***PLEASE FWD WIDELY***

**~SPARK IN ATHENS, FIRE IN TORONTO~**

Recognize the system as flawed and transform it!

What: Solidarity rally with the Greek uprising
When: THIS Friday Jan 9 at 12 NOON
Where: Outside the Consulate General of Greece at 365 Bloor St. E (at
Sherbourne)

Sponsored by: Association of Part-time Undergraduate Students, Common
Cause, CUPE 3903, CUPE 3907, No One Is Illegal Toronto and Ontario
Coalition Against Poverty

Why: Privatization of education, corporatization of campuses, barriers
to immigration, police repression, poverty and institutionalized
racism all led to the current uprising in Greece. We are struggling
here with the very same issues! This is why we stand with our brothers
and sisters in Greece.

Racist and Classist Police Brutality

Police murdered unarmed 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos on Dec 6
in Athens, the latest outrage in a long string of brutality. His death
sparked an uprising by thousands of Greeks fed up with police
controlling their communities. In Toronto we also see police brutality
and impunity. Racial profiling is common practice and police actions
disproportionately target youth, racialized and poor people. Toronto
police regularly cover up and bury cases of brutality and corruption
while obstructing the complaints process. The police will not yield
their power or behave responsibly unless we fight back.

Unequal Access to Education

For many years in Greece, students have successfully fought off
attempts to end universal access to higher education by organizing
themselves, protesting and occupying their schools. In Canada,
undergrad tuition fees have almost doubled over the last decade. This
makes higher education impossible for many working class people
without taking on crippling debts. Schools like U of T and Queens are
moving towards self-regulation, allowing them to charge whatever they
want.

Unemployment

Anger in Greece is fueled by lay-offs and increasing rates of
unemployment among young graduates accelerated by the global financial
crisis. In Canada, we’re feeling these effects as we slide deeper into
recession. The unemployed and those at risk of eviction will find
gutted social assistance programs while banks and corporations, whose
greed caused this crisis, get bailouts. The government, banks and
corporations must be held accountable.

Attacks on Non-Status People and Union Organizers

In Greece, migrants and immigrants experience daily humiliation at the
border and even murder by police and vigilantes. In December they took
to the streets demanding justice and dignity. Organizers of
predominantly immigrant and migrant unions face threats, assaults and
death from company thugs. The rail company office has been occupied in
response to the violent acid attack on Bulgarian migrant worker
Konstantina Kouneva a militant syndicalist and general secretary of
the cleaner’s union of Athens (Panattic Union of Cleaners and Domestic
Personnel). Non-status people and migrant workers in Canada often face
deportation if they stand up for their rights. Immigrants and migrant
labourers face overwork, substandard accommodations, unsafe
conditions, unlivable pay and overt racism.

–
Common Cause
P.O. Box 347, Station E
772 Dovercourt Rd.
Toronto, ON, Canada,
M6H 4E3

Email: commoncauseontario@gmail.com
Web: http://linchpin.ca
Ontario Forum: http://anarchistblackcat.org/viewforum.php?f=61