ACTION in Toronto!
Grizzly Bear Arrested at Home Depot!
2:00 PM E.S.T.: 26 May 1999
Pat Venditti, FAN
National Campaigner takes to the rafters of Home Depot in order to let customers know that
Home Depot is continuing to sell Ancient Forest products.
After a strenuous 5 hours of clinging to the rafters inside Toronto's St. Clair Home Depot (with police officers swarming below), and educating customers and staff about Home Depot's complicity with the destruction of ancient rainforests, the visiting west coast Grizzly Bear has been arrested. He was charged with 'criminal mischief'. His presence in the store, informing the public about Home Depot's connections to clearcut logging in his home sent management and staff into a flurry of activity. 25 police officers were waiting to escort him to a cage. His brave vigil, high in the rafters of the store, sent an unavoidable message to Home Depot that they must "stop promoting themselves as an environmentally-caring and compassionate corporation while actively participating in the destruction of Grizzly Bear habitat." Our support and solidarity go out to Grizzly Bear Pat, and to everyone demanding that Home Depot go ancient forest-free!
Toronto Activist Arrested for Telling the Truth to Home Depot Customers
12:00 PM E.S.T.: 26 May 1999
Justin Connley
is arrested by Toronto police while leaving the Home Depot protest.
This just in.... An hour into a succesful protest at Toronto's St. Clair Home Depot, an activist has been arrested for informing Home Depot's customers about their part in ancient forest destruction on a megaphone. One of 25 concerned citizens (and a Grizzly Bear in the rafters) gathered for the protest, Justin from Toronto was arrested and removed from the store and has been confined to a police van. The RCMP showed up in force, with 25 officers in attendance.
Grizzly Still Behind Bars Following Toronto Home Depot Protest!
11pm E.S.T. 26 May 1999. As we write this, Pat -- our Grizzly Bear who climbed onto the rafters of the Home Depot in Toronto -- remains in a jail cell overnight. Grizzly Pat was ableto stay in place for over 5 hours, delivering a message over a megaphone to the customers and management about rainforest destruction. He was eventually arrested and charged with both trespass and mischief, which is out of the ordinary to have both charges laid.
Activist Justin Conley, also arrested and charged with trespass, has since been released.
The message was nonetheless heard loud and clear. About 25 people leafletted the public, who were extremely supportive, including two carpenters who were interviewed by CITY TV and said that they don't support people using old-growth forest products.
2,000 leaflets were distributed, many interviews with local and national media were done, an excellent response from the public was received and Home Depot's response was very defensive.
The awareness of today's action was definitely aided by the fact that, even in Toronto, the police were aware that FAN had organized protests in four other Ontario cities and five others across Canada, and were concerned about how the issue was buildiing. The police are, as a result, asking for ridiculous terms of release for Pat, initially including asking that Pat not be allowed to be "in possession of any climbing gear" until he goes to trial. It has now been reduced to not being "in possession of any sound-enhancing equipment" -- clearly they mean megaphones and bullhorns, but at least technically, owning a ghettoblaster would make Pat in violation of the terms of probation.
Pat goes to court today at 10am E.S.T. 27 May 1999
Pat's been charged with criminal mischief and trespass. After sitting in a Toronto jail for 30 hours, his bail conditions include staying 500 metres away from any Home Depot, and not being in possesion of any "amplification device" (I guess if he had a bleach jug with the bottom cut out of it, he'd be in violation of his bail conditions?)
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Update & Pictures of Action - 4/21/99 |
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Update & Pictures of
Action - 3/17/99 |
To Find the Home Depots in the Toronto area and to see the orignial press release concerning the Toronto Canadain Day of action: [click here]
For More Information Contact Mission Control:
Forest Action Network
Box 625, Bella Coola, BC, V0T 1C0, Canada
Tel: (250) 799-5800 Fax: (250) 799-5830
Email: fanbc@fanweb.org
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