2 Greenpeace Canada activists arrested after taking over Chrystia Freeland’s Toronto office
Posted February 15, 2024 2:47 pm.
Last Updated February 15, 2024 8:26 pm.
Two Greenpeace Canada activists were arrested and charged with trespassing after they were part of a group that staged a sit-in at Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s downtown Toronto office on Thursday.
The activists were demanding climate action and calling for regulatory changes in the 2024 federal budget to prevent Canadian banks from investing in carbon-producing companies.
More than half-a-dozen protestors took part in the sit-in, which including redecorating Freeland’s office with photos from wildfires, floods and other calamities believed to be connected to global warming.
Toronto police eventually arrived and ordered the group to leave or face arrest.
Officers gave them 10 minutes to disperse “peacefully,” telling the group they had “overstayed their welcome.”
Keith Stewart, a spokesperson for Greenpeace Canada, said he had no intention of leaving on his own accord.
“We are not planning to leave, we want to make sure that our message gets through. Historically when you want big changes to happen it involves people taking risks, including being arrested.”
Stewart and another activist were in fact arrested, being led out in handcuffs.
Both were charged with trespassing and released outside of the office.
When asked how the group managed to get into the office, Stewart revealed that a constituent who supports the climate movement arranged a meeting at Freeland’s office, using the guise of the meeting to give them access.
