Occupy Winnipeg protesters undeterred by snow
Snow and freezing temperatures aren't chasing away the Occupy Winnipeg protesters from their downtown tent village.
Jeremy Hughes has been camping out in Memorial Park, across from the Manitoba legislative building, for almost three weeks refuses to let the weather stop him from bringing awareness to social injustices.
"I got my tent tarped up and we got insulation in it. I'm not doing too bad for cold — just make sure I keep clearing the snow off," he said.
Another protester, Signe Knutson, said campers are finding strategies to combat the weather so they can remain for the long haul.
"Were looking at possibly a very large wigwam to cover up several tents at one time so we have double-layer of insulation there," she said.
"People are looking at possibly [putting] pallets underneath their tents so they're not directly on the ground."
One thing that does have the protesters miffed is the fact they've been barred from using washrooms at the legislative building across the street.
"We are Manitoba citizens, and that is our legislative building, we should be allowed inside it," said Kristaps John Baladas.
Baladas said the 'no toilet' policy came into effect after unsubstantiated reports of someone using a legislature sink for bathing.
A spokesman for Infrastructure and Transportation Minister Steve Ashton said the washroom policy is in effect for safety reasons. "As a matter of standing operating procedure, and in consideration of the fact that the Manitoba Legislature is an office building that is visited regularly by tourists, schoolchildren and other Manitobans, protesters are not allowed to use the washroom facilities."
The Occupy Winnipeg started Oct. 15.
It is being held in support of the Occupy Wall Street movement, which began in September in New York and spread to dozens of countries around the world.
Protesters are demonstrating against global financial inequality and corporate greed.
Occupy Wall Street protesters argue government bailouts in 2008 left banks enjoying huge profits, amid high unemployment and job insecurity, and that the richest one per cent of Americans have huge fortunes and are taxed at a lower rate than the average person.
Protesters in Canada say the message is just as relevant north of the border, noting that the richest one per cent in Canada took one-third of all income gains in the decade preceding the recession.