Quebec pro-lifers faced more than just a rainstorm while advocating for legislation protecting life from conception to natural death, as Antifa disrupted the protest and blockaded their march.
Last Saturday’s March for Life in Quebec City was disrupted several times as self-described “anti-fascists” or Antifa lit off smoke bombs, firecrackers, and used loud sound devices to disrupt the “family-friendly” event.
Quebec Life Coalition’s annual pro-life March for Life and protest at the National Assembly in Quebec City was derailed on Saturday after Antifa infiltrated the event, disrupting and unleashing chaos when event organizers began a prayer.
The march was blockaded in several locations and diverted down side streets, all while protesters waved coat hangers, banged them on street signs and posts, and gave the finger to pro-life marchers.
Georges Buscemi, the president of the Quebec pro-life group told True North that police did nothing to respond to the disruption which he said left many of the pro-life attendees—ranging in age from two to 92 year old—frightened and intimidated.
He said the previous year had counter-protesters matching their 1,500 people pro-life event though police had kept them separated from the pro-life marchers and several Quebec officials were among their ranks, likely encouraging civility.
In the previous year, protesters attempted to unplug sound equipment and harass technicians, which led to the same company refusing to provide services this year. Buscemi believes that the Antifa tactics used this year were likely meant to pressure others into refusing future participation as well.
This year he said counter-protesters entwined themselves among the protest many wearing Antifa black-bloc, though Quebec unions and other feminist and community groups were present as well.
“The context is a family-friendly event. it’s bring your families. We have a makeup tent for kids. We have, speeches of different people. Some people are handicapped. We have older people. So we’re not l a solid group of military-aged men,” he said. “So when you have people firing like percussive firecrackers which I heard at least twice and smoke bombs, when you have infiltration in your ranks of people. It’s frightening.”
Buscemi said despite it being a crowd of seniors and babies, pro-abortion activists were shouting “uncivil, impolite, coarse and vulgar” language along with sound devices and smoke bombs against a crowd who had “no intention of being confrontational.”
“I regret people having been exposed to that. And to that kind of anti-social behavior,” he said. “They know their lines. They’re very tactical. They don’t cross into overt criminal action, like, assault, but they danced on the line enough so as to make it threatening.”
He said after returning from the march, where protesters were diverted and had to “double-back” several times, they attempted to have a few more speeches, though police told them to stop the music to cut the event short. Despite this, Antifa held a 200-person punk-music street party right beside the march.
Quebec City Police did not respond to True North’s requests for information and comment.
Buscemi said he had to stay until everyone left to ensure the safety of supporters, equipment and the sound crew as protesters remained “harassing” pro-lifers until the last person had left the event.
Quebec Antifa groups on social media called on their far-left supporters to descend on the group, which they view as “far-right” and “fascist.”
The pro-life group had organized a “Rose dinner,” a pro-life banquet at the Delta Hotel down the street, for which it had booked a room for 100 guests and purchased around 30 hotel rooms for one night or more.
However, at the last minute, Buscemi was informed that the hotel had cancelled their booking as their staff were “scared” after the hotel received several “anonymous threats.”
Another post was made by the “Quebec Antifasciste” group on Instagram, calling on supporters to give the hotel a mass flood of poor ratings and to call the hotel to cancel the event.
Marriott Hotels did not respond to True North’s requests for comment.
Buscemi said behaviour from Antifa and its supporters and the lack of police enforcement “goes against the spirit” of freedom of expression and assembly in Canada.
“It effectively cancels freedom of speech, and therefore, a government that’s interested in enforcing this kind of freedom should prevent these counterprotests from being so destructive of freedom of speech.”