'We want some action': Hong Kong supporters hope Pointe-St-Charles mural will raise awareness

Artists and supporters in Montreal gathered on Sunday afternoon to express solidarity with human rights protesters in Hong Kong, and around the world. 

They were painting a mural in Pointe-Saint-Charles on a Grand Trunk Street wall that now bears an image of mascots of the Hong Kong movement: a cartoon dog. 

"People will look at them; they will realize that it is protest material related to the movement currently in Hong Kong," said Jesse Tsang, who is a member of the activist group Action Free Hong Kong Montreal, which organized the mural painting. 

Protests have been ongoing in Hong Kong since March, after an extradition bill was introduced by the Hong Kong government. The movement has since grown to represent all types of human rights. Instances of police brutality against protesters have been widely documented. 

Tsang, who is from Hong Kong but has lived in Montreal for 15 years, says art is an excellent way to connect and inform everyday people about the movement. 

"In Hong Kong, there are lots of supporters that are elderly," Tsang said. "They don't join the protest daily, but they see the mascot and they know people will put information there, [they know] that they can look." 

Art can also be used as a medium to voice an opinion, he said. 

Tsang says he's hoping for a stronger show of solidarity from the Canadian government, because "human rights should be a commitment for Canada." 

"We expect them to do more than just saying 'We support Hong Kong,'" he said. "We want them to solve this problem with a dialogue — we want some action." 

Félix St-Germain, a Quebecer who has participated in protests with his fiancé, who is from Hong Kong, says he showed up because he wanted to stand against a totalitarian regime.

"I worry about [my fiancé]," St-Germain said. "Whenever she goes to a protest … it's very scary."

He echoed that the Canadian government should take action to protect human rights. 

Some artists covered their faces as they worked, worried their act of defiance could lead to backlash, especially to families still living in Hong Kong. 

"It's very worrying that a country that's all the way across the world is influencing how we live here in Canada," St-Germain said.