated lawful protests, then changed their response after vandalism and what police considered a continuing threat to public order. He acknowledged that newly surfaced footage raised questions and said uses of force needed to be investigated and justified.

People affected by police actions

• Dorian Barton, who said he had never attended a demonstration before, was struck and arrested near Queen’s Park. He later learned that his shoulder was dislocated and his arm was broken. His charges were dropped, and he said the injury affected his ability to work.
• John Pryne, who had a prosthetic leg, said police dragged him after he fell during the clearing of Queen’s Park and removed his leg. He was held for about 27 hours and later took his complaint to Ontario’s Human Rights Commission.
• Maurice Poon and other students were arrested during a police raid on a University of Toronto gym. Police said they acted on intelligence that the group might commit property damage. Poon said the raid was conducted without a warrant; her conspiracy charge was later dropped.
• Tommy Taylor and his girlfriend were trapped with others by police barricades near a hotel and arrested.
• Jason McDonald filmed a Sunday march that was surrounded, or “kettled,” by police. He said he was struck and arrested as the police line closed in; he later sued police.

Former detainees also described crowded holding cells, delays in receiving water, food, medical care and access to lawyers, strip searches, and uncertainty about why they were being held. Police used breach-of-peace powers to detain people they believed might cause trouble, including some who were never charged.

Arrests and investigations

More than 1,100 people were arrested over the weekend; 709 were not charged. Of the 320 people charged, 12 had pleaded guilty and 86 cases remained before the courts at the time of the program. Nine separate investigations into the summit response were underway.

The people featured described lasting physical, emotional and professional effects. Taylor said his experience turned him into an activist.

Presenters and contributors

• Gillian Findlay — presenter
• Tommy Taylor
• Maurice Poon
• John Pryne — the transcript renders his surname inconsistently
• Dorian Barton
• Jason McDonald
• Bill Blair — Toronto Police Chief
• David Miller — Mayor of Toronto, quoted in the report