Participants in the Occupy Vancouver movement are hoping to arms themselves with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms so they can keep their growing tent city set up outside the Vancouver Art Gallery, despite the mayor's hopes the encampment will soon be gone.
Since the protest began in downtown Vancouver nearly two weeks ago, participants have not only put up tents but also created a community kitchen, a kid zone, as well as their own radio station. Medical services are being provided by volunteers and a small, steady trickle of donations of food and clothing continues to flow in.
Mayor Gregor Robertson told reporters Monday that he wants to see the tents come down, but demonstrators say he'll have a fight on his hands if he pushes too hard.
"I'm confident the Vancouver police are working with us and is not interested in squashing our right to free speech," Occupy Vancouver spokeswoman Sarah Beuhler told CTV News.
The grounds of the Vancouver Art Gallery are the city's traditional place for freedom of expression. But even the BC Civil Liberties Association believes the grounds must be shared or else the camp should move.
"It is a public space in which clearly other people do have an expectation of reasonable and fair amount of use, and so we are confident that a respectful dialogue with the city and the current demonstrators would come up with creative solutions," the BCCLA's Micheal Vonn said.
Protesters told CTV News they will gladly share the space with the community because they say they are part of the community and they are here to stay.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Peter Grainger.
