‘We are absolutely a threat to these Games’: ORN
By Geoff Dembicki February 4, 2010 04:57 pm 4 comments
 
http://thetyee.ca/Blogs/TheHook/Olympics2010/2010/02/04/ORN-threat-Olympics/
 
The Olympics Resistance Network drew battle lines with just over a week
until Vancouver’s opening ceremonies.
 
“We are absolutely a threat to these Games,” ORN spokesperson Harjap
Grewal told dozens of reporters and activists. “But we are not a threat to
the public. We are a threat to the corporate sponsors and the industry and
the government that props them up.”
 
The ORN is the loudest voice in a diverse Olympics protest movement.
Security forces keep its members under close watch. A U.S. travel advisory
last month urged Olympics visitors to avoid Vancouver protests.
 
This Thursday afternoon, ORN organizers stood before a phalanx of
microphones and TV cameras in the Downtown Eastside’s Pigeon Park.
 
A maroon bandana reading “Fuck you and your fucking Olympics” covered one
activist’s face. Nearby, a man smoked a joint and rested his hand on a
trumpet.
 
The ORN expects activists from across the country and south of the border
to converge on Vancouver this month. Native repression, corporate control,
environmental destruction and police aggression top a long list of ORN
grievances.
 
Grewal drew strong parallels between Olympics opposition and
anti-globalization.
 
“A call for convergence normally happens at the G8, WTO and World Bank
summits,” he said. “We don’t see the Olympics industry as being that much
different than these institutions.”
 
Security planners have a $900 million budget. They’ll deploy an estimated
14,800 police, military and private security personnel in Vancouver and
Whistler. What happens when security forces meet protesters is a subject
of huge speculation.
 
A “welcoming committee” demonstration next Friday could be the largest
protest event of the 2010 Olympics. ORN members said any violence will
likely come from the police. Security boss Bud Mercer has often said he's
fine with legal protests.
 
Anti-Games critic Chris Shaw hopes for thousands of residents in the streets.
 
“I get calls everyday from ordinary people who’ve probably never held a
protest sign in their lives,” he said.
 
Geoff Dembicki reports for the Tyee.
 

Geoff Dembicki, The Tyee