Calgary ‘Draw the Line’ rally protests injustice, war and climate inaction

Protests across the world and Canada–including in Calgary–brought different groups and movements together against what they see as injustice, violence and climate destruction policies by governments.

The major event was coordinated in over 65 cities by over 300 climate justice, migrant justice, Indigenous justice, labour rights, anti-war, and Palestine solidarity groups. In Canada’s case, “Draw the Line” protests were aimed at rejecting “the Carney agenda and to demand that the Canadian government prioritize our communities over billionaires.”

The protest at Calgary’s Municipal Building plaza was organized by the Calgary Climate Hub with advocates for migrants, economic justice, Indigenous rights, and anti-war movements.

Executive director Jared Blustein says all these issues are related and intersecting.

“We are standing together as people to say enough, it is time to prioritize our people, our environment, the goodwill of our economies and our societies, and to start investing in the public good and our social contract,” he told CityNews.

The protests, which happened ahead of the federal government tabling its budget on Nov. 4, also included marches in Toronto, Ottawa, Edmonton and Montreal.

Protestors in Calgary say they are drawing the line for people, for peace, and for the planet, and they are calling on all levels of government to start building a just and safe future for all.

“We’re really invested in protecting wild Alberta, and that ties directly into climate action, Indigenous governance, kind of all the issues we’re talking about,” said Sara Heerema with the Alberta Wilderness Association.

“And basically, putting people over profit, and putting the planet over profit, is something we really advocate for.”

Calgarian Zoe Say decided to stop and support the event with her friends.

“It’s a time in the world where standing up for human rights is feeling really, really important and really at threat, especially here in Alberta. So we just wanted to come and lend our support as best we could,” she said.

Line drawn at Canadian government’s actions

Organizers with Draw the Line say multiple issues have led groups to mobilize across the country on Saturday.

Those include fast-tracking major projects through Bill C-5, proposed spending cuts for public sector workers, and the ability to cancel immigration permits through Bill C-2.

It also slams the government’s treatment of the Air Canada flight attendants’ strike, capitulating to U.S. President Donald Trump by rescinding the Digital Services Tax, and arming Israel’s military with lethal weapons–which the federal government has denied. It says it hasn’t issued weapons permits to Israel since 2024, while “non-lethal” equipment permits are still allowed.

Other demands include full immigration status for all, ending trade with Israel, upholding Indigenous sovereignty, and investing in “affordable housing, food, healthcare, transit, education, arts and culture, public services and good jobs that our communities need to thrive.”

Another major demand calls on Canadian governments to end fossil fuel subsidies, and to “kick fossil fuel companies and their lobbyists out of politics.”

While Canada has committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions to 40 to 45 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030, Prime Minister Mark Carney has repealed the consumer carbon price and paused the Liberals’ electric vehicle mandate.

A recent report by the Canadian Climate Institute states Canada’s emissions are about 8.5 per cent below 2005’s numbers, and reaching its emissions target by 2030 would require Canada to lower emissions by 40 million tonnes each year. The climate institute says that’s impossible.

Meanwhile, Carney and his ministers have refused to say whether Canada is still committed to its 2030 and 2035 targets, though the government says it is still focused on hitting net-zero by 2050.

This also comes as Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has demanded changes to the environment file from Carney’s government, including unfettered pipeline access to Canada’s coasts. She also said achieving net-zero by 2035 wasn’t possible, but a 2050 target is more realistic.

She says a recent meeting with Carney was “encouraging” for Alberta, though a pipeline wasn’t included in a list of major projects the federal government is fast-tracking.

In early September, over a month before Calgary’s municipal election, four councillors with the Communities First municipal party motioned to axe the city’s climate emergency declaration, but it was defeated.

Council also voted down other parts of the motion, including a full accounting of all climate-related expenditures.

Regarding protests like Draw the Line, Blustein has a message for those wanting to get involved.

“We really hope and urge that people will actually take the energy from today, turn it into action, start getting involved with local organizations, make a difference in the world because we truly are stronger together,” he said.