Thousands rally against “casino” Mike
BY CHRISTOPHER
HARRIS
Five thousand people turned out last Sunday May 29 to protest the undemocratic actions of the Baird Government.
Forced council amalgamations, the WestConnex toll road as well as lockout laws and anti-protest laws were among the suite of policy decisions the community believes has slowly derailed democracy in NSW.
David Shoebridge told the crowd: “Look around you, look at how many people are out on the street today, trying to say, we want our neighbourhoods back, we want our environment back, we want our democracy back, thousands here today.”
The protestors referenced U.S. Presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders to illustrate a global movement was taking place to fight for democracy. “It is around the state but it is around the globe too. There is a bloke called Bernie, who is restoring faith in democracy. This is a global movement to get our democracy back,” he said.
WestConnex Action Group spokesperson Pauline Lockie also spoke at the March urging the crowd to contact their federal member about funding for the WestConnex project.
“Why is this State Government so keen on more freeways. Around the world cities like Paris and New York are trying to reduce cars”
“If freeways where so great then Los Angeles would be car heaven, but they are famous for the exact opposite.”
“This federal election counts especially if you contact your federal member and ask what are they going to do to holt the $3.5 billion in federal funding on Australia’s biggest tollroad”
Tyson Koh of KeepSydneyOpen said that young people had borne the brunt of the economic impact.
“Every single time a bar closes its doors, we lose precious space to congregate, spend time with friends, dance. The live music scene has suffered a huge blow in the last couple of years.”
“People have been put out of work, they’re losing their jobs, and there is no acknowledgment that every single taxi driver in this city takes home less pay to be able to feed their families. There is no acknowledgement of the fact that the people who work in these bars at nighttime tend to be younger people.”
