Demonstrators gathered at the Canadian Tribute to Human Rights in downtown Ottawa on July 25 to protest the Progressive Conservative government of Ontario Premier Doug Ford.
The Ottawa rally was one of dozens of demonstrations organized across Ontario under the grassroots Fight Ford movement. Speakers repeatedly criticized the Ford government’s decision to close supervised consumption sites, while also raising concerns about the province’s response to northern First Nations displaced by wildfires.
The protests came days after a Liaison Strategies poll found Ford’s approval rating had fallen to 24 per cent amid controversy surrounding government spending, while support for the Progressive Conservatives trailed the Ontario Liberals by five percentage points.
Lois Pond, who organized the rally as a member of the Ottawa Harm Reduction Collective, said the demonstration aimed to bring together people concerned about a range of provincial issues, with a particular focus on the closure of supervised consumption sites.
“This is not about political affirmation, not right, not left, not religion,” Pond said in her closing remarks. “This is about human life.”
She said the closure of supervised consumption sites will increase pressure on emergency services, hospitals and the public health system while putting more lives at risk.
Dr. Yipeng Ge, an Ottawa-based family and public health physician whose work focuses on health equity, Indigenous and refugee health, said the effects of the closures extend beyond people who use drugs.
“When we talk about public health, emergency services and safety, we are talking about systems that belong to all of us,” Ge told the crowd. “The consequences don’t stay in policy. They show up in real life.”
Ge said supervised consumption sites provide overdose prevention, connections to health care and other support services, arguing that their closure will increase pressure on emergency departments, paramedics and hospitals.
Activist and singer-songwriter Christophe Elie criticized the government’s handling of northern wildfire evacuations and called for greater government transparency. He then performed an original protest song directed at the premier.
“It’s very important for us to gather like this,” Elie said. “But we also have to send letters, make phone calls, and that is what’s going to make a difference.”
The rally concluded with an open microphone, where participants shared personal concerns about affordability, student financial aid, harm reduction policies and climate change. Although attendance in Ottawa numbered only a few dozen people, organizers said the event was intended to be part of a broader, province-wide effort to keep pressure on the Ford government.
