Thousands took to the streets of Quebec, Canada to protest austerity measures yesterday. Canadian police deemed the assembly illegal despite the fact that like the U.S., freedom of assembly is a legal right of the people of Canada.
Police responded with violence against the protesters, indiscriminately spraying the crowd with hand-held pepper-spray cannons. One female protester is first pushed back before receiving a blast to the face at point-blank range.
Professor of economics Rodney Shakespeare likened the police actions to fascism and a “collapse of the system”.
Those who were protesting did so not only because of tuition hikes and university cuts but also to protests against slashes in social services. “What we are seeing right now is a government that is impoverishing the entire population.” said one protester.
Watch the video of the woman in the still-frame get shot in the face at point-blank range with pepper-spray by a police officer.
