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Saturday, August 22
9:30am Rally/Press Point at Black Rock monument, Bridge Street, in Point St. Charles (map)
10am Bikes depart (Black Rock, Point St. Charles
12pm Cars depart (Lasalle Metro, Verdun)
*Don’t forget to let us know if you are planning to come by bike or car > solidaritesansfrontieres@
On August 21-23, an annual festival will take place in St-Rémi to celebrate the super exploitative Temporary Foreign Worker Program, with the involvement of FERME and the Guatemalan and Mexican consulates. The festival is marketed under the racist guise of celebrating the exotic presence of migrants in the rural town of St-Rémi (http://www.fiestadescultures.
The Justice for Noé committee is organizing a delegation to travel from Montréal to St-Rémi on Saturday, 22 August in solidarity with Noé Arteaga and all migrant workers, to denounce the systemic injustices and exploitation that temporary migrant farm workers face.
Denied social benefits and systematically prevented from collective organizing, these workers substantially subsidize the Quebec food market and their labour provides a windfall to Quebec capital.
In 2009, Noé, a migrant worker working for Savoura tomato company, was fired and deported after attempting to organize a brief strike to insist that a fellow worker get medical care. After six years of effort, Arteaga finally won a labour rights case against Savoura. (read the entire decision here: http://canlii.ca/t/gfqbm). However, he was cheated out of compensation when the Quebec tomato giant declared bankruptcy.
Noé’s struggle is an inspiring example of resistance from within super exploitative work conditions.
The Justice for Noé committee has launched a campaign in solidarity with Noé and all temporary migrant workers, to demand that Savoura and the Quebec Minister of Labour assume their responsibilities in this affair. As we struggle for justice for all migrant workers, we will show them that they cannot get away with their theft without a fight.
On August 22, while the Ville de Saint Rémi celebrates the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the benefits it brings to the Canadian economy, we denounce the racist exploitation that is the basis of this program, and demand justice for all migrant workers.
A small rally & press point will be held in Montreal before the caravan departs to St. Rémi, where a second rally will be held at the Fiesta des cultures.
Join us!
*Don’t forget to let us know if you are planning to come by bike or car > solidaritesansfrontieres@
9:30am Press Point / Rally in Montréal (& bikes gather) at the Black Rock, Bridge Street, Point St. Charles
10am Bikes depart in caravan (from the Black Rock)
12pm Cars depart (Lasalle Metro, Verdun)
1pm Press Point / Rally in St-Rémi
3pm Leaving St-Rémi
4pm Cars return to Montreal
6pm Bikes return to Montreal
Organized by the Justice for Noé comittee and supported by the Immigrant Workers Centre, Mexicans United for Regularization, Solidarity Across Borders, le Comité pour les droits humaines en Amérique latine, and the Industrial Workers of the World.