Protesters hold ‘people’s forum’ in Calgary ahead of G7, prepare for Sunday march

On the final day before G7 leaders gather in Kananaskis, Alta., activists and community groups met in downtown Calgary on Saturday afternoon for a “people’s forum” that took aim at the priorities of G7 leaders.

They also discussed plans for a demonstration and march near city hall in Calgary on Sunday. Organizers said the goal was to unify fragmented activist groups ahead of the protest.

“The G7, it’s happening for a few days, but it’s going to wrap up and leave,” said Yasmeen Khan of the International League of Peoples’ Struggle (ILPS), which describes itself as an anti-imperialist organization.

“But the issues are still going to be there. So how do we, in Calgary and in Alberta particularly, build a people’s movement?”

A series of protests and marches are expected throughout the day in downtown Calgary on Sunday, representing a range of different groups and priorities, including labour, youth, Indigenous and environmental activists. 

There are three “designated demonstration zones” established by officials running through the summit: one in Banff and two in Calgary, but police have said people have the right to assemble outside the zones.

The ILPS expects several hundred people at the city hall protest, with buses arriving from Edmonton.

They also have plans for a march in conjunction with other community and activist groups, which may move beyond the official protest zones.

“We are saying that it’s a peaceful march. [Our] police liaisons will discuss with the police. If there’s a go, then we’ll do the march,” Khan said.

Still, there’s concern over how any potential confrontations with police will be handled, especially if numbers swell outside the range of what organizers are expecting.

Officials have referred to the G7 summit as the “largest domestic security operation” a country can take on, with advanced technological threats contributing to heightened security concerns.

A major police presence will be in place during the summit, including officers from RCMP, Calgary Police Service and other agencies.

As demonstrations unfold in Calgary, security officials say they’re taking a “measured and proportionate” approach with an emphasis on dialogue and de-escalation.

“We remain committed to transparency and accountability in all our actions,” said David Hall, Alberta RCMP superintendent and event security director for the G7 Integrated Safety and Security Group, in a release.

He said they will take “enforcement action only when necessary to maintain public order or respond to criminal activity.”

Officials have said footage from demonstration zones is to be livestreamed to the restricted area for leaders to watch. There is also a demonstration zone at the Calgary airport, but it isn’t being livestreamed.

Police have said the designated demonstration zones are meant to ensure safety while providing visibility. But some participants of Saturday’s event viewed them differently.

“I feel like live-streaming a protest zone to people in a resort feels kind of Hunger Games. It’s a little dystopian,” said Isa Carlin, a member of Migrante Alberta, an organization that advocates for the rights of migrants.

Other activist groups are also expected to join Sunday’s demonstrations.

The Calgary Raging Grannies group has said it will be at the protest zone at city hall, as will activists rallying for Indigenous water rights and water security.

Moninder Singh, spokesman for the Sikh Federation of Canada, said there will also be a series of protests against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was invited to the G7 by Prime Minister Mark Carney.

“There has been a topic of discussion to just keep the protest until he’s wheels-up, until Mr. Modi’s wheels are up and out of the country,” Singh said.

One major environmental group, Greenpeace Canada, has said it won’t send a large contingent to Alberta this year.

On Saturday, city hall was the location for a rally of members of Calgary’s Ukrainian community. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is attending the G7. 

The summit itself is being held west of Calgary in the wilderness resort of Kananaskis, surrounded by multiple layers of security and inaccessible to the public.