The 2001 Quebec protests were a series of popular civil protests and

riots A riot is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The property targeted ...

against the

3rd Summit of the Americas The 3rd Summit of the Americas was a summit held in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, on April 20–22, 2001. This international meeting was a round of negotiations regarding a proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas. The talks are perhaps bette ...

, from 20 to 22 April in

Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Communauté métrop ...

. Mass protests was met with

tear gas Tear gas, also known as a lachrymator agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the early commercial aerosol, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the eye to produce tears. In ad ...

and grenades was thrown by police, who claimed demonstrators were storming buildings. Protests ceased on 22 April.

Background

The province of

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

is known for its history of protest movements, including its movement for independence from Canada. Quebec had seen harsh police repression and

police brutality Police brutality is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by law enforcement against an individual or a group. It is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Police brutality includes, but is not limited to, ...

during previous protests. In 1968, 1974, 1986 and

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

movements occurred throughout the state. Protesters marched for their rights and an end of the

Protests

Police claimed that their actions were justified in protecting delegates from "red-zone" attempts to break through the fence, as well as to violent protesters destroying property and attacking the police, the media, and other protesters. Many protesters accused the police of excessive force, claiming that the police's abundant use of tear gas and

rubber bullets Rubber bullets (also called rubber baton rounds) are a type of baton round. Despite the name, rubber bullets typically have either a metal core with a rubber coating, or are a homogeneous admixture with rubber being a minority component. Altho ...

was both completely disproportionate to the scale of violence, and primarily directed at unarmed, peaceful demonstrators with dispersal of violent protesters an afterthought. A number of protesters were severely injured by rubber bullets; also,

canisters were fired directly at protesters on numerous occasions, in violation of the protocols governing their use. They also criticized the actions of prison authorities. Altogether, the

anti-globalization movement The anti-globalization movement or counter-globalization movement, is a social movement critical of economic globalization. The movement is also commonly referred to as the global justice movement, alter-globalization movement, anti-globalis ...

described the actions of the police in

as an attempt to suppress dissent.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quebec uprising, 2001 2001 protests Anti-globalization protests Protests in Canada Organization of American States 2001 in Quebec

Background

Protests

See also

References