Anonymous Submission to North Shore Counter-Info In the early hours of Nov 5, groups of anarchists acted in solidarity with Sleydo’s call for action to support the ongoing Wet’suwet’en battle to protect the yintah and kill the drill. Rail lines were sabotaged at several points in a disruption of business-as-usual along main arteries of the freight system. They will continue to be sabotaged at random far into the future, at Read More …
We heard some Wet’suwet’en Chiefs were visiting Six Nations territory Tuesday. We appreciate the energy and determination the Wet’sutwet’en have shown towards defending the land and lives of their people. We wanted to welcome them to the area.
We cannot be out west with you, but we are with you from here.
In the night of July 31, 2022 several small groups enjoyed the cool evening and – where opportunities presented themselves – took small actions against local rail infrastructure. Read More …
In the early morning of Friday, March 13th, 2020, we took part in an act of defiance and solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en. Inspired by recent actions in the GTA, we setup a ghost blockade along the railway tracks just outside of Edmonton. It was cold, so we gave the ghosts a fire to keep them warm. CN was alerted. We burned the injunction that had been served to Indigenous land and water defenders and their settler allies on February 19th, 2020, for blocking this very same section of rail. Read More …
On Wednesday March 11, hours before the student walkout for Wet’suwet’en, fellow supporters continued to disrupt the Canadian economy by holding “Ghost Blockades” at the time of the morning commute. Activists in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en and other Indigenous Land Defenders have planted harmless signals on train tracks in various parts of the GTA, forcing rail traffic to halt while officials investigate. Trains were stopped, but this time there were no visible activists on the tracks for the police to arrest and intimidate. As police forces escalate their responses to peaceful demonstrations on rails, land defenders and allies are finding ways to send their message without risking police aggression. Railway police and other workers will need to investigate each blockade to deem the tracks safe for further traffic. In the mean time, the message is clear: RCMP and CGL must leave Wet’suwet’en territory. Read More …
We are really excited by the enthusiasm for railway blockades that has been sweeping the thieving state called “canada” since the call out to #ShutdownCanada!
As described here (https://contrepoints.media/posts/from-sea-to-sea-train-blockades-colonialism-and-canadian-railways-history), rail has a violent colonial history and is an excellent way to create leverage to struggles for justice and Indigenous sovereignty.
We wanted to share some considerations for organizing a rail blockade so that different groups can easily take up the tactic.
** It is important to note that this is for folks who want to host a PUBLIC blockade. Any sabotage or other activities that might lead to more serious charges should be done by your affinity group in secret. Solidarity with the sabotagers! Some of this information might be helpful for you as well, but this instructional is primarily geared toward public blockades **
Read this. Get ready. Gather your friends and go for it! Read More …
On Thursday February 27th, Kingston locals – settler, immigrant, and Indigenous alike – gathered on the CN mainline in Kingston at the Gardiners Road overpass to continue to pressure the Canadian state in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs.
The rail bridge was taken at 8 am and CN was immediately notified. Flags were flown, banners were hung, a fire was lit for warmth and, as the word got out, supporters began to arrive!
Indigenous drummers kept our hearts light and our spirits high as we held our space with a sense of community, sharing warm food and drinks, laughter and dance. Read More …
Several arrests in Hamilton have been made in relation to the recent blockade action that saw rail lines shut down in response to the OPP raid in Tyendinaga early this week. Police took people from their homes and workplaces, for a total of 4 arrests at this time. These people are currently all still in police custody and will be appearing in court for bail in the next couple days. While unfortunate and enraging, none of this is surprising. Over the course of the last month, wave after wave of blockades and other actions have swept across the country causing incalculable economic damage and throwing Canada and its treatment of indigenous communities into the global spotlight. It was only a matter of time until the state responded with force and began to target those involved. This week appears to have been a tipping point in this regard, with police increasingly making arrests in different cities. Read More …
After holding the blockade for 24 hours, and enduring not one but two readings of the unbelievably long injunction, we decided to end the blockade and walk away on our own terms. Everyone got away, no arrests, no contact with police.
Today we blockaded and diverted not one, two, or three, separate rail companies but four, those four being Via Rail, GO/Metrolinx, CN, and CP.
This is just the start.
See you at the barricades. Read More …
It’s a new day, and we started it by burning the injunction delivered by CN rail!
If you wanted to join us last night but couldn’t, today is the day to get down here. We know the spot we’re in has made it tricky, but folks showing up all through the night prove it’s still possible!
And so you know; we’re shutting down an effective junction that handles all rail traffic in and out of Hamiton. For each day we shut it down, it takes them twice that or more to recover! Read More …
On Saturday February 15 about 400 people showed up in Vaughn, ON to blockade the tracks in and out of MacMillan Yard – Canada’s second-largest rail yard – for 7 hours. This action was just one amongst a wave of solidarity actions in response to Canada’s invasion and violence towards the Wet’suwet’en people on behalf of private industry.
Around 10am 50 trusted folks converged in a parking lot nearby. As the first wave of people to blockade the tracks, they made a phone call to CN rail and had crews 1.5kms east and west to put red flagging on the tracks. Red flags are a univeral indicator for rail crews to stop. After calls and flags were confirmed, folks cut through fencing and threw down large woodens boards so people could easily cross deep ditches filled with icy water and made their way past a (previously) stored train onto the rails. This first wave of people effectively shut down traffic on CN lines headed west out of Macmillan to Kitchener, London, Hamilton, New York and Michigan. Read More …
